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By The Numbers — The Shared Meal

Americans Eat Really Fast

The meal dissolved as a unit of time at home and re-formed as an occasion outside it.
September 3, 2026
The Numbers Desk

Snacks are now half of Americans’ eating occasions, and no country of the 35 measured spends less time eating.

ENTRIES012
SOURCES005
The Two-Meal Day
001
Portion of American adults' daily eating occasions that are snacks
49%
002
Minutes a day Americans aged 15 and over spend eating as their main activity
66.2
003
...rank among the 35 countries measured (fastest to slowest)
1
Eating On The Side
004
Minutes a day Americans spend eating while also doing something else
16.4minutes
005
Of that time, the portion spent watching television
22.8%
006
Portion spent working
20.4%
The Table Becomes An Event
007
Portion of the eating Americans do as their main activity that happens in restaurant or bar, 2023
6.9%
008
9.3%
009
Percentage of the aforesaid eating done at home rose over the same nine years
7%
010
Portion of Americans who say dining out in 2026 will feel more like a special occasion than a habit
Source: OpenTable
61%
011
Minutes they say they will wait for a walk-in table
Source: OpenTable
39minutes
Fast Food
012
Chance that an American eats breakfast in under five minutes
Source: YouGov
1 in 10