Communal Tables

30 W 22nd St, New York, NY 10010 (map)

Conversations get heated--literally--at this 16-seat table with a fire pit in the middle. Parties of two or three can make reservations to play out their ski lodge fantasies. Just make sure you don't pass that business card across the table.

39 Downing St, New York, NY 10014 (map)

The long, 12-seat wood table is modeled after ones in French farmhouses. If it's not reserved for large parties, it's used for communal dining, so be sure to call ahead.

264 Elizabeth St, New York, NY 10012 (map)

For those really into group scenes, the white farmhouse table located at the heart of the restaurant is often reserved for two parties of six. Do your best to refrain from games of Red Rover.

73 Gansevoort St, New York, NY 10014 (map)

The Meatpacking District is all about "meet," and the seats at this Mexican restaurant's long table are so close together, making new friends is just about unavoidable.

75 9th Ave, New York, NY 10011 (map)

Chinese food is perfect for sharing, so if you're really hitting it off with a neighbor at the 24-seat table in this single magnet's downstairs dining room, swap bites of your dishes and see whose is the spiciest.

30 W 26th St, New York, NY 10010 (map)

In true Texas fashion, the communal table in the downstairs of this barbecue theme park is ginormous. Added bonus: Bands play the room some nights, adding even more of a festive mood.

314 Bedford Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11211 (map)

Until a rumored expansion happens, diners wait patiently for a turn at the eight-person table in the center of this Williamsburg burger joint--it's the only one in the tiny place!

53 W 19th St, New York, NY 10011 (map)

They don't take reservations at this Flatiron favorite for tapas, so get there early for one of the 16 communal-dining seats, spread out over two tables. Before you know it, you may be sharing a pitcher of sangria with a perfect stranger.