Meat and Milk Eaten at One Table

OU Kosher

Q. My friend is eating a slice of pizza for lunch and I am eating a hamburger. Can we eat together at the same table?

A. Chazal prohibited two people eating meat and dairy at the same table (Shulchan Aruch YD 88:1). Since both foods are kosher, Chazal were concerned that one person might absent-mindedly take food from the other person’s plate. However, if there is heker (reminder) that the other food is off-limits, they may eat together. Here are some common ways to establish a heker:

  1. The person eating the hamburger eats on a placemat designated for meat, and the one eating dairy eats on a placemat designated for dairy (YD 88:2).
  2. The person eating the hamburger eats on a tablecloth and the one eating dairy eats without a tablecloth, or vice versa (ibid.).
  3. A object with some height (such as a purse, but not a key or coin) is placed on the table between the two people. The object should be something that is not used during the meal, or it is an item that is not typically found on the table (Rama 88:2).

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The Gerald & Karin Feldhamer OU Kosher Halacha Yomis is dedicated to the memory of Rav Yisroel Belsky, zt"l, who served as halachic consultant for OU Kosher for more than 28 years; many of the responses in Halacha Yomis are based on the rulings of Rabbi Belsky. Subscribe to the Halacha Yomis daily email here.