Car etiquette: The dos and just don’ts of eating in the car

Many of us have strong feelings about this subject, and some people don’t give it a moment’s thought (and, yes, we’re judging them for that).

On a scale of downing a muesli bar on your morning commute to devouring an entire super-sized McValue meal during a drunken taxi ride home, where do you draw the line? And is it okay to do the same thing in other people’s cars as you do in your own? So. Many. Questions. Let’s wade into the social quagmire together and break it all down, one vehicular faux pas at a time.

Dude. This is still rude. But maybe you’re okay with that. If you’ve brought a bag of fast food into a cab, your decision-making process is due for some serious revisions. This is the food equivalent of hotboxing, which should only be undertaken by consenting adults, and although it’s legal in many jurisdictions in the US, it is decidedly not here. The next passenger to get in the car isn’t going to appreciate the lingering pong of your late-night snack.

While drivers’ opinions on this topic differ, the common thread is that it’s rude not to ask before tucking in – or even booking your ride in the first place. Many drivers have a strict ‘no food or drinks’ policy, which isn’t an unreasonable request. Even if you’re given the green light, it’s wise to think twice about tucking in to anything that requires a bib – burritos, chicken wings (BBQ’d or Kentucky Fried), kebabs, footlong meatball subs. If you’ve gotta spread your jaws like the old Reach toothbrush mascot to fit it in your face-hole, you’ll have a nice big cleaning fee to fork out for as well. And for heaven’s sake take your rubbish with you, you filthy animal.

It’s generally accepted that small snacks are okay to munch on in public (think muesli bars, nuts or anything that doesn’t leave crumbs), as long as you’re polite about it. That said, stuffy British etiquette bible Debrett’s describes eating in public as “hypnotically revolting” – even seemingly innocuous behaviours can be amplified to the point of extreme annoyance when in close confines with strangers. Your loud nut-crunching may be another person’s kryptonite, so when you’re in a vehicular situation, always ask before busting out the snacks.

Look, you can always give this a shot but you’re probably setting yourself up for failure. You could try throwing a bribe in there, but if you’re given a firm ‘no’ then don’t continue to argue the point anyway. We’re not saying this situation never happens (we can attest from personal experience that it has – just that one time), but it wasn’t out of desperation or begging and pleading as if our lives depended on it. The driver was totally up for it because we’d built up great rapport through our admittedly excellent back-seat banter and a shared love of the bangin’ tracks he was playing – so it was a natural progression for our party vibe. Our best advice, as always: read the room.

If your driver doesn’t want smelly food in their car or would prefer you didn’t eat, respect their wishes. And if you’re in an Uber, don’t be a jerk and give them a bad rating for asking you to respect their rules. Better still, finish your food before you even hop in.

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