No such thing as free dinner? Plenty to chew on

Soon, I saw them setting up a buffet table. My Chinese friend suddenly looked embarrassed. She thought it was OK for my Eritrean friend to invite me, but she, being a stranger, should not have rushed in for a "free" meal. My Eritrean friend arrived just then to put her at ease. Even the restaurant manager came to our table to ensure we were enjoying ourselves and requested we take some food home, too.

My Eritrean friend told me they had organized food for an event, but somehow a lot of food was left over. Not wanting to throw it away, they asked patrons to ask all their friends to come and enjoy it, for free.

My European friend was particularly happy, and said it was his first savory meal after gorging on cakes all day.

In the end, there was so much food, we took long pauses and talked after every bite to honor the message the country had sent a few years ago by launching an "empty your plate" campaign. I particularly appreciated seeing the hosts collect some leftover injera from our plates to keep aside for the guests they were still expecting. Because the bread was torn, those recipients would clearly know they were being served leftovers of leftovers.

Thinking of the many who are dying of starvation in Gaza and others who might be equally inconvenienced in other conflict zones, I felt it was a novel initiative undertaken by whoever thought of it and should be replicated by more restaurants and individuals.