There’s something deeply comforting about sitting on the floor, reaching across banana leaves, and sharing a meal without worrying about plates or cutlery. In Indonesia, this is known as liwetan. But this isn't just about food-it’s about connection.
Across Southeast Asia, communal eating isn’t a trend. It’s a tradition that speaks of our values: togetherness, humility, equality, and celebration.
Whether it's liwetan in Indonesia, boodle fight in the Philippines, or makan dulang in Malaysia, one thing is clear: in this region, we don’t just eat-we gather.
What Is Liwetan?
Originating in Javanese culture, liwetan refers to a communal feast where people sit together on the floor, often cross-legged, to share food that is laid out on a long stretch of banana leaves. There are no plates, no personal portions. Everyone eats with their hands, digging into rice, side dishes, sambal, and fried treats placed along the leaf-covered table.
Traditionally, liwetan is served during religious or community gatherings-marking gratitude, unity, and humility. But in recent years, liwetan has gained popularity as a fun, meaningful way to reconnect-with colleagues, friends, or even strangers.
It’s not just about what’s on the banana leaf. It’s about removing hierarchy, encouraging conversation, and creating a shared experience through food.
Boodle Fight: The Filipino Version
In the Philippines, the boodle fight is practically a sibling of liwetan. Born from military tradition, it involves laying food over banana leaves and having everyone eat with their hands-fast and together, as if in battle.
The term "boodle fight" refers to the idea of unity and equality. Everyone shares the same food, no one is served first, and the act of eating becomes an equalizer.
Today, boodle fights have become popular during family reunions, office outings, and birthdays. Like liwetan, it’s about bonding, laughter, and the joyful messiness of shared eating.
Makan Dulang and Other Regional Styles
In Malaysia and Brunei, the makan dulang tradition involves several people sharing food from a large round tray (dulang), usually while sitting on the floor. While more structured than liwetan or boodle fights, the values behind it are similar-togetherness, humility, and respect.
Often seen during weddings or religious festivities, makan dulang represents a gesture of community and family. It’s common in Malay and Muslim households, where eating in groups symbolizes harmony.
Similar traditions can be seen in southern Thailand, parts of Cambodia and Laos, and even Viet Nam-especially in rural communities or during ancestral ceremonies.
Why It Matters: Culture, Connection, and Equality
Eating together in this way does more than fill stomachs. It reminds us of who we are.
In many Southeast Asian societies, where collectivism is a core value, these communal eating traditions reinforce the idea that life is not a solo journey. Meals are not just personal rituals but collective celebrations. Sitting close to one another, sharing the same food, and using bare hands removes distance and breaks social barriers.
Liwetan and its counterparts bring people of different backgrounds together. It invites guests to be equals, not just participants. And in a world that often divides people by status or screen time, this kind of grounded interaction is refreshing.
From Tradition to Trend: A New Wave of Communal Feasting
Interestingly, these traditions are also being rediscovered by younger generations. In Indonesia, liwetan has moved beyond traditional homes and into urban cafes and social media feeds. Instagram is filled with colorful spreads of banana-leaf feasts arranged for birthdays, office team building, and even weddings.
In the Philippines and Malaysia, social media has helped revive interest in traditional group meals-making them trendy again among Gen Z and millennials. What once seemed old-fashioned is now seen as meaningful, aesthetic, and proudly local.
It shows that even in a modern, fast-paced world, people still long for connection-and sometimes, that begins with sitting cross-legged and reaching for sambal.
More Than Just Food
From liwetan to boodle fights and makan dulang, Southeast Asia has no shortage of beautiful, flavorful ways to connect through food. These traditions aren’t just culinary curiosities-they're living examples of how we care, share, and celebrate.
So the next time someone invites you to a meal without plates, without chairs, and with everyone dipping into the same dishes-don’t be shy. Join in. Share a story. Pass the sambal. Because in this part of the world, the best meals are the ones we eat together.
