At a time when Americans seem split on nearly everything — from vaccine mandates to interpretations of free speech — one of the last places where people from different walks of life still sit side by side may be your local Applebee's.

Step into any suburban chain restaurant in America on a Saturday night and you'll see it: teenagers in prom gear snapping selfies by the hostess stand, a family of five wrangling crayons and chicken tenders, retirees splitting a molten chocolate cake, and a construction crew in neon vests crowding a corner booth.

In a country where political and cultural rifts run so deep that 80 percent of adults say the nation is "greatly divided on the most important values," that shared booth is worth noticing.

That's the conclusion of a 2023 study by economist Max

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