You Can Tell Someone's Highly Intelligent Just By Noticing These 11 Things While They Eat
Their eating habits are more telling than you'd expect.
PeopleImages | Shutterstock While intelligent people are often defined by their desire to seek mental stimulation and the daily habits that support their complex hobbies and workplace rituals, even small things, like eating a meal, characterize their intellect. They’re intentional, mindful, and always in pursuit of deeper meaning, even at the dinner table.
You eat every single day. In fact, you likely spend more than an hour every single day eating, with meals often being the one constant structure in your life. So, why not make it a ritual that’s intentional and that truly adds purpose to your routine? You can tell someone’s highly intelligent just by noticing these things while they eat — they care about what they’re putting into their bodies, and they’re guided by a sense of meaning and purpose to make the most of this time.
You can tell someone's highly intelligent just by noticing these 11 things while they eat
1. They eat with intention
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Eating slowly often influences healthy food intake habits, according to a study from the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, but it also adds a layer of intentionality and purpose to otherwise-mundane eating habits. By eating slowly, you truly appreciate the ritual of eating, adding gratitude to your life.
That’s why you can always tell someone’s highly intelligent just by noticing how mindful they are with consumption and eating at the dinner table. Even if they’re not actively attaching an intention to each bite, they’re letting the time and ritual of eating dinner or grabbing a pastry for breakfast be more than a mindless ritual.
2. They notice subtle flavors and ingredients
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Intellectuals often eat more slowly and intentionally, but they also have a strong attention to detail that allows them to pick up on subtle flavors and ingredients in their food. They’re always talking about subtle seasonings and ingredients everyone else easily overlooks, because their brains are naturally wired to seek out depth, stimulation, and complexities.
A study from Current Research in Food Science found that there are many links between eating habits and personality traits, with sensory seeking influencing taste, food preferences, and general eating habits more than the average person may realize.
3. They're always trying new things
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While there are many explorative dishes and eccentric meals that the average person refuses to eat, you can tell someone’s highly intelligent just by noticing their openness to these foods. Their intelligence is often defined by their inherent “openness,” not just to new experiences, perspectives, and insights, but also to meals and foods they’ve never tried before.
So, if you have one adventurous friend or novelty-seeking partner who’s always diving headfirst into trying new foods, even while everyone else expresses their disgust or fear, chances are they’re more innately intelligent than people give them credit for.
4. They respect other people's choices
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According to a study from the journal Intelligence, highly intelligent people also tend to be more empathetic and prosocial — taking great care in how they interact with and talk to others. Even when they’re at the dinner table or sharing a meal, they’re thoughtful about respecting other people’s food choices.
Even if that means offering up the last slice of pizza — one that they’d really like to eat themselves — to others who haven’t eaten as much, you can tell someone’s highly intelligent just by noticing these things while they eat.
5. They're comfortable with discomfort
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Whether it’s eating a meal they’ve never tried before or going to a restaurant they don’t normally like, you can tell someone’s highly intelligent just by noticing their flexibility around food. To ensure other people feel good and to even push themselves out of their comfort zone, they’re willing to try things they don’t like and be adaptable to change.
According to a study from Personality and Individual Differences, adaptability and flexibility are positively associated with intelligence in all different parts of life. From meeting new people to trying out new skills in a job, highly intelligent people are more likely to lean into discomfort and change than simply say “no” or stay in their comfort zone.
6. They don't mind eating alone
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According to neuroscientist Joseph Jebelli, intelligent people often like solitude and spending time alone with their own thoughts, which is why you can tell someone is smart by noticing their appreciation for eating alone. They’re not afraid to go out to dinner at a restaurant alone or make a meal just for themselves at home.
While things like self-awareness, reflection, and internal gratification often stem from this appreciation of alone time for highly intelligent people, according to a study published in the Guilford Press Periodicals, sometimes it’s simply that they just like the quietness and peace of eating alone.
7. They can eat and converse well
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Highly intelligent people often boast a strong sense of social awareness. They not only thrive in reading the room and sensing energetic shifts in conversations, but they also know how to eat with other people while still keeping the conversation flowing.
They’re comfortable with the occasional silence or lull in conversation, but you can tell someone’s highly intelligent when they’re just socially aware enough to eat and converse well at the dinner table.
8. They chew mindfully
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Even though there are certainly table manners that have gone out of style, things like chewing with their mouth closed and finishing their bite before speaking are all signs that someone is highly intelligent. They’re mindful of their eating habits with other people, ensuring that they’re not making others uncomfortable by trying to speak before swallowing or finishing their meal before others have received theirs.
While personality traits do often influence a person’s table manners, sometimes for the wrong reasons, you can tell someone’s highly intelligent just by noticing certain mannerisms while they eat in a shared space.
9. They appreciate balance with food
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Highly intelligent people often understand the nuances of food habits and eating patterns. They know that restriction and punishment around food often lead to worsened health and wellness, but they’re not eating mindlessly without considering balance.
Whether that means opting for a vegetable while eating birthday cake at dinner or being smart about the kinds of groceries they buy every week, you can tell someone’s highly intelligent just by noticing their appreciation for balance with food.
10. They love telling stories during a meal
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While nostalgia and deep-rooted feelings around food can be bittersweet for some, according to a study from the Health Promotion Journal of Australia, highly intelligent people know when to make space for them in their conversations and meals. They’re always bringing people together with food and picking thoughtful stories to tell at group dinners — all for the sake of connection and intention.
Even if intelligent people are often characterized by their complexities and mental stimulation-seeking behaviors, the truth is that their empathy and thoughtfulness are just as noticeable and appreciated.
11. They use all of their senses
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Part of the reason why highly intelligent people have such intentional and healthy relationships with food is balance and mindfulness, but they’re also highly sensory. They use all their senses, smelling beverages and tasting new foods in ways that make eating an experience, no matter where they are or who they’re with.
They’re far from “mindless eaters,” because they put a lot of focus, intention, and thought into appreciating the food they consume on an everyday basis.
Zayda Slabbekoorn is a senior editorial strategist with a bachelor’s degree in social relations & policy and gender studies who focuses on psychology, relationships, self-help, and human interest stories.
