Dining Out

My neighbor across the hall is a single mother with an 11-year-old son. She is divorced from her son’s father and shares custody, but her son will be there this coming Shabbos. She invited me over for Shabbos lunch. Is an 11-year-old boy able to negate yichud?

My employer holds mandatory weekly meetings at a non-kosher restaurant. The restaurant is cafeteria style and also sells some factory produced items with kosher certification that are intended for carryout but nevertheless ready to eat. Am I permitted to eat these items during the meetings at the same table while everyone else there eats non-kosher food?

In the city I am visiting, there is a kosher cafeteria that is the only place in the area to get readymade kosher meals. They have dairy, meat, and pareve foods that are made with separate equipment and labeled accordingly. They have tables where one can eat the foods purchased there and disposable cutlery to eat it with. I have observed irreligious Jews (and non-Jews) eating both dairy and meat simultaneously (e.g. a slice of pizza and a hamburger). I told the mashgiach my concerns, and he says he vouches for what goes on in the kitchen, but does not certify the tables, and I have to use my judgement with my comfort level with the tables. Are such tables treif to eat off of?

Traditionally, tips in a restaurant are not legally required, but it is rude not to pay them. Common etiquette says if you can’t afford to tip, don’t eat at that restaurant. I find that hard because of social pressure. What does Halacha say about tipping? I am not well off, but I often find myself forced by social circumstances to eat in a restaurant and pay for my own meal. Affording a tip no matter how small is a struggle for me.

If a Jew were to eat at a non-kosher restaurant, is it preferable that he not wear a kippah while doing so in order to not mislead others? The reason I am asking is because I personally know a couple like that. They wear the costumes of Orthodox Jews (the husband wears a kippah and the wife wears an orthodox style hair covering and long skirts). But they dine out at non-kosher vegan restaurants. They are not intentionally being rebellious. This is just the level they are at. The first time I met them, I saw them entering a non-kosher vegan restaurant in a shopping center I frequent. Seeing what appeared to be an orthodox couple entering this restaurant, I asked them if the restaurant was kosher because I wasn’t familiar with it being on the list of kosher restaurants in town. They explained to me that it has no supervision, but they are comfortable eating at almost any vegan restaurant. This encounter led to a friendship with this couple in which I learned they also drive to synagogue on Shabbos when the weather is not conducive to walking. When non-orthodox Jews enter non-kosher restaurants, we think of this as normal behavior on their part. But the very sight of a man in a kippah entering a non-kosher restaurant might confuse others into believing it is kosher. So wouldn’t it be better if a Jew who plans to eat there remove his kippah before doing so?

I like to be generous about giving out “likes” on social media. But I have lots of friends who are non-observing Jews. And they often post pictures of themselves dining at non-kosher restaurants. Even worse, I have seen several of them post pictures of weddings, either of themselves or relatives intermarrying. These people are not rebelling against Jewish law. They just don’t know better and explaining it to them won’t help them understand it either. They don’t perceive they are doing anything wrong. Am I required by Halacha to refrain from “liking” these posts?