Years ago, I noticed an unexpected phenomenon. I had recently moved to New York, and on my afternoon rush hour commute I saw people eating as they rode in the subway. This wasn’t an instance of children eating prepackaged snacks to hold them over until dinner. Nor were these commuters simply munching on vending machine fare, anticipating a late meal out. Instead, this was their dinner. Here were people sitting by themselves on the train eating their entire dinner out of a…