Where does the ‘still at the restaurant’ trend originate from?

It’s no surprise that the last year has been a busy one, both professionally and personally, for Taylor Swift. From releasing her highly anticipated 10th studio album, “Midnights,” last October and hitting the road for her five-continent “Eras Tour,” to breaking up with her longtime beau Joe Alwyn and embarking on a whirlwind — albeit, controversial — romance with The 1975’s Matty Healy, and now, to making headlines with her rumored boyfriend, Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce … the 33-year-old pop star has been “trending” in one capacity or another.

On TikTok, however, she’s garnered additional attention, thanks to a new fad that has steadily increased in popularity this month. Originating from the song “right where you left me,” a bonus track off of her 2020 album “evermore,” which was released during the coronavirus pandemic, the “still at the restaurant” trend revolves around the feeling of being stuck on someone and hoping that one day they’ll come back to you.

Using lyrics from the song, fans are calling attention to their own “still at the restaurant” experiences.

And you’re sitting in front of me
At the restaurant
When I was still the one you want
Cross-legged in the dim light
Everything was just right

“Part of me is still at the restaurant,” Niki Patton (@its.me.nikkk) wrote on Sept. 12. Her video, as of reporting, has more than 2.2 million views and 403,000 likes.

“Everyone thought I left the restaurant, but I just took a walk around the block and came back. I’m still here. I’m still at the restaurant,” @ghurlaluuu wrote in response to Patton’s video. @ghurlaluuu’s comment has more than 15,600 likes.

“I left the restaurant but my ghost still haunts that corner,” @romanovax7 added.

“While 20yo me is moved on and happy, 19yo me is still at the restaurant. she’s still waiting, that version of me will always be waiting,” @_allhailhailey_ also replied.

Metaphorically, the lines convey that the speaker or protagonist of the story is “right where you left me.” She’s “still at the restaurant” emotionally, and is lamenting “when I was still the one you want.” Instead of moving on, she chooses to wait indefinitely for their return.

While Swift hasn’t confirmed who the song may be about, fans have taken to social media to speculate. Several theories have come to light; some speculate that the song is about Swift herself, or refers to 19th century poet Emily Dickinson’s “lifelong affair” with Susan Gilbert, or refers to Swift’s falling out with her former bestie, model Karlie Kloss.

The Swift-Kloss theory has circulated widely among Swifties because of the opening lyrics, “right where you left me”:

Friends break up, friends get married

Swift and Kloss were often spotted together during the 33-year-old’s “Red” and “1989” eras, which began in 2012 and 2014 respectively. Kloss, a former Victoria’s Secret Angel, wed husband Josh Kushner in 2018 and another ceremony was held in 2019. Swift did not attend either of them.

“The first is a song about a girl who stayed forever in the exact spot where her heart was broken, completely frozen in time,” Swift wrote of “right where you left me” on Instagram prior to its release.

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