Do restaurants in countries outside of the USA always serve a straw with a drink?

Asked by JLeslie (65448) September 7th, 2018 from iPhone

I’ve traveled to many countries, and for the life of me I can’t remember.

As you probably know, there is a big push in the US right now to reduce the amount of plastic straws being used. A lot of people who never use straws at home, for some reason have to use a straw in a restaurant. Why? I don’t get it. Is it the ice? More ice in the restaurant glass?

It got me wondering if restaurants in other countries always give a straw with a soft drink. Many other countries don’t use the amount of ice America does in a drink, and plus maybe they just don’t have the custom of using straws so much.

Another thing is why do people always put a lid on their drink at fast food? It’s another plastic item. I don’t. Not unless I’m taking it to go, which is very rare for me.

So, let me know the country and if they use straws all the time or not.