Q: Is it necessary to cover one’s head whilst eating food? We have a local scholar who we visit at his house, and many times we see him at his house that he keeps his head uncovered. He even sits down to eat with us without wearing a hat. Is this ok to do?
A: One of the great Indian Hanafi and Hadith scholars, Imam Abd al-Hayy al-Lakhnawi (Allah have mercy on him) stated in his Fatawa book:
“Question: Is it permissible to eat with keeping one’s head uncovered? Answer: There is no problem (la ba’s) with that, and this is the preferred opinion.” (Naf’ al-Mufti wa al-sa’il, P. 376)
It is stated in the Hanafi Fiqh reference book, al-Fatawa al-Hindiyya: “There is nothing wrong in eating with the head uncovered, and this is the preferred opinion, as mentioned in al-Khulasa (m, name of a book).” (al-fatawa al-Hindiyya, 5/337)
Therefore, there is nothing drastically wrong in eating with the head exposed or uncovered. However, due to the fact that covering the head (with a turban or hat) is a Sunnah, one should aspire to keep it covered whenever reasonably possible.
And Allah knows best