Your comment just made me think.  Except for when I was a child living with my parents and could not prepare my own food, I don't recall ever asking anybody for food.  When I go over to my friends houses (Asian parents) they always offer me food and I take just a little bit to be polite (and if I would say no, they would say I'm too skinny, so better to have a bit of rice and vegetables and a few small pieces of meat), but never have I asked somebody (who wasn't my parent) if I could have some food.