If one”s sukkah is in his yard. Then if one washes and eats bread in the sukkah or, is one allowed to go back into his house to use the restroom or to retrieve some food. Would this ruling differ if one just ate mezonos or some shehakol. Whould it also make a differance if one just left his sukkah but did”t do all the way back to his house.
Answer:
One who ate a kzayis [olive sized] piece of bread or any mezonos which requires a Al Hamichya [excluding rice] has the status of something that needs a bracha “in it’s place”. So one who leaves is required to come back to say the bracha achrona. For this type of food you can leave the sukkah, and return to continue eating without a new bracha. Due to some halachic doubt, aside from bread, leaving and returning should be avoided if possible [see below for exceptions].
For non mezonos – such as shehakol, haadama and fruit [which are not from the seven species] which only require borei nefashos. Once one leaves the sukkah, whether to his house or even outside, upon return he would be required to make a new bracha to continue eating. This should not be done unless necessary.
2 Exceptions – even when eating non mezonos –
1) if the sukka is within your private enclosed yard and from there to your house, the yard [and sukka inside] maybe considered different “rooms” of the house. In that case even exiting the sukka and returning would not require a new bracha,ike going from room to room in a house.
2) If you began eating with another person, even when you leave and return, you do not need a new bracha as long as that person remains in the place of eating and is there when you return.
Sources:
The intricate and complex laws of changing one’s place during eating are detailed in Shulchan Aruch O:C 178.
