zoo

something that you say when a group of people are eating together in a way that is not controlled or organized I see it's feeding time at the zoo. I'd better help myself to some food before it's all gone.

Also, what a zoo. This is a place or situation of confusion and/or disorder. For example, Mary's got all these house guests with children and pets-it's a zoo, or We're in the midst of moving our office and files are all over the place-what a zoo! [Slang; late 1800s]

An apartment house in which many female flight attendants lived. Back in prepolitically correct days, female flight attendants were called “stewardesses” and had the reputation for being attractive and, even better to the male mind, “fun” (Frank Sinatra's hit ballad “Come Fly with Me” became something of an anthem). Stewardesses (or a many self-styled hip males called them “stewardii”) shared apartments, a rentsaving arrangement that appealed to their lifestyle because one or more was usually traveling. Apartment buildings in large cities, especially ones with easy access to airports, that attracted the young women were known as “stew zoos.”