“Here’s your wine list, your menu . . . You want, like, a magazine or something? It’s gonna be boring if you’re just sitting by yourself.” This scene in the movie Forgetting Sarah Marshall when the waiter (Jonah Hill) seats Jason Segel’s character is close to the reaction I get when I tell people I had dinner out alone. Cue the sad looks, the awkward “Oh!” exclamation, and my personal favorite, “I could never do that.” But why not? Have you ever tried?
Eating alone may sound depressing, but it’s actually the best way to dine. You don’t have to keep up a conversation, you don’t have to share, you have zero distractions, and you can focus on the most important thing: the food. That’s why you came in the first place, right? As much as I enjoy good company and a good meal, sometimes it’s nice to be able to separate the two. You can relax and have some time to think to yourself. People watching really is the best part. And the conversations that surround you are entertainment enough.
The first time I went to a restaurant by myself, I was having a terrible day. You’d think that eating alone would only make it worse but it was actually therapeutic. I didn’t want to talk to anyone and I wanted to just shut out the world while I ate my damn food. I didn’t text anyone back and I didn’t scroll through Instagram. It was me, myself, and my heaping plate of spaghetti carbonara. Carbs really do solve any problem, but it was so great to enjoy my food without anyone else bothering me. I left that restaurant feeling significantly better.
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