Dining Out Alone

One of the biggest stigmas I faced was going to eat in restaurants alone. Sure, I’d make dates with my male friends to go out, but often I was on my own.

One of the ways that made eating out alone easy was frequenting the same restaurant often. Once a week, or a couple of times a month.

Getting to know the waitresses, managers and owners of where I ate was a big boost in my circle of friends (or at least the people I could talk to socially) and made me less conspicuous (I felt) seated alone.

Getting to know the menu and picking favorite meals made several restaurants feel like home, comfortable places to slip into on days when I didn’t have a date and didn’t want to be alone at home with my macaroni and cheese.

Other dining out alone pointers to keep in mind:

- Always remember to tip well. That helps your server’s memory and will improve your service on successive visits.

- Memorize your servers names, and other staff as best as you can.

- If the restaurant isn’t too large or busy, find out the name of the chef, possibly even tipping him/her for an especially well prepared meal.

- Prepare to eat earlier or later than the ‘dining out crowd’ so you can get better, unhurried, service. This will also allow you ‘small talk’ time with your servers and other available staff, once you become a regular customer.

And most importantly, enjoy the food and the people that work where you eat. Don’t accept one without the other.