15 Comments
Aug 20Liked by Justin Myers

You can be lonely in a crowd. I don’t feel lonely when I’ve chosen to go to a restaurant on my own. It’s one of my great pleasures in life. I did it yesterday at Manzis - grilled fish of the day, cocktail and a glass of white wine. Lush.

Expand full comment
Aug 17Liked by Justin Myers

They call us lonely when we’re really just alone - might just be my favourite lyric of all time. I feel greatly blessed that I’m very comfortable in my own company.

Expand full comment
Aug 17Liked by Justin Myers

One of my favourite food movies, which no one else ever seems to have seen, is Dinner Rush. There's a character in it who gets a seat alone at the bar and has dinner and it just makes eating alone look so cool - in a way which I would never because he's chatting to the people around him.

Expand full comment
Aug 16Liked by Justin Myers

I love eating out alone now, more so than I did when younger and a bit more self conscious. I think part of it is not having to talk to anybody, or deal with anybody (other than the wait staff, obviously), which I suppose is a lot to do with being the parent of young kids. Just me and my Kindle, a glass of wine and a lovely lunch. Bliss!

Expand full comment
founding

I often go to restaurants alone and I can assure you that plenty of apparent couples are in fact having solitary meals in the sole company of their screens. And that, my friend, is truly pathetic.

Expand full comment
Aug 16Liked by Justin Myers

Perhaps it’s because I had many great examples of “ladies that lunch alone” growing up, it always seemed a nice thing to do. Of course, being a Southerner, often people come over and ask if they may join me, no matter where I may be. Plus, I think because I am the eldest in my family and married young, simply being alone to dine or grab a bite, feels like such luxury. I love everything about it. From walking into a restaurant and being seated and then choosing what to have and dining with myself or sharing my table with someone I have never met. I don’t read at table because it’s so nice to eat food someone else prepared and I love to watch people (discreetly) and enjoy my dining alone. Excellent article!

Expand full comment
Aug 16Liked by Justin Myers

It's for lines such as "Call it self-care if you like – a term I find overly clinical, it brings to mind gently rubbing cream into eczema..." that keeps me coming back. Exactly.

Expand full comment

I use to dine alone a lot, due to being relocated many times by my company. I became the 'Great Pretender' seldom enjoying a hurried meal, I even used to dress up. It was all a front. I was alone and hated it...

Expand full comment