Fear and Loathing in Dining Alone

Earlier today i pondered dim sum or Indian buffet for lunch. i couldn't do either. Not in a weekend.

Weekdays are fine for dining out alone. People will assume you detest your coworkers or have had a tough day. Both good thoughts.

But do that on weekends, and they'll know you're pathetic. No offense, folks who dine alone on weekends. Like i must've mentioned 5 times by now, i get more self-conscious with this notion as i age. Buffets are especially impossible - who's gonna watch your purse while you're out there piling chow on your dewy plate? It might be actually worse to carry it with you every single stroll down grub lane. It's a virtual dilemma.

Which is why the Japanese are way ahead of any other culture that comes to mind. They have sushi bars and ramen bars designed for losers - i mean, singles, like myself. My only gripe: i can still be seen. I still have to make eye contact. (My ideal setting would be facing a wall, with all other patrons dozens of yards away.) Incidentally, the portions over there are much smaller than what we're used to here in America. Maybe that would skim off the guilt and shame of being a loner, who knows.