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In defense of solo dining in Europe

Posted by (Atlanta, GA, USA) on

I know the post was locked and the admins may kill me but…

  1. Packed restaurant in Paris. “Oh it’s just one. Give us a minute, here is a table”
  2. Packed restaurant in Rome. Not only did I get a table. But because I was alone I got special tastes. They would show up with “just a little something we had left”
  3. Crowded restaurant in Paris. Man at table next to me starts a conversation. Turns out he had been a visiting professor at my university. He then decided the wine I had was not good enough and gave me part of his outstanding botttle
  4. Restaurant in soho in London when I was much younger. As I got up to leave the manager appeared. A cab had been ordered for me because they were worried about the behavior of some young men near me. When I tried to pay the cab the driver told me the restaurant had paid. ( meal probably cost 20 pounds)
  5. Michelin restaurant in Paris. They saw me looking at the menu, invited me in, flirted harmlessly with the 60 year old and provided me the meal of a lifetime.
  6. Restaurant in Athens. The owner would dance. He swooped me up and danced with me because “mama is gone”. I had been there a few days earlier with my mother but she had left

I love dining solo in Europe. I find it much more welcoming than here.

Thanks for reminding me of some outstanding memories. And I have a lot more.

Posted by
336 posts

I’ve dined solo all over the world. I’ve never really encountered any issues doing so.

Posted by
469 posts

The previous thread was shut down by the time I saw it. I wanted to say that while, in my experience, the OP of the original thread is not alone and I have had those experiences, the instances have been few, far between, and I can't remember any in the past decade. Occasionally, I have felt that I had to wait longer for a table than a party of 2 who arrived after me, but it is not always clear who had a reservation or not in some instances. Overall, I have had many more positives experiences like Carol's.

My strategies for dining alone while traveling are: Eagerly take a seat at the bar if that is an option. Often that ends up being an advantage of dining solo in that it is easier to find a single seat at the bar of a popular restaurant than several seats together.

If the reservation app does take res for 1, then you know you will be seated and welcomed. If the app doesn't take a res for 1, call and ask. The few times I have tried this, they have apologized for the app and graciously taken the reservation. My advice is don't let an occasional negative experience color your appetite for solo travel.

edited: At the time I posted the above, I hadn't seen how the thread had turned negative.

Posted by
336 posts

Forgetting about the previous negativity, I think Carol’s post highlights that dining solo can be done. There is no shame in dining by oneself. People do it for all sorts of reasons: On a business trip, travelling solo, to get out of the house, to have some down time if you’ve been amongst people all day. Don’t feel like cooking.

I know some people aren’t comfortable and that’s fair, I used to be uncomfortable as well. Then I realized I was missing out.

Posted by
139 posts

I'm single, I turn 50 next month, I've traveled all over Europe solo, and I have never had an issue getting a table in places like Rome, Paris, Madrid, etc, etc. If I know a particular restaurant is popular and I don't have a reservation (or a place doesn't accept reservations) then I arrive right when it opens, and I've never had a problem getting a seat. Yes, sometimes I will be shown to a seat at the bar which I have absolutely no problem with, but more often than not, I get a table. Just my experience.

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