Some people just aren’t comfortable being alone. So any activity that is perceived as a social event just exacerbates that discomfort. Me, I like being alone. If I weren’t married, I’d spend HUUUUGE chunks of my time as alone as I could manage.
I have no problem with going to a movie alone (y’know what’s the best? When you’re the only one in the theater and you can talk to the screen), but I don’t like to eat at sit-down places by myself. I can’t read and eat and so I get bored. And I feel out of place. Fast food places? No problem.
Part of it is I tend to always be eating by myself, and if I don’t even have the cats for company it’s even more lonely.
I tend to like being alone, but it gets tiresome eating by myself.
I don’t like eating alone at a sit down resteraunt because I always feel that I get worse service when I do. The waiter always seems to take twice as long to get to me and bring me my order. I’m not sure if that’s actually true or just my perception since I don’t have anyone to talk to to pass the time. I need to start bringing something to read.
If anything, I feel like the server is even more interested in giving me good service when I’m alone. It might be the novelty of an easy table; one person and I’m a pretty easy-going customer. It might just be that without more people there, the server has all their attention on you and you on them.
I always have something with me, whether it’s a book, my iPod (with audiobooks and casual games), or my Nintendo DS (with e-books; video games require a little too much attention while dining). I have no problems being alone and often prefer to be; I can do things exactly as I like without having to seek compromise with someone. I’ll gladly sit alone at the movie theater, and I try to go to middle-of-the-week matinees where there’s maybe four other people in the theater. Comfortable chairs, big screen, cool air, total focus on the movie. Very, very relaxing.
Yeah, it should be "a movie and dinner, not “dinner and a movie.”
But you might want to go see a movie that none of your friends/family want to see. I’ll probably go see “Where in the World is Osama Bin Laden” by myself.
I kinda thought of it as the opposite. The server is hoping for a nice table of 4 to build up a good bill and a decent tip. But instead one of their tables is wasted on one person.
I’ve eaten in restaurants thousands of times since I was a teenager, and I can count on the fingers of one hand the times when I’ve not been alone. The same goes for movies.
I refuse to eat at the bar, because it’s always too crowded, too noisy, and there isn’t enough space to read my book.
For the person who mentioned high school, I would have loved to eat alone then too, but the cafeteria was too small and there were never any empty tables (I will not sit with strangers!), so after the first week of freshman year I’d just skip lunch and go to the school library.
I wouldn’t feel conspicuous because I never pay attention to other people anyway and don’t give a shit about what anyone else is thinking. I would feel antsy if I didn’t have anything to read though, because I’d be jonesing for something, ANYTHING to read. I can’t NOT read while I eat. My husband and I had one of those “soul mates” moments when we realized we both liked to read while we eat. YAY! No more assholes telling us we were being rude. People who see us together must think we hate each other because we both have our noses in books, but they probably don’t see us holding hands across the table, or if the food has come, playing footsies.
However, he travels a lot for work, so we end up eating out alone all the time.
We both go to the movies by ourselves a lot too. It’s nice when we’re together and see things, but when we’re apart we go anyway. We’re movie buffs, and we go to the theater to see the MOVIE. The thought of staying home just because we couldn’t find anyone to go with us is alien and foreign. The people who notice us alone enough to even give it a second thought in a negative fashion are the losers, not us.
It just appears that you are lonely and in need of a date. I don’t really know why but I feel weird going into an eating establishment by myself. I always arm myself with a newspaper to pass the time and avoid inane conversation from people around me.
Or maybe I just don’t like people and just want to eat my food in peace.
I don’t mind eating alone. I’d rather eat alone than with people I’m not comfortable with. The latter gives me indigestion.
As for movies/performances, I’d rather go alone than drag along someone else who’s not really interested.
When I was younger I’d travel alone, eat alone, go to movies alone, etc. I reached a certain age and it wasn’t so fun anymore. Maybe it’s because I’m not so open to making new friends along the way or something.
I’ll still eat & go to a movie alone if it’s easier than trying to find someone who shares my tastes, but I’ll never vacation alone. Business travel or moving maybe, but I’d rather sit at home than vacation alone.
When I was in the military there were tons of people, I’d say almost all people, who’d rather starve than go to the chow hall and eat alone. I never got that.
I don’t like to eat out alone – mostly its boring. I can’t think of any culinary experience I’d enjoy that wouldn’t be way more enjoyable with people to share it with. It is the very rare person whose company I can’t enjoy for an hour.
I don’t eat alone by choice in my own home either. When I lived with roommates I often cooked them dinner just for the company.
I’m currently on a road trip. By myself. It’s great. I can go where I want, stay where I want, eat what I want. I’ve met a whole bunch of new people. It’s not the same as going as a couple are with a bunch of friends, but it’s just as much fun.
Tip for single diners: try and find restaurants where you can get full service at the bar!
For me, it depends a bit on the restaurant. I’d certainly eat alone at a fast food place or the little burrito place around the corner. There’s just a vibe that it’s all right if I want to keep to myself and read something. Stick me in an Applebee’s alone and I’d just feel, kinda lame for being there by myself, taking up a whole table, and not being joyous and convivial like all the silly decorations clearly want me to.
Sunday afternoon movie by myself? No problem.
Can you not entertain yourself with your own thoughts for an hour? Do you know people who can make themselves laugh out loud? They are sitting quietly in a room or waiting for a bus and suddenly start laughing. I’ve seen my husband do that. I’ve heard that Stephen Hawking does that sometimes. I suspect several Dopers probably do that frequently.
I used to think that I ate alone in college because I was shy. Now I think it’s because I enjoyed the solitude.
I love eating alone. Like others, I usually have a book or two on me. If I eat out with my husband, it always becomes a bigger deal. When I do it alone, I feel free and spoiled. I don’t give a hoot what others may think, I know I feel great.
My guy is great, but we don’t have similar tastes in movies so I occasionally go alone. Next week I’m seeing the Dark Knight movie without him-- he really hates superhero movies, or sf, or crime movies, or any movie that isn’t jolly and positive.
Another thing I used to love to do alone is go to jazz clubs. I used to know almost all the musicians around town, but I hardly go anymore because my husband insists on coming with me-- even though he may be alternating between checking his watch and dozing off. I still haven’t managed to convince him that I’m safe and happy on my own in that context.
Like MoodIndigo1 I really like being alone, always have. In fact, co-habitating with my significant other is a bit of a struggle because I like him a whole lot but I’m not alone nearly often enough for my taste. It helps that SO is a great date and roommate, but it is still tough. Grabbing a bite on my own now and then is a nice treat that I relish with a magazine and a long after-dinner coffee.
One exception is live music or theater. Intermissions or set changes tend to get tedious without someone to chat with, but while the entertainment is in progress I tend to forget about anything but what’s going on stage, so it doesn’t matter much who is there.
Solitude is grand until you feel like getting laid. I love Waffle House because I can get a cheap omelet in less than 10 minutes. Where was I going here? I have no idea.
I’m craving an omelette now. Or something.
I think.
I’m self-conscious about pretty much everything, including dining alone (especially since the whole “he can’t make a friend or get a date” thing is entirely accurate). But I power through, since I appreciate a city that does all my cooking for me.