Do you ever want to have dinner in your favorite restaurant, but all of your friends are busy, so you feel that you can’t go by yourself? In Japanese culture, the stigma of eating alone that we experience is not a thing. Rather than feeling embarrassed or lonely while eating alone in public, Japanese people value solo dining, as it allows them quality alone time to enjoy their food!
Eating alone in Japan is actually pretty normal. When Japanese people go on their lunch breaks, they have no issue going to their favorite local restaurant and having a meal alone. Most Japanese restaurants actually have tables set up for single person dinding, such as pictured above.
Eating alone at restaurants is actually something embraced by travelers in Japan as well. Solo traveler Claire Allison wrote of her experiences dining alone in restaurants throughout Japan. Allison wrote of the increasing accessibility for solo dining experiences at Japanese restaurants, and how that really helped her confidence along her journey.
