Eating alone

White rice topped with beef curry gravy, beef rendang, garlicky morning glory greens, jackfruit curry with lots of turmeric, sweet and sour cucumber salad, and sambal as fruity as it is fiery— it&#…

Eunoia Review

SPENDING THE HOLIDAYS IN YOUR OWN COMPANY

While the holidays are typically associated with being around friends and family, sometimes it’s also a nice way to spend time with someone you’re around all year long: yourself.   

Having a solo holiday meal at a restaurant may seem like a scene straight out of break-up movie, but there can be many benefits to dining for one: eating alone means only catering to what you want to eat and ensuring you eat at your own pace.   

Here is a list of places around the region where solo dining for the holidays would strike up a cozy vibe.   

Arabella Park  

Located in Kitchener’s Belmont Village, this classic beer bar serves bar food that pairs swell with their 18 rotating taps.  

Having a holiday dinner on their mezzanine floor is a good way to soak in the holiday vibes while having your own little slice of the restaurant to yourself.  

I always enjoy having their feature burger and pairing it with a non-alcoholic beer.   

Loloan Lobby Bar  

This taste of the tropics will serve as a palmy balm for the wintry soul. Located in Uptown Waterloo, this is the place to go for Southeast Asian inspired cuisine.  

Known for their well-versed staff, enjoy sitting at the bar or the dining room. Feel like chatting? Their friendly bar staff would be happy to tell you about their menu while you’re sipping on a classic pho cocktail. Whether thirsty for a unique holiday drink or hungry for a pan-Asian tasting menu, Loloan is a treat for the senses of a solo diner.   

Hooland Cafe  

If you’re looking for something more casual, look no further than Waterloo’s premier destination for Hong Kong street eats.  

They have classic neon lights, the snacks and the atmosphere that transport you to Hong Kong. Enjoy their black truffle cream sauced chicken wings alongside ice cream coffee. The Hooland Cafe also boasts a robust vegetarian menu. 

Rhythm and Brews  

For lovers of beer and music, this rustic Cambridge-based bar is just for you. Having a few sips while enjoying food at their bar or having wings while enjoying live music, a dinner here will never leave you wanting stimulation for your five senses. Their venue was specifically designed with acoustics in mind, so sit back and enjoy holiday tunes while munching on locally sourced food. 

Oh! Bombay  

I enjoyed a dinner at Oh! Bombay on my own and I was not disappointed. This authentic Indian and Hakka food is just what the solo diner needs to warm their soul after a long winter’s day. Their honey chili chicken momos made me feel right at home while I was sitting and enjoying the rain outside.   

East Africa Cafe  

This cozy retreat where tradition meets taste is a great place to be if you’re looking for a cozy and unique dining experience in Downtown Kitchener. I went here for a cozy solo break from my day, and I enjoyed a nice la pisma with mango juice.   

This year has been particularly challenging for me in my personal life. I have learned to take breaks from the everyday and make time for myself. It’s important to be able to sit down and have a meal on your own, no distractions, just you and the food.  

Helps you think and unwind. So I encourage you all to do the same this holiday season. Who knows, maybe it’ll help you stay present and enjoy the holidays more.  

#AdrianQuijano #ArabellaPark #eastAfricaCafe #eatingAlone #holidays #holidaysAlone #hoolandCafe #LoloanLobbyBar #ohBombay #rhythmAndBrews

> Robert Putnam argued in his landmark 2000 book, Bowling Alone, our civic infrastructure had disintegrated. The once-conformist crowds had dispersed, leaving behind a social void. Hunger for peer approval may have been misguided, but having no peers was far worse.
https://jacobin.com/2025/10/solo-dining-communal-meals-us
#BowlingAlone #EatingAlone #AtomizationAlone
#MeaganDay
/HT #JacobinMag IG
Americans Are Abandoning the Communal Meal

Consuming food all by oneself is an anomaly in the history of human civilization, a deviation from millennia of tradition. And more and more Americans are doing it.

A meal for one is sacred, not sad Eating alone can be ritual, rebellion, and resilience. There’s legacy in the solo plate.

Join the quiet table:
https://www.recipesandroots.ca/roots/solo-and-sustained-eating-alone-as-ritual-survival-and-rebellion

#GirlDinner #EatingAlone #FoodRituals #SoloMeals #SustainableLiving #MindfulEating

I need some #peanutbutter for certain #SEAsian dishes, but every time I go to the store and think about buying some, I remember it only comes in 1 lb. (454 g) jars, and there’s only one of me, so half the jar will go rancid before I ever get around to eating it, because I don’t like #peanuts enough to eat them frequently. Also, I keep forgetting I need coconut water. #singlelife #sololiving #cookingforone #eatingalone

At Flying J #truckstop a 32oz #beer costs less than a #candy bar

Not complaining :-)

#HappyThanksgiving
#CelebratingAlone
#EatingAlone
#JoinIn
#SitTogether

For #dinner tonight, I’m going to make another pot of the ground beef, onion, potato, and green pea stew I made last week. It really was so delicious. This time, however, rather than using a can of condensed French Onion soup, I’m going to use Better Than Bouillon concentrated beef base and roasted onion base, with a can of Belgian-style witbier, so it will be kind of like Carbonnade à la Flamande. #cookingforone #cooking #food #kitchen #eatingalone
"I think there's this whole industrial complex of listening to your body, but I've been trying to ignore my body for my whole life."
#Food #EatingAlone #Joy https://lyz.substack.com/p/we-get-to-have-cake-on-joy-sadness
We Get to Have Cake!: On Joy, Sadness, and Eating Alone

A Conversation With Margaret Eby

Men Yell at Me
Went around corner for lunch - many, me included, eating alone, on phones scrolling or working .
One older man, dressed up w/tie on, sat having an animated talk on many topics - w/himself.
Various looked at him as if he was off. He was having the best time. Maybe we’re the ones off.
#Lunch #eatingalone #phone #valencia