The Joys of Eating Alone?

Martin is away cooking for friends and family in Montreal this week, so I am writing solo. I am eating solo too, and that prompted me to use that as the topic for this week.

Eating alone is something that does not happen too often for most of us. We are by nature a social species and eating is very much a part of our social culture. Even with the hectic pace of today, meals are often consumed with others around. For example, we still eat lunch at our desks in an open office, chatting over cubicle walls to our colleagues. However, there are people out there who are alone, and it seems for them food often becomes more of a necessity. I saw a movie recently where Diane Lane plays a recently divorced woman living a lonely life, and she tells the butcher she isn’t interested in hearing the specials because she eats alone, standing up at the sink. It is a sad truth that eating by yourself can often take some of the joy out of the process.

The good thing to remember about eating alone is that you can bend the rules much more than you could in a group situation! Sitting on the couch with a sandwich is OK if the only one watching you is your pet. Eating ice cream out of the tub can be a liberating experience as long as you don’t make it a daily occurrence! And let’s face it, who doesn’t enjoy the slurping sound you get when you suck the bottom of a milkshake out with your straw? Dining companions will frown at best, and may even cuff you on the back of the head if you try it in public.

I would like to take this opportunity to crusade for single diners everywhere, and ask that you offer them not sympathy but admiration. If you notice someone at the local shops buying for one, offer them a smile that says “Good for you!” If you see a lone diner in a restaurant, toast their good health and celebrate the fact that they are still making an effort to enjoy food and the rituals of dining. Let’s all do our part to minimize the number of people eating over the sink!

In closing, may I offer this sentiment from the French writer, Voltaire: “Nothing would be more tiresome than eating and drinking if God had not made them a pleasure as well as a necessity.” Pleasures are best shared, but there is nothing that says you cannot share them with yourself. For those of us who do share our meals with people, let’s be grateful for their company. For the times we share the food only with our thoughts, let’s make sure they are still happy thoughts.

Bon appetit!

This article is written by or on behalf of an outsourced columnist and does not necessarily reflect the views of Castanet.