Eating Alone in Restaurants
"Eating Alone in Restaurants" is an essay by Bruce Jay Friedman about the insecurities some people have about dining alone. It also gives readers tips on how to make the lone dining experience less frightening. Friedman starts off with what one should do before getting to the restaurant. The author suggests that one should be casually dressed, should be in a sober state, and should avoid theatrical behaviour while heading to the restaurant. Upon arrival, be calm and collected, and when the waiter asks about how many will be dining, avoid self-deprecating responses. Desirable seating is key; being seated next to a party of two or in front of a mirror will make the experience easier. Friedman continues on by telling lone diners to choose something that tastes good and is enjoyable. The author concludes by telling readers to be confident and to enjoy one 's own company (Sims 519-523). This essay was written in a very satirical manner. Not only that, but it was quite dramatic as well. When the author starts listing ways in which a lone diner can confuse other diners, the dramatics become obvious. One of Friedman 's suggestions is to, "...pull out a walkie-talkie and whisper a message into it. This will lead people to believe you are part of a police stake-out team..." (Sims 522). This is dramatic because it is extreme. If one has terrible anxiety when dining out and would like to avoid attention, this is not the way to go about it. The message the author is trying to convey is to just be comfortable when dining alone. It really is not a big deal, if anything; most of the diners are not paying attention to the surroundings. While writing the summary paragraph, my only concern was that I was able to successfully determine the main point, or thesis of the essay. The summary paragraph was not too challenging because it involved me reiterating the essay in my own words, but succinctly. The only part I found to be tough was making sure I chose the
Cited: Sims, M. The Write Stuff: Thinking Through Essays (Custom Edition for Foundations of Academic Writing II, University of Windsor). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2012. 519-523.