On Saturday, August 16, 2014 12:51:57 PM UTC-4, wrote:
> http://pjmedia.com/drhelen/2014/08/1...eat-out-alone/
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> It's originally from CNBC - but there are comments from Dr. Helen Smith
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> as well. (She's the author of "Men on Strike: Why Men Are Boycotting
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> Marriage, Fatherhood, and the American Dream - and Why It Matters.")
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> CNBC: All by yourself at dinner? You're in good company. As lifestyles
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> and demographics shift, Americans are emerging as a nation of diners who
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> eat alone.
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> About 57 percent of eating and beverage occasions now occur when
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> people are by themselves, according to a recent report from The NPD
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> Group, a market research firm. The portion is highest for non-meal
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> occasions (industry speak for snacking) followed by breakfast, lunch
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> and then dinner.
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> Time constraints, active lifestyles and a record percentage of
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> one-person households are fueling the trend.
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> Stigma starting to shift
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> "In the past, there really has been a stigma around eating alone,
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> and it's started to change over the years," said Aaron Allen, founder
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> of a restaurant consulting firm, in a phone interview. ...
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> To make them feel at ease, restaurants are shifting their typical
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> service for people eating alone. An extreme example launched in
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> Amsterdam as a pop-up restaurant touted as the first one-person
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> restaurant in the world. Another in Japan proposed a solution--dining
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> with a stuffed animal if eating alone proves to be too lonely.
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> (snip)
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> Dr. Smith had this to add:
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> "I was glad to see that the poll at CNBC asking readers if they were
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> ashamed to eat alone showed the majority saying 'No.' Maybe people don't
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> need a stuffed giraffe sitting next to them, maybe peace and quiet and
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> a good book or their own company is enough."
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> 41 comments so far.
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> Lenona.

I've been eating alone for over 20 years. I live alone and most of my relatives live far away and most of my friends are not close enough to go out to eat with except occasionally. Also, I like to go to lots of difference ethnic restaurants that my couple of local relatives and some of my friends do not like.

I have never felt stigmatized or embarrassed to eat out alone. I don't understand why anyone would but then I'm just used to doing whatever I feel like whenever I feel like it whether anyone joins me or not. I also love to travel alone. I have driven across the country by myself many times. I actually almost prefer to do it alone.

Anyway, I enjoy dining out with others but don't need company to enjoy dining out.

Kate