While reporting the Globe’s steakhouse package a few weeks ago, I had the rare occasion to dine alone, at the bar of Back Bay steakhouse Grill 23. This happens about as often as I find a kindred spirit who approves of mayonnaise on hot dogs.
I have two children, a spouse, and friends with busy schedules. Unless I’m working, going out to eat is usually a precisely planned way to catch up or to celebrate a birthday. Otherwise, it’s an act of sheer impulse, when we’ve exhausted every Trader Joe’s frozen meal in the house.
Oh, but solo dining is glorious. There’s the chance to quietly scrutinize human behavior: Who’s the fellow in the beret and monocle reading “Faust” while twirling linguine? There’s the potential for eavesdropping. There’s even the chance of making a new friend, as I did while enjoying French onion soup on that Tuesday night in the Back Bay.
Sitting alone, I decided to do the unthinkable in our screen-stricken society: strike up a conversation with the person sitting next to me. Maybe it was the clinking martinis; maybe it was the sense that, alone in the city on a weeknight, I ought to shrug off inhibitions and roll the dice. Turns out we grew up down the street from one another, about a decade apart. My friend’s mom was her elementary school teacher. This new bar pal is in my phone now, as “Acton Caitlin.”
The culture around restaurants these days involves jostling for a reservation, Instagramming your food, deciphering what the newest-hottest-buzziest place of the moment is. Our society also frowns on solitude, mistaking it for social failure.
But, sometimes, nothing beats sitting alone with your thoughts and, perhaps, a plate of oysters. My interlude at Grill 23 inspired me to reflect on other promising places to sup solo. Here is a quartet of suggestions, where the dishes are sized for one, the people-watching is priceless, and the food is worth the trip.
La Tavernetta, East Boston
This new waterside perch in East Boston has the whiff of Monaco or the South of France, with turquoise umbrellas, spritzes the color of the sun, and a glamorous patio where “The White Lotus” could easily stage an episode. At midday, it’s deliciously relaxed, with sea breezes and an air of self-satisfied tranquillity. People work alone on laptops. Someone else, wearing sunglasses indoors, sips coffee. There are plates sized for sharing, but many are apportioned for one: fried olives; an icy half-dozen oysters on the half shell; a scoop of gelato. It’s the kind of place where you can exhale for a few stolen moments.
45 Lewis St., Boston, 617-600-8922, www.latavernettaeastie.com
Lou’s, Harvard Square
This subterranean lounge in Harvard Square has library-meets-nightclub energy: leather, mahogany, deep velvet curtains, disco balls whose flattering lights give everyone cheekbones. If you could smoke here, well, you would. The people-watching is excellent, from professors to politicians. And the table arrangements lend themselves to indie adventuring, with cabaret-style seating in the lounge with tables fit for one, plus comfy couches. There’s a snacks menu; get the fried pickles. It’s a throwback to the Harvard Square of old, where you never quite knew who’d walk through the door — and it was almost too dim to tell, anyway.
13 Brattle St., Cambridge, 857-706-1100, www.wearelous.com
Ma Maison, Beacon Hill
A French restaurant of the classic style on Beacon Hill, red awning and all. This is a place with soft tablecloths, brick walls, buttery booths, and waiters in vests, where time becomes as thick as a souffle. It is quiet. It is oh-so civilized. No one will rush you out; no one will hover with a check. Curl up in the corner, dust off the paperback you’ve been longing to read, and linger over a glass of wine, no matter what the hour. If it’s Friday, why not order veal kidneys?
272 Cambridge St., Boston, 617-725-8855, www.mamaisonboston.com
Stella, Newton Centre
When Evan Deluty opened Stella in the South End 27 years ago, it was a scene, from the raucous bar to the cacophonous terrace. That iteration of Stella closed in 2020, during the pandemic. In 2024, a Newton sequel emerged, sunny and serene, with white subway tiles and multigenerational appeal. What I like about it is that the atmosphere feels like a cafe, but the food punches far above its setting. This is the kind of place where you can amble in alone, on a whim, and wile away a lunch hour over Deluty’s signature Bolognese but also little snacks like arancini, meatballs, and a trio of zucchini pillows, suitable for one.
549 Commonwealth Ave., Newton Centre, 617-467-4656, www.stellanewtoncentre.com
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There’s subtle satisfaction in asking for a table alone: a sense of autonomy, of possibility. You might even make a new friend. If you’re reading this, Caitlin, I hope your trip to the Berkshires with your mom was fantastic.
Kara Baskin can be reached at kara.baskin@globe.com. Follow her @kcbaskin.