Table for One, Mulled Wine and Vodka Appetizer
Stop staring at women dining alone
How many people?
That is a common question I get when I enter a restaurant while travelling. I used to eat out for lunch and then order take out for dinner. Or even worse — to have a pint. Because dining alone in a restaurant was inappropriate. Because you are a woman, you must always have someone with you.
Is it so?
How many seats? An Uzbek waiter pried.
People in Uzbekistan always have large feasts with all of their extended families. Restaurant tables are set up to seat all of your great-grandparents.
Just me. I responded calmly and walked past the stunned man.
Women in Uzbekistan, as in many other countries, don’t go out alone. However, I’m not one of them.
Four months ago, I had to fly to Almaty for a few days. After a long day of visa paperwork, biometry, and bureaucracy, I crashed at a restaurant close to a ski resort. Very upscale neighbourhood; I spotted an unbelievable number of Teslas that day.
Imagine a fancy place, dinner time, me, and another curious waiter.
Please, mashed potatoes with herring and pickles. I ordered. And then… And a glass of mulled wine.
Why not? I deserved it.
I could see that the guy’s eyebrows were going skyward. I just ordered a meal that usually comes with vodka shots.
But 5 minutes later, I had my mulled wine. My vodka appetizer arrived 15 minutes later. Together with the perplexed waiter.
One good thing about eating alone is that it is easier to talk to other people. You’re not having a conversation every minute of your dinner. You don’t have to make an impression. And people, particularly men, are eager to talk.
I know it’s a strange meal. I told the waiter.
Yes, it was unexpected. He admitted.
I spent four months in Southeast Asia, so mashed potato now tastes like home. I explained.
I don’t need an excuse to order the things I want to order. It just helps me steer the conversation as I’m exploring new places.
So there I was, eating strange food and talking to that guy. He explained that the Teslas in the area belonged to the country’s wealthiest people, while other cities could not boast of the same. We also discussed the influx of Russians since the start of the war, among other topics.
Perhaps it is not the same in every country. Maybe you have to be so different from everyone else that people want to talk to you.
Who cares. I finished my dinner and my mulled wine and went back to my hotel. Dining alone no longer felt awkward.
Sometimes I think it’s time to stop travelling. It drives me mad:
But most of the time, it’s a lot of fun:
