“Table for one, please.”
“Oh just one?”
“Yes, table for one, please.”
I find myself repeating this phrase often, not for lack of dinner company, but mostly because I really love eating out alone. It feels indulgent to me, and liberating, and exactly like I skipped that conversation that usually goes something like this: “Where do you want to go for dinner?” “I dunno, where do you want to go?” “Does your mother hate me?” Silence…. and someone orders takeout.
Because I often travel alone (and have eaten enough room service club sandwiches to last me a lifetime), I’ve grown to LOVE learning about a city through some of their best restaurants… all by myself. It’s like being a stranger in a strange land, leaving surrounding diners not to pity me, but rather assume that I’m Sydney Bistow in the early seasons of Alias. They are correct, I’m part ninja in confidence alone.
I also live in one of the best food cities in the country, and a girl can only eat so many scrambled eggs for dinner at home before enough is enough. What I’ve come to love about dining out in New Orleans is that I now have local knowledge under my belt. That’s handy as a single woman dining alone. It’s nice to know what bars feel cozy to eat at (without too much interruption from gentlemen folk), and which restaurants feel nice to sit at a table solo. Here are some of my favorite restaurants to dine alone in based on my experiences out in New Orleans. If you’re on a visit solo to New Orleans, welcome… get some good grub and always have a Sazerac:
• Sylvain in the French Quarter is one of my favorite places to grab a solo bite. It’s especially great if you’re visiting town, wandering through the Quarter (it can be pretty dreamy) and looking for a good bite to eat. Some tips: Sylvain opens for dinner at 5:30. I suggest arriving well before 7pm and finding a seat at the bar. The earlier the better as, in my experience, the bar can fill up quickly. The restaurant is cozy and dimly lit with a decent mix of local and tourist patrons. This is a good place to strike up a dinnertime conversation. Also, get the burger.
• Patois is located in the heart of and Uptown neighborhood. It feels like a very local, heartfelt, comfortable neighborhood place. The food is sincere, generous, and really some of my favorite in the city. Tips: Don’t be afraid to make a reservation for one and sit at a table on your own. This place is comfortable enough. The staff will take good care of you.
• For breakfast I love Cherry Espresso Bar. It’s a coffee shop Uptown with the best breakfast sandwiches, quinoa bowls, pour over coffee and no ridiculous line out the door for medium-meh diner food.
• For lunch I love the locally sourced food and very chill vibes at Sneaky Pickle in the Bywater. It’s mostly vegan food with a few meat options and a lot of gluten free too. It’s heart food. Tips: This is an order-at-the-counter spot so cozy up at a small table, bring a good book or magazine, and enjoy the solo quality time.
• For Southern Cajun food I really love a bite to eat at Cochon in the CBD (Central Business District). They know their way around a pig. My very favorites at Cochon are the wood-fired oysters, the smoked pork rubs, and… the cochon. Tip: ask for a seat at the chef’s bar. You can peek into the kitchen (it’s full of friendly hard-working folks), gaze into the wood-fired oven, and have a good chat with the chefs. Also, order a Sazerac.
• For a solo happy hour, I recommend a seat at the bar at Peche. Go early. If the weather is nice they may even have the side doors open, which makes a bar seat even more lovely. Order the oysters, definitely get the tuna dip, and a lovely glass of crisp wine. The staff is really lovely and the food is solidly delicious. Tip: Peche is very well-earned after an afternoon visiting all of the art galleries in the Arts District. Here’s your guide to art in and around Julia Street.
• N7 is a dreamy, romantic restaurant in the Bywater. The restaurant is behind a pretty nondescript, tall wooden fence but as you pass through, it’s like entering a secret garden. There’s seating outdoors, but when I’m alone, my favorite tables are the cozy two tops inside the restaurant. I’ve found there’s no real need for a reservation, head in, make eye contact with a waitress and they’ll usually nod you on to find your own table. The wine list is excellent! Bring a book and feel transformed.
• Cafe Henri is an easy neighborhood restaurant, also in the Bywater. I like to sneak in just before closing for their Steak Frites which is charred just perfectly and supreme. Staff is mellow. Almost always a place to grab a table or bar seat. Easy and delicious.
Enjoy your dinner. Enjoy your time. Remember, no one belongs here more than you.
Kelly
Thank you so much for this thoughtful and generous of heart post. New Orleans is sort of sacred to me and so, despite yearning requests from friends, I’ve always opted to travel there alone and have been doing so generally twice a year for the last decade. I find I’m more attentive to the food and music solo and it’s my way of finding personal renewal. In all those years, I’ve never come across a post about travelling to the city and eating alone. Grateful as always for your openness and warmth, Joy.
Kristin Friedersdorf
Thanks for this list! I am from southern California as well but connect with Louisiana via my grandparents, who were both born there. I have visited a few times but am literally always keeping a list of my next dining destinations for future trips. It’s great to have some local insight to draw from.
Elizabeth
Joy! Why would you blog about N7?! You’re breaking my heart! We’ve just lost Bacchanal to crowds of tourists in the last few years and are still grieving! Sure, N7 is no substitute, but it’s been nice to have another option. Please be considerate to locals in your recommendations!!! We need our local sanctuaries come tourist season!
joythebaker
We have a bounty. We have more than we need. Also, talk to Bon Appetit is you want to keep things hush hush.
Tee
I just left the chef’s bar at Cochon and I loved the wood-fired oysters and the smoked pork ribs. I don’t even like oysters, but I could have had them put that sauce in a glass and I would drink it right up! I walked by the Peche and they were hopping. Thanks for your suggestions. I travel alone for work, so it is nice to have some suggestions.
joythebaker
That makes me really happy Tee!
edwinainductioncook
What a great article. I like your confidence. It’s always good to know ahead about great places when you’re visiting another city. If I have to attend another city with work colleagues I rather like to get out and about on my own at least once during my visit. Good to know where the best spots are. Thanks for sharing.
Molly
I love this post! I’m always eating out by myself when I travel alone and I still haven’t quite accommodated myself to the double take and the question mark at the end of “table for….one?” It makes such a difference when the restaurant is cozy and the staff is friendly and nobody treats a woman eating alone like a sideshow. Thanks Joy! Now we just need you to visit every major American city and report back :)
joythebaker
I’ll happily work on that for you!
Diane A
Hi Joy – my 18 yr old daughter and I are considering coming to New Orleans in March for a girls’ Spring Break. I am looking at Airbnb – what would be a fun neighborhood with things to walk to? Anything we shouldn’t miss? Thanks!
Seema Agrawal
It seems this is the perfect place for me to seat and think about my next blog article…Nice sharing. Thanks a lot!!!
jo
Love this list. I too travel for work, and I’ve also eaten more than my fair share of room service club sandwiches. If you were ever to think of writing a book on this topic, for different cities, I would be ordering it right up, and I guess my fellow solo diners would too. Thanks for a great website!
dessertfortwo
Gosh, I love Cochon!
I LOVE eating alone, too! When I lived outside San Francisco, I took myself out to dinner every Sunday night–even when I had a boyfriend, and definitely when I didn’t. It just feels SO good. Sometimes, the waiter rushes you through dinner because they feel sorry for you, but I just smile and be happy. Plus, I don’t have to share dessert :)
Chris
You recommended Sylvain on a previous post so friends and I went we visited NOLA last year. It was our favorite meal! Thank you!
Kelly
You are most brave. I have never been one to eat out along at a fancy restaurant. Sure, I can sit in Subway and eat a sandwich along, but a proper restaurant (even a chain)…nope. So…channeling my inner brave girl, I decided to have tea and scones at my favorite place in Savannah recently. It was nothing short of awkward, but it wasn’t so awful either. I think I’m adding dining alone to my list of “must conquer” this year!
joythebaker
You can do it. You really can.
Tina
Love this! Even if I am only traveling/eating through your words. Recently read a fabulous and classic essay on this subject, Dining Alone by Mary Cantwell, which I read in an anthology of writing from Gourmet magazine called Endless Feasts.
Tee
I am often in New Orleans alone for work. Thank you so much for this list. I always feel like I am taking up a table that could be filled with 4 drunk tourists.
joythebaker
No way! Do you!
Debbi
Breads on Oak in the Carrollton neighborhood is great for breakfast or lunch and you are just as welcome solo as with a group. It is a bakery but the sandwiches and soups are fabulous. Since this is Carnival season, I also think there king cake is the best in town. Try the almond cream or bourbon tiramisu flavors.
I have also gone to Gus’ po boys in Uptown solo. You will probably end up with people asking to sit with you because there are just a few tables but, as long as you are comfortable with that, you will be just fine.
Midway Pizza on Freret is also a good place to dine alone and they have the best salads in town.