Doing school assignments has got me researching the differences between Singapore and the American eating culture. Apparently, it is pretty ingrained into the culture of the people of New York, to be eating out in groups. So much so that word of mouth through your customers about your restaurant, can be equally as effective as social media marketing. Here in Singapore everyone mostly tends to find out and go to new places that they see advertised on TikTok or Instagram, and occasionally jio their friends.
Dis reminded me of dat one episode of ‘Friends’, where Rachel initially struggled to eat alone, out of fear of judgement and feeling awkward. A few dinners later, she eventually grew too comfortable doing so and struggled to stop. Everyone still judged her for eating alone though, lol. But I feel like that’s one of those moments in the show that’s gotten lost in translation. Not in terms of language, but culture – especially in Singapore today.
Eating alone is becoming increasingly common here. It’s harder to not be spotting anyone eating by themselves at restaurants these days. I think we are growing to be more individualistic as a society, which has its perks, and this is one of them. We don’t have to always invite or join others just to eat, even if it’s for leisure. We are capable of eating out wherever and whenever we want, and it’s pretty normalised because there will be so many people doing the same.
Ofc as dis individualism is a pretty recent thing, our middle-aged friends are probably not as open-minded, and still see eating out as a strictly social activity. Which is why bosses organise team lunches frequently, to foster camaraderie and sense of belonging, and all dat good(?) stuff…
Ok I don’t know abt you, but given the 1-2 hours of free time we are given for lunch break, away from work, the last thing I would wanna do is spend more time wif the people in my department. Work is 9 to 6, dats abt 9 hours.
As much as I may like (or at least, don’t mind) the people in my department, I would not be very inclined to be seeing their faces 9 hours a day, 5 days a week. Give me a little break man, give me my lunch break freedom. Once every few weeks wif the department would be fine. But if it’s a daily thing, I’m quitting the company. I’d rather spend dat time with Jerry the technician or something, because I noe I won’t be seeing him anytime after dat.
Anyways, eating alone also has its pros and cons. For one thing you can actly enjoy and appreciate your meal. But on the other hand, sometimes you sorta wish you had someone there with you.
Thankfully we live in 2025, and our phones are always with us. That helps to fill the above-mentioned loneliness. Most of us now are able to multitask while eating, by doing things like watching YouTube, reading manga, scrolling thru Instagram, or even writing abt eating alone on their silly blog…
However, there are among us, typically our much older friends, who are not as skilled in that regard. As a result, they end up just staring into space as they eat. While I know deep down dat they’re probably content and are just minding their own business, part of me can’t help but feel a little sad at the sight of dis. Idk why, but it makes them look just a lil vulnerable and pitiful, and something inside me just wants to provide them with some companionship. Maybe give them a puppy or something. Dat wld be nice, eh? Puppies make everyone happy. Every lonely old person gets a support puppy. Then if they’re Malay, they get a kitten 🐈.
Essentially, eating alone while using your phone, and eating alone while staring into space, results in 2 very different outcomes. One makes the person seem busy, but taking some time off to eat. The other makes the person seem lonely and yearning for connection. If you want to mind your own business, do the former. If you’re sad and wanna show it, do the latter.
08.08.2025
Leave a Reply