5 ms·

This is one of the saddest business models I've seen so far. The only thing that beats it are probably the one-person fondue sets (or BBQ sets if you're America

This is one of the saddest business models I've seen so far. The only thing that beats it are probably the one-person fondue sets (or BBQ sets if you're American) that you sometimes see in supermarkets... For me, the prototypical "one-person" restaurants are Japanese noodle bars though, where most people sit at the counter and eat by themselves. In general, Japan seems to have embraced this idea of catering to a generation of singles much earlier than the rest of the world, probably due to their high number of single households and low birth rate. Considering the declining birth rates throughout the world this kind of business will become more relevant other countries, too.

hatu 13y ago
I think it's also partly because of extremely long hours and long commutes and small apartments with even smaller kitchens (Tokyo).
- ThePhysicist 13y ago
  Yeah good point, that's probably a big factor too!
colmvp 13y ago
I for one am glad that someone is trying to cater to this market instead of the couple master race. Single people have to eat too.
- wink 13y ago
  Maybe I'm biased but even when my SO or friends/colleagues are nowhere near I just don't go out to eat alone. Or even sit down in a coffee shop. "Going out" - even if only for lunch or a coffee, for me is a 2+ person thing. When I am alone, I grab something to eat and take it back to the office, home or sometimes sit in a park, although very rarely.
  - nfoz 13y ago
    It depends on living / work conditions. I'm in NYC, where tiny kitchens are common and restaurants are everywhere and work hours tend to go late, and going home might be much further between you and where you're going next. So eating out alone is pretty reasonable.
  - Consultant32452 13y ago
    I don't make a distinction with regard to party size. If I want to go out, I go out whether I have someone with me or not. I don't understand why people are so hung up about it. I'll be just as happy going to a restaurant or movie alone as with friends.
  - squintychino 13y ago
    Sounds like you've been conditioned to think that way - that it's only socially acceptable to eat out when there are 2+ people. There seems to be a stigma about single people eating alone, that it's sad and pathetic that they are forced to eat by themselves. In reality, I think it's the other way around. I think it's sad that people need to have someone else there just to eat out - something that is a one person activity the last time I checked.
hnriot 13y ago
"Considering the declining birth rates throughout the world..." where did you get that statistic from?
- rdl 13y ago
  Birth rates have been declining and sub-replacement-level in Japan, "rich" Europe, and parts of the US for years (decades, I think) -- Japan and Singapore are particular far along on this. Plus of course the great Chinese experiment of the "one child policy", and Russia's collapse in birthrate in the late 1980s/1990s (largely due to the fall of the USSR). Even in high-fertility countries, it's been dropping from 5 to more like 2-3, largely correlated with female education and opportunities other than (early, exclusive) motherhood. (The US would have a negative growth rate if it weren't for immigration, largely from Spanish-speaking nations in the Western hemisphere.) Population of the earth as a whole is still increasing, but that's largely due to a few parts of the world which have had huge birthrates in the past and a large population under-30 (and under-18, so it will continue for a while.). It's a mean vs. median problem.
  - hnriot 13y ago
    thanks for the explaining why you suggested the world's birth rate is dropping. As you say, population of the earth as a whole is still increasing, and the birth rate is not in decline. It's not a mean vs. median problem at all. If it were in decline we wouldn't be facing one of the biggest global issues of over population.
    - rdl 13y ago
      Population is one number. Birth rate is a derivative of that. A rate of change in birth rate is the second derivative of population. Population'' is clearly negative -- the global birth rate IS in decline, and has been since 1950 according to the UN (I don't see earlier stats). Population is still increasing because Population' is positive. (well, actually Birth rate > death rate). Per country, it actually is a median vs. mean problem; most countries (hence, median) have below-replacement birth rates; there are a limited number of countries with substantially above replacement birth rates, due to both fertility and the demographic composition (lots of young people).
moron4hire 13y ago
IDK, most of the diners I've been in have fairly long dining bars.
samstave 13y ago
http://i.imgur.com/mpTyLyu.jpg http://i.imgur.com/mpTyLyu.jpg
zhemao 13y ago
Ever been to an old-style American diner? They also have counters where you can eat by yourself. Counter tables in restaurants are not unique to Japan. There are also night market food stands which are popular in Taiwan and overseas Chinese communities. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Night_market https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Night_market

hatu 13y ago

I think it's also partly because of extremely long hours and long commutes and small apartments with even smaller kitchens (Tokyo).

ThePhysicist 13y ago
Yeah good point, that's probably a big factor too!

colmvp 13y ago

I for one am glad that someone is trying to cater to this market instead of the couple master race. Single people have to eat too.

wink 13y ago
Maybe I'm biased but even when my SO or friends/colleagues are nowhere near I just don't go out to eat alone. Or even sit down in a coffee shop. "Going out" - even if only for lunch or a coffee, for me is a 2+ person thing. When I am alone, I grab something to eat and take it back to the office, home or sometimes sit in a park, although very rarely.
- nfoz 13y ago
  It depends on living / work conditions. I'm in NYC, where tiny kitchens are common and restaurants are everywhere and work hours tend to go late, and going home might be much further between you and where you're going next. So eating out alone is pretty reasonable.
- Consultant32452 13y ago
  I don't make a distinction with regard to party size. If I want to go out, I go out whether I have someone with me or not. I don't understand why people are so hung up about it. I'll be just as happy going to a restaurant or movie alone as with friends.
- squintychino 13y ago
  Sounds like you've been conditioned to think that way - that it's only socially acceptable to eat out when there are 2+ people. There seems to be a stigma about single people eating alone, that it's sad and pathetic that they are forced to eat by themselves. In reality, I think it's the other way around. I think it's sad that people need to have someone else there just to eat out - something that is a one person activity the last time I checked.

hnriot 13y ago

"Considering the declining birth rates throughout the world..." where did you get that statistic from?

rdl 13y ago
Birth rates have been declining and sub-replacement-level in Japan, "rich" Europe, and parts of the US for years (decades, I think) -- Japan and Singapore are particular far along on this. Plus of course the great Chinese experiment of the "one child policy", and Russia's collapse in birthrate in the late 1980s/1990s (largely due to the fall of the USSR). Even in high-fertility countries, it's been dropping from 5 to more like 2-3, largely correlated with female education and opportunities other than (early, exclusive) motherhood. (The US would have a negative growth rate if it weren't for immigration, largely from Spanish-speaking nations in the Western hemisphere.) Population of the earth as a whole is still increasing, but that's largely due to a few parts of the world which have had huge birthrates in the past and a large population under-30 (and under-18, so it will continue for a while.). It's a mean vs. median problem.
- hnriot 13y ago
  thanks for the explaining why you suggested the world's birth rate is dropping. As you say, population of the earth as a whole is still increasing, and the birth rate is not in decline. It's not a mean vs. median problem at all. If it were in decline we wouldn't be facing one of the biggest global issues of over population.
  - rdl 13y ago
    Population is one number. Birth rate is a derivative of that. A rate of change in birth rate is the second derivative of population. Population'' is clearly negative -- the global birth rate IS in decline, and has been since 1950 according to the UN (I don't see earlier stats). Population is still increasing because Population' is positive. (well, actually Birth rate > death rate). Per country, it actually is a median vs. mean problem; most countries (hence, median) have below-replacement birth rates; there are a limited number of countries with substantially above replacement birth rates, due to both fertility and the demographic composition (lots of young people).

moron4hire 13y ago

IDK, most of the diners I've been in have fairly long dining bars.

samstave 13y ago

http://i.imgur.com/mpTyLyu.jpg http://i.imgur.com/mpTyLyu.jpg

zhemao 13y ago

Ever been to an old-style American diner? They also have counters where you can eat by yourself. Counter tables in restaurants are not unique to Japan. There are also night market food stands which are popular in Taiwan and overseas Chinese communities. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Night_market https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Night_market