What does the growing trend of solo dining in Australia say about us?

Would you dine out at a restaurant on your own?

No doubt for some, solo dining would make for a truly awkward experience. Sitting alone, in a restaurant, with only your own thoughts to occupy yourself with, and all those side eye glances from fellow diners, wondering “have they been stood up?!”. 

Whilst solo dining may not be for everyone, you might be surprised to hear that, according to the 2025 State of the Hospitality Industry Report, published by Lightspeed, the report uncovered a bunch of interesting hospitality insights and dining dynamics, one being that Aussies are embracing the idea of dining out on their own. 

Is our own company really that good?

For those who love a statistic or two, the report detailed that on average, customers dined alone 49 times in 2024: 

→  69% of customers said they dined solo
→  Of this 69%, 9% dined solo weekly, 26% dined solo at least once a week, and 41% dined solo at least once a month. 

Interestingly, it doesn’t seem to matter how much you earn, solo dining doesn’t vary much when it comes to the size of your pay packet. 

Whether you’re earning less than $50,000 or $130,000 plus annually, the similarities around solo dining suggest the shift toward dining alone is not based around luxury or affordability, but more a lifestyle, and one that is being embraced by a wide range of people.

So which age group spend the most when it comes to solo dining? 

The 25 to 34 year olds are the ones really living it up when they dine out on their own, spending on average nearly $100 per month on solo meals. 

What does this mean for the restaurant industry? 

Like all trends that appear to have some staying power, restaurants will need to start catering to solo diners, and it seems to be already happening. There is a growing awareness within the restaurant industry that solo dining is not just a passing trend but a lasting shift in consumer behavior.

The State of the Hospitality Industry Report indicated that restaurants are taking notice with half of the restaurants surveyed planning to introduce solo-friendly menus and portion sizes in 2025. 

As solo dining continues to rise in popularity, it will likely reshape the dining landscape in Australia, prompting further innovation in how restaurants design their menus and dining experiences.

So what brought about the solo dining shift? 

There’s no one reason for this dining culture switch up, more that there’s a preference towards the flexibility and autonomy dining alone provides. It could even be as simple as you’re grabbing a quick bite between meetings or you’re enjoying a leisurely meal alone for some personal time out. 

Analysts also suggest that solo dining reflects the differing social preferences or the changing dynamics of our dining culture, where being alone in public spaces is increasingly normalised for everyone, regardless of gender.

What is clear is, this change is more than just a passing fad—solo dining is on the up, and is part of a broader societal shift toward self-sufficiency and comfort in solitude. Is this a good thing? We’ll leave that one for you to answer. 

Editor’s note: This article was produced by HUNTERhunter in partnership with Lightspeed.