I recently read an article by Joan Reminick, an independent restaurant consultant and former restaurant critic and food writer for Newsday. Solo dining: Tips for eating out alone at a restaurant© Provided by CNN

A subject I’m familiar with. Over the years and in my travels, I have dined solo for breakfast, lunch and dinner on many occasions.

She points out the stigma that exists. Conveyed either on purpose or unintentionally, a restaurant host or hostess can sabotage the meal by casting a disrespectful posture towards a person dining out alone. I can’t tell you the many times I’ve experienced these negative attitudes towards solo dining. More so domestically than how I was treated in other countries. Luckily, kindness transcends all cultures and languages.

Nationally, solo dining occasions comprise 27% of the total at fast no host casual restaurants — places such as Panera Bread, Chipotle or Panda Express. Fast food places such as McDonald’s or Burger King, solo diners make up about 38% of its total patrons. At my local hosted greasy spoons such as the Saw Mill and Patty’s Egg Nest, solo customers comprise about half.

I do appreciate that dining out is a social event usually shared with friends and family, but that’s not always practical. As solo diners, we do occasionally like to treat ourselves to white table cloths, chilled salad forks and shrimp cocktails with a good book and alone with our solitude. Estimates indicate the ratio of men to women that practice solo fine dining is at about 65% to 35%. So, the numbers bear out, we are a significant part of the restaurant going public. It would behoove managers of full-service eateries to train their PC-challenged staff accordingly.

As her article states, staying viable in the hospitality industry often comes down to just that: hospitality. It should be standard fare at every restaurant, at every table, for all and for one. I totally agree, how difficult is it to show kindness and respect?

Well, at least as a solo diner, I don’t have to fight over the check.