Do you find dining out boring?

[Ariel]

At the risk of sounding like a boring person, I find eating out to be extremely dull.
It seems that whenever you meet up with a friend or go to a celebration of some sort, the occasion inevitably involves a cafe, restaurant or dinner party. In turn you feel obliged to host a birthday meal to meet expectations, even thought it's not your idea of a fun way to spend your birthday evening.
Eating is pleasurable when I'm hungry, but I just don't see the attraction of it as a social occasion. For me, dinner is over within fifteen minutes. It tasted nice, it gave me what I needed and now I just want to get on with my life.
I wish people would come up with more imaginative suggestions like stargazing or swimming or a tour of some sort.
What do you think?

 

[wyverary]

It depends entirely on the company, I suppose, and the atmosphere of the dining venue. I am very uncomfortable in groups larger than one or two other people. I'll happily invite or accompany one or two people to a good place for some sort of "special occasion," like a birthday. With larger groups, especially involving lots of people I don't know very well, I either wind up drinking a lot or leaving early.

In fact, amongst my own friends, dining out is a rare occasion. It's not our primary means of socializing. Typically we are at someone's house, or some odd place or other... And I've had a few stargazing parties, myself.

 

[King_Oni]

Eating in general is boring to me. I find it's a neccesity and that's about it. I don't have much interest to eat with others either. Doesn't mean I never do, but I already struggle to settle eating dinner at home with my parents at times. I have less issues when eating with a friend of my girlfriend though.

On the subject of dining out; I guess it depends on what you see as "dining/eating out".

I rarely visit any restaurants but that's a financial matter, unless you count fast food places like McDonalds and such restaurants as well. Often I end up at such fast food places when I'm out and want to grab a snack along the way, sometimes I'll end up there with my girlfriend. And then there's the local shawarma or doner kebab places (which I guess can be seen as fast food as well), which I sometimes visit with my aspie friend when we're out on a walk at night. But all these things are meals that are served quickly, and pretty much consumed fast as well and I rarely spend more than 30 minutes at any place. What's also worth noting, I tend to avoid any joints when they're crowded. I often end up at places here and I'm the only customer. Seems a nice environment for sensory heavy aspies and still enjoy dining out (or in general just leaving the house and be somewhere)

Restaurants where I have to make reservations, no thanks. I rather go some place I can walk in when I'm hungry, rather than go somewhere when I have a reservation. That's also why I don't care for social gatherings during dinner. I'm probably not "in tune" enough to want to eat with the other people cause I'm hungry at time X. Cooking and having others over is already silly to me, cause that would mean that we'd have to be perfectly in sync and both be hungry...

 

[thegreatflamarion]

Eating is literaly the most boring thing for me. I can only eat, if I am listening to music. But in general I practically sleep through meals. Mostly because food does not interest me. I mean seriously, its just like blobs of edible stuff. Its never really exciting. Like green bean is basically just a stick colored green. That doesnt stimulate me. I only do stuff thats stimulating.

Also, people say women like cooking, but I dont like cooking, so I guess you cant trust everything you here.

 

[Axeman52]

Eating in general is boring to me. I find it's a neccesity and that's about it. I don't have much interest to eat with others either. Doesn't mean I never do, but I already struggle to settle eating dinner at home with my parents at times.

I was gonna post a whole new message, but that perfectly summarizes what I was going to say. I'm exactly the same - Eating is boring and and I only do it because I have to. Eating with others is kind of ok for me but I prefer to eat alone - the sound of other people chewing and the knives and forks scraping against the plates and stuff just really gets on my nerves. And talking is the last thing I want to do when I'm eating... So There's really not much point me dining out with people, It's never an enjoyable experience for me.

I like to avoid eating with other people around if I can.

 

[robertwnielsen]

I have weird feelings about eating out--I like spending time with my wife, but by the same token, sometimes the awkward pauses in conversation are uncomfortable. We compromise by getting drive-thru/takeout whenever we can. (Which isn't often).

 

[Grumpy Cat]

I try to steer away from eating out much. I've been to a couple of restaurants with my Ma where we ended up leaving early because someone close by started choking and still continued eating (it looked like a disaster in the making). My other worst fear is having to perform the Heimlich maneuver on a real person - I'm only used to a dummy!

 

[142857]

Where I live (Sydney, Australia) the restaurants tend to be very expensive and often they are not all that good.

For a meal with friends I prefer to cook a bunch of interesting dishes at home. Cheaper, better food usually, and I get a chance to show off.

 

[Christy]

I enjoy eating out if the company is limited and interesting, the food tastes nice, and the restraurant is not crowded or noisy. I do like my food though : )

 

[Archer36]

It depends where. I like going to quiet pubs and small restaurant with a friend or two ... It needs to be quiet in order to help me with the communication. I don't mind spending 2 hours there slowly eating, drinking and talking.

However, if its a noisy place, or if its a larger group of people, I HAAAAATE it ... and generally, when its a large group, it means they are my co-workers, and we go to cheap restaurants like Boston Pizza or East Side Mario's ... so:
1- Its noisy
2- I can't talk at all if I'm in a large group
3- The food is cheap and not good
4- The only reason why I go, is to look sociable.

That's pretty much it.

 

[EdenPrime]

I don't mind eating out with my husband, or a small group of people if we have planned to eat out, and we know where we are going to eat.

I hate eating out in big groups, and nobody has decided where they want to eat. I make suggestions and people complain but they take forever to decide. Also I am fussy where we eat as there are not a lot of places I trust..

I cannot eat in noisey or busy places. Luckily my husband knows when I'm stressing so we wont go in or we'll leave. That means a lot to me that he can pick up on it.

I think a sushi place we regulary eat has picked up on me stressing too. Yesterday I finally got the courage to sit in the big seats instead of the booths and they were sooo cramped.. They ended up moving the chair next to me so I had more room and that was really nice.

 

[tryingtoregister]

[QUOTE="
4- The only reason why I go, is to look sociable.

That's pretty much it.[/QUOTE]

I find myself doing alot of things with other people for this reason

 

[Progster]

It depends where. I like going to quiet pubs and small restaurant with a friend or two ... It needs to be quiet in order to help me with the communication. I don't mind spending 2 hours there slowly eating, drinking and talking.

However, if its a noisy place, or if its a larger group of people, I HAAAAATE it ... and generally, when its a large group, it means they are my co-workers, and we go to cheap restaurants like Boston Pizza or East Side Mario's ... so:
1- Its noisy
2- I can't talk at all if I'm in a large group
3- The food is cheap and not good
4- The only reason why I go, is to look sociable.

That's pretty much it.

I totally agree with this one - although here I have to factor in my aversion to cigarette smoke which makes it virtually impossible to go out anywhere here in winter, so I rarely go out.

Talking isn't my thing and though I enjoy the food and the fact that I don't have to cook, I get very bored, and just switch off and withdraw into my head. Alone in company.

 

[HappyHermit]

No, I don't find dining out boring. It find it more or less enjoyable depending on the circumstances, but not boring. I don't even mind if it's fairly crowded because it makes it more likely that each table is minding its own business and not ogling me for entertainment. It also shouldn't be too loud (with a bit of an investment the acoustics of the place can be controlled somewhat so that it doesn't become an echo chamber even if it's full), it shouldn't be too brightly lit and the number of people I'm with should ideally not exceed three, preferably just my partner. Obviously, I also favour good food and attentive and professional service.

I don't dine out often because I don't want to spend the money on it, living on an okay-ish budget. There are more important and interesting things to spend money on, and I also save obsessively, knowing what it's like not to have any money. I dine out with my partner about once every couple of months. I meet other people or groups in restaurants or bars about three times a year. I would actually like to go out to restaurants/bars with my partner more often, but not until our income increases, which it may in the next few years.

But to sum things up, there are things I like and dislike about dining out, but boredom isn't one of them.

 

[AsheSkyler]

For the most part, I enjoy it. I'm a glutton at heart, so for once my sensory issues are working for me and not against me. Food is fun! Chatting about random things over food can be fun. I get bored eating by myself if I don't have something to watch or do while I'm eating.

 

[Juju92]

Everytime I go to dinner I can eat well but cant socialize with the others. Thats what makes me feel bad during the meal. The best thing I like to do its just me, the food and the computer

 

[Randomperson]

I try to steer away from eating out much. I've been to a couple of restaurants with my Ma where we ended up leaving early because someone close by started choking and still continued eating (it looked like a disaster in the making). My other worst fear is having to perform the Heimlich maneuver on a real person - I'm only used to a dummy!

Anyone that chokes on their food because of inhaling pretty much is a "dummy" in my book.....

 

[Harrison]

I enjoy dining out if the company is 'entertaining', and have a preference for early dining before the place becomes too crowded as all those other conversations tend to confuse me.

 

[Warmheart]

Gotta get the exact same thing each time at specific restaurants. Nerdy me creates "restaurant rituals" to deal with the randomness of the whole shebang. "No, thank you, I do not want to try something different!"

Dining out is okay if it is with just one or two other people.
And the restaurant is not crowded.
And the windows don't make much glare.
And the servers aren't jitterbugging all over the place.
And nobody is wearing gagworthy PERFUME or COLOGNE.
And any background chatter is minimal.
And they have to have my customary meal which I usually order there.

Then, sure! I love going out to eat!

 

[gregmcph]

A low key eat out... just a few comfortable people, sitting in a booth eating Chinese, idly chatting is nice. Looking on as my kids chatter about their teenage obsessions.

But the mass gathering, the hyperbusy, loud rumble of a tight crowded room, is horrible.