Best restaurants for dining alone in KL

The best thing about Ekkamai’s counter seats is that they’re located at the far end of the restaurant, so you don’t have to sit amid a sea of Thai green curry lovers. Ekkamai’s à la carte options are elaborate, featuring pad Thai with tamarind sauce, duck and lychee curry, and the fit-for-one spicy tom yum. The energy escalates to a high during lunchtime thanks to affordable set lunches – the bustling atmosphere will easily help you forget you’re alone.

The gorgeous Isetan The Japan Store in Lot 10 is breaking new grounds in the local shopping scene with its refreshing take on store design, product selection and food courts. Located on the lower ground floor, The Market features multiple food zones, each specialising in a different type of Japanese food, such as tempura, soba, sushi and sashimi, yakiniku, and chazuke (a Japanese dish where you pour hot green tea or dashi over rice topped with condiments).

The best part is, the space is mostly counter seating where you get to watch the chefs prepare your food, much like how you’d dine in Tokyo, which is perfect for solo diners. The point is not to linger; you can always move on to the dessert bar (run by Tsujiri) or get a Hitachino Nest beer at the Japanese craft beer bar – both located on the same floor as well.

Pizzas are communal food, but at Mikey’s, you can dine on pizza all by yourself without looking like a glutton. Here, pizzas are available by the slice as well, and they are huge slices at that – it’s New York-style pizza after all. Selections include BBQ Chicken, Meatball, Classic New York, Mama’s Wild Mushroom (vegetarian), and of course the 9-1-1 Pizza, dubbed the spiciest in Asia as it’s completely covered with cili padi. Otherwise, go for the pastas, heroes (the New York term for ‘sub’), waffl e fries or the boneless buff alo chicken, and finish your meal with an A&W Root Beer Float.

You don’t have to subsist on bento boxes if you’re dining alone (there’s absolutely no shame in eating a curry katsu don all by yourself). Sushi bars are practically made for solo diners but to treat yourself even better, we definitely suggest a meal at the revered Oribe. The open kitchen concept with counter seating affords you the perfect view of Chef Ori and his crew at work, sculpting nigiri like miniature gems. For a less drawn-out Japanese affair, opt for the quick Seto lunch menu which consists of an appetiser, steamed egg custard, eight pieces of sushi, a sushi roll, miso soup and dessert.