Last winter, four co-workers canceled on me for Restaurant Week lunch in the course of one morning. Instead of moping and microwaving some soup, I headed to TenPenh’s bar, just steps from my office, for lunch on my own. This Restaurant Week, I’ve reveled in the art of solo midday meals. Reservations, coordination, and flaky friends are not needed. Free seats at the bar are almost always plentiful, though last week, I could have also had my pick of tables. I found several empty seats at most every dining room I visited—perhaps a function of the stumbling economy—regardless of what OpenTable had to say. Show up after 1 or 1:30, especially at a larger dining room, and you’ll likely never have a problem getting seated anywhere you’d like.

A bar lunch is quick and allows for a solitary focus on the food. Most good bartenders will pick up on your cues to lend you an ear or offer an unobtrusive lunch. That may or may not be true for your bar stool neighbors. (To the chatty lady sitting 3 stools away…For the last time, the scallops are just fine!) Pick a spot near your office (Capital Spice has their handy RW map) and you can be back in the office in under an hour, especially if you take dessert to go. Find a place with worthy bread (I enjoyed toasty rolls and salted butter at DC Coast and half a baguette at Café du Parc), and you’ll hopefully be stuffed until the next morning. After these lunches, I’m usually full until 11 p.m.

Dateless or not, several $35.09 dinners can add up rather quickly. But a week full of $20.09 lunches are pretty easy to fit into a more frugal gourmand’s budget. And if you think you’ve missed the gastronomic party this time around, rest assured you’re not too late! DC Foodies has listed over 30 restaurants that are extending the promotion for a week.