A counter changes everything about eating alone. Facing a chef instead of an empty chair, you have something to watch, someone to talk to, and a meal whose pace is set for you. Perth, a city that quietly built a serious Japanese omakase scene, is unusually rich in that kind of seat — ten-stool sushi counters, a no-bookings Nedlands room, a wood-fired grill you can sit right at. These are the seven Perth tables where turning up as a party of one is an advantage, not an apology, ordered by how completely each is built for the solo diner.
1Tora Sushi
Tora Sushi is the Perth omakase to prioritise, and it is purpose-built for solo dining: ten seats, two seatings a night from Wednesday to Saturday, and chefs James Loh and Hide Otani working the counter directly in front of you. With a room this small and a format this focused, a single diner is not squeezed in at the end — you are part of the same intimate service as everyone else, with a front-row view of every piece of nigiri being shaped and brushed. Book ahead; the seats are few and they go.
A ten-seat omakase counter where eating alone is the intended way to dine — reserve a single seat and take the front row.
2Marumo
Marumo is the best-value fine dining in Perth and a gift to the solo diner. Its seven-course omakase runs about three hours in an itty-bitty, minimalist room tucked into a Nedlands shopping village, seating only around a dozen — and it does not take bookings, so a single diner who arrives early or later in the evening will often walk straight in where a couple has to wait. At roughly A$95 it delivers far more than its price suggests, and the counter makes the solo seat feel like the best one.
A no-bookings, A$95 seven-course counter and the city's best fine-dining value — turn up alone, early, and slide into a seat.
3Papi Katsu
Papi Katsu brings irreverence to the omakase format — chef Shane Middleton runs a counter that blends real craft with a sense of humour, paired with a proper sake bar. For a solo diner that combination is ideal: you can take the full omakase at the counter or perch at the bar with a few plates and a flight of sake, watching the room without needing a companion to justify the seat. It is the most relaxed of Perth's serious Japanese counters and the easiest to drop into alone on a city night.
A craft-meets-humour omakase counter with a sake bar attached — the easy-going CBD solo seat for a night out alone.
4Ichirin
Ichirin is the suburban sleeper of Perth omakase, where chef Shiro Okuchi marries Japanese technique to Western Australian produce at a counter in Leeming. The roughly A$80 omakase is BYO with corkage included — a real rarity at this level — and bookings need two days' notice, which keeps the room considered and calm. For a solo diner willing to travel south of the river, it is one of the best-value chef-led counters in the state and a quietly rewarding seat for one.
A BYO, A$80 omakase counter pairing Japanese craft with WA produce — worth the drive south for a calm solo dinner.
5Nobu Perth
The Perth outpost of Nobu Matsuhisa's global brand sits inside Crown Towers at Burswood, and its sushi bar is a reliable solo seat: pull up to the counter and watch the knife work — paper-thin sashimi, lightning prep, the signature black cod and tiraditos that made the name. It is the most polished and most expensive option here, and the one to choose when a solo diner wants a glossy, hotel-grade evening with the reassurance of a format Nobu has perfected across dozens of cities.
A glossy hotel sushi-bar counter from a global name — the dependable solo splurge when you want polish over intimacy.
6Ascua
Not every solo seat has to be Japanese. Ascua, the wood-fired restaurant at the InterContinental Perth City Centre, takes its name from the Spanish for "ember" and runs a theatre-style open kitchen built around a sizzling grill — dry-aged Stirling Ranges steaks and local seafood cooked over fire. Sit at the counter facing the flames and a solo dinner becomes a show, with the heat and noise of the grill doing the work of company. It is the best non-sushi counter in the city for eating alone.
A wood-fired grill counter of dry-aged steak and seafood — take the seat facing the embers and let the fire be your company.
7Double Rainbow Bar & Eating House
Double Rainbow is the loosest, most sociable pick — a casual modern-Asian eating house from head chef Navarre Top, built on share plates and a chef's tasting, with a bar made for dropping in solo. Share plates can be the enemy of the lone diner, but the bar seating and the kitchen's willingness to send out smaller orders make it work, and the room's energy means a single diner never feels stranded. It is the choice for a relaxed, unbuttoned solo night rather than a focused counter ritual.
A lively Asian share-plate bar where the room is the company — perch at the bar for a loose, unbuttoned solo evening.
What Makes a Great Solo Table in Perth
The common thread across this list is the counter. A seat that faces a chef or a fire gives a lone diner everything a dining companion would: something to watch, someone to talk to, and a meal whose rhythm is set by the kitchen rather than by awkward stretches of silence. Omakase rooms top the ranking because the format is a one-to-one dialogue by design — Tora Sushi, Marumo and Ichirin all turn a single seat into the best one. Below them, a grill counter like Ascua and a busy bar like Double Rainbow achieve the same effect through energy and spectacle. Avoid, for solo dining, the wide-spaced formal dining room with white-cloth tables for four; the counter is the whole point.
Not For
Skip the share-plate format at Double Rainbow if you are a small eater dining alone — menus built for a table of four can leave a solo diner over-ordering or under-fed, so ask the kitchen for half-orders or stick to the counter picks. And do not target Marumo if you need certainty: it takes no bookings and seats barely a dozen, so a solo diner without flexibility on time can be turned away. For a guaranteed seat, book Tora Sushi or Ichirin ahead instead.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is the best solo dining in Perth?
Perth's best solo dining is at its omakase counters, where eating alone is the intended way to dine. Tora Sushi in Leederville, a ten-seat counter run by James Loh and Hide Otani, is the standout, with Marumo in Nedlands close behind for value at around A$95. Both seat you facing the chef, which makes a solo meal the best seat in the house. See more under best for solo dining.
What makes a restaurant good for eating alone?
A counter is the single best feature: it puts you facing the kitchen rather than across an empty seat, gives you something to watch, and makes conversation with the staff natural. Omakase rooms are ideal because the chef leads and the pacing is built in. A lively bar with food, like Double Rainbow, works for the same reason — the room does the company so you do not have to.
Do Perth's omakase counters take solo bookings?
Yes, and they often prefer them. Tora Sushi runs two seatings a night from Wednesday to Saturday and books ahead. Ichirin in Leeming asks for two days' notice and is BYO with corkage included in its roughly A$80 omakase. Marumo does not take bookings, so arrive early or late for one of its dozen seats. A single diner is the easiest reservation these small counters can take.
Is omakase worth it for one person?
Omakase is arguably better as a solo diner than as a couple, because the meal is a one-to-one dialogue with the chef and you can give it your full attention. Marumo's seven-course menu at around A$95 is one of the best-value fine-dining rooms in the city, and Tora Sushi and Ichirin both deliver chef-led counters where a single seat is a front-row one.
Where can I eat alone in Perth without booking?
For a no-reservation solo meal, head to Marumo in Nedlands, which does not take bookings and seats around a dozen — arrive early or later. Ascua's grill counter at the InterContinental and the bar at Double Rainbow both welcome walk-in solo diners, the first for wood-fired steak and seafood, the second for Asian share plates in a lively room.