Korean BBQ.

Share food and cook for each other. Creates instant intimacy, great food too

My place. First, the food is fabulous. Second, the food is cheap.

Edit: This pizza cost about $3 to make and it's a really great, authentic sourdough Neapolitan.

If the answer is anything other than Long John Silvers then you don't have enough game to get beyond the first date.

Waffle House for the opportunity to demonstrate my martial prowess

That vietnamese restaurant i frequent. If she never had vietnamese cuisine before, she need ti know about vietnamese cuisine, it's important.

Can't go wrong with Italian, IMO.

Somewhere with vegan food.

I’m a service top when it comes to restaurants (and also generally, but that’s besides the point). Typically when I am planning a first date with someone, I first ask if they have any dietary needs, and then I ask if there is any food they have been craving lately or if there are any restaurants in the area that they have been meaning to try.

If they say they are craving a specific type of food, I am pretty well enough acquainted with the different types of restaurants in my area that I can choose accordingly. I typically will choose the restaurant that serves the “best” food they have been craving. I love to bond over good food and I love showing people new things that they will enjoy (another facet of being a service top), so at the very least we will be able to talk about how good the food is and they have a new dinner spot they can take their friends.

If they choose a restaurant they’ve been meaning to try, it makes for a good dinner conversation and I potentially get to have a new spot on my restaurant list.

If they don’t have a preference, then I just choose a spot that I’ve been meaning to try that’s halfway between where we both live so it’s convenient for the both of us. If there isn’t anything I want to try in the area, I will just go for something like a sit down pizza spot.

Also, once I’ve picked a spot, I normally look in the area and pick a potential second location for us to go to if the date is going well and we still want to hang out after dinner. Typically I look for a dive bar because they’re fun, cheap, and easy to talk in.

Went on a date last night. We saw some live music and walked around. Took her to a really good ramen place that I had left an emphatic, detailed 5 star review for previously.

The review was so good, the staff treated us like royalty and even the owner stopped by our table.

Bam, got hugs and kisses.

I know "it depends" is a wishy washy answer, but really it depends. I fucking love outrageously spicy food - scared my now husband when he took me to a Thai place by ordering papaya salad authentically spicy, it's been a dozen years and he still brings it up, like he tried it & it gave him PTSD. It was so good though, and I was so happy they did not pull any punches.

If it's a first date, I wouldn't like to drink, so maybe pizza? I think what makes a place good for a date is when all the food is for the table, not each of you separately. If the guy was loaded and wanting to go someplace pricy, there are very fancy restaurants here that serve that way, but pizza I like, most people like, and it is not usually a drinking food IMO, it's better with water or soda. And you share it.

If a foodie guy, I'd ask for Ethiopian food. Those meals are also served on one big injera for the table and wow so delicious and also not a drinking sort of meal.

Is this like a cautious first date or is there a good chance I’m bringing them home tonight?

If the former, let’s get some spicy Asian noodles with a huge beer.

If the latter, appies at a safe restaurant. Easy on the oil, garlic, spice, onion, and alcohol.

the cute burger place with the outdoor patio with a fountain. $50 and a nice time.

Go to where you actually like to eat, because you're testing out this person for long term compatibility.

While not strictly a dinner, I'm usually opting (or at least suggest, if the other side would be interested) for a local billiard place. It's not just a pub with a random one table, but an actual cue sports place/bar, with like 20 tables. It does have drinks and is also a restaurant, and in general looks relatively fancy.

I like billiard (pool) because it's easy to pick up, gives you something to do during/between conversations without requiring too much focus, can be done in fancy clothes without needing to change into anything, and can look fancy with drinks. It's also something that everyone plays basically on the same skill level, whether you are playing for a first time or for 50th time, with only people who are actually practicing regularly being noticeably better (which I'm not), so it's never really too one-sided. And it's fun.

So far it has worked well.

Local family-owned restaurant that I frequent and find delicious. Chances are they wouldn't have tried it before, and if they like to try new things, chances are they'd like it.

Maybe not for dinner, but I think a cat café is a good choice for getting to know someone. You get to see how well they follow the rules, how they handle the animals, potentially how they deal with the rejection of sitting there without getting to interact with a cat etc. You can get some idea of how respectful and thoughtful someone is in a place like that. Plus you get to support local shelter and potentially hang out with cats! Though on the downside it can be distracting from conversation as well.

For dinner probably a local joint. They have edible vegan burgers and pool tables and karaoke booths, but can get quite loud depending on when you're there. There's a local restaurant with great atmosphere and lots of hidden art to discover, but it's pricey and high-brow enough that I probably wouldn't suggest it as a first date. I prefer to show my trashy roots first and weed out any snobs.

Somewhere nice where she can super-size it.

I never spend money on a first date.

For my current girlfriend, I took her to my place and I cooked her pasta. Very intimate and I don't need to spend money.

I have a hankering for Salisbury steak. So a mid restaurant I guess, gives options for her too.

Pizza. I'm not interested in dating anyone who thinks a 5 star restaurant is necessary. I want a real person, not a pompous jerk.

I’ll eat just about anything, and I’ve got 6 restaurants that come to mind as go-to’s. Mexican, Sushi, Other Sushi, Thai, Korean, Diner. It depends on the mood and desired atmosphere. I don’t drink anymore, and never really knew the bar scene around the town I live in, so that would be up to him.

Flip side: I like to cook, and especially so for a potential mate. If he brings pre-rolls and a rec for a movie (comedy or background noise), the night might get interesting. 😅

Somewhere in nature like parks, seaside

I took my wife to a semi-fancy restaurant by a bar. We ate dinner, had drinks and then when we had too much fun at dinner we went to the bar. It was nice

The Y.

Pizza. If you don't like getting pizza, then you don't like me.

Perfect dinner spot: isolated enough that no one can hear you, open enough that you can have a look at a street or something with people going on, so you have something to talk about. But that's more of a date for me and my partner, because we already know each other.

"I get to choose" as in I have to try and guess where she wants to go. If it was up to me it's either Burger King or a sushi buffet.