The good people behind OkCupid (the popular, free dating website known for their quirky Q&A; matching system) launched Crazy Blind Date in San Francisco earlier this year. The idea is simple: you wanna meet up with someone new, like, ASAP, but you don’t want to deal with filling out an online dating profile or asking your coworkers to set you up for the evening. So you log into the site, give them some basic information about yourself and you’re off. Thanks to the wonderful advancements of 21st century technology, CBD is able to match people from a restrained database and get back to them with a date suggestion and a list of places to meet up.
Here’s how it went down for us:
We wanted to grab a drink after work so we indicated that we were looking to meet up between 8PM and 9PM. We didn’t want it to be a big ordeal so we said we would be willing to meet up in SOMA or the Financial District. We said we were looking for “a little conversation and a night cap.”
A couple hours later we got a text message and email letting us know they found a date for us. After checking out their specs and written responses it seemed harmless so we reviewed the extensive list of meet-up options and settled on a location. The nice thing about picking a location on CBD is you get both food and drink options and there seems to be a scene and vibe for all seasons. Even better, if the list provided isn’t good enough, there is the option to “make a few changes,” which gives you an even longer list that covers a larger area. Clearly CBD has partnered with the city’s more reputable restaurants and bars, but fear not, you’re given the opportunity to review the place you end up at after the date so don’t feel like you have to love Aqua (which, incidentally, was on our list).
In case you were wondering, our date was on time. Our date was cute. The conversation was easy and the venue was great. We ended up at John Colins because we had already eaten dinner, and we (date included) were very happy with the location.
John Colins is definitively SOMA–exposed brick walls, dim lighting, upper loft-like area, neo-soul spinning on the ones and twos and a crowd that keeps you thinking. Even better, the bar is not only fully stocked, but they carry some of the best premium liquor available (any bar that stocks the entire line of Hangar One vodka gets an A in our book). Of course, as cool as John Colins was, most of our attention was focused on our delightfully charming date and we anxiously await a second meeting.
Thank you Crazy Blind Date for a (seemingly) randomly, wonderful evening.
Aqua [Menupages]
Aqua [Official Site]
Photo: John Colins by bluepulse
