speeddadiva

Single ladies, the way to a man’s heart may be easier than you think. You won’t even have to do the cooking. Just eat where men eat.

And, all you single men eating out, pay attention, please!

It’s no secret that if you want to meet people, you need to show up on their radar. That means going to the places that they frequent. It’s no accident that my Inning Dates seasonal speed dating events take place in a baseball park – a professional sports arena and bastion of the healthy American male.

We’ve all heard that old saying that the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach. (And what man doesn’t appreciate a good feed?) But until now this route meant cooking for your man. That presents two daunting challenges. This means that one must first find a man. Then, once found, one must have adequate cooking skills to pull it off.

But maybe, there’s an easier way. My area metro paper today reported that a local landmark eatery, a humble hot dog house, was listed by none other than Esquire Magazine as being among 27 places nationally where men eat. If you can still get your hands on the April issue, it’d certainly be worth a look. Armed with that knowledge it seems simple enough to pay a visit to any of the eateries near you. And, if none is nearby, with the info provided, think about your own community and profile possible places where you might test my theory. Place yourself in a place where men go to eat.

Though I am a true believer that you must be in the right place to meet a Mr. Right, I will admit that the last time I visited that particular eatery in the Esquire article, I don’t think I saw a single male. But in all fairness to them, it was a freezing cold Sunday afternoon when a New England Patriots playoff game was about to start and the place was devoid of TV’s. After taking in an exhibit at the local art museum, my niece and I rushed in to get chili dogs to go for our extended family to have when we got home to watch the game as well. So, the other caveat I would add is to try to aim for a “right” time – at least when there’s likely to be a good crowd.  PS. No, there weren’t many men at the art museum that day either.

Speaking of crowds, it’s also important to learn to work a line. College communities, in particular, tend to have popular local food hot spots that are usually small, and by virtue of this, on weekends tend to have lines. When I lived near New Haven, for example, several legendary pizza parlors always had lines no matter what the weather and could always be relied upon to provide a social experience that pretty nearly matched the culinary one.

Trust me, this works better with restaurants than nightclub lines – probably because the wannabe patrons are less likely to be tanked..

One last thought for today– one of the great things about venturing into these establishments is that most men are only too willing to give you the benefit of their opinion, experience and knowledge. Here’s an opportunity for you to easily let them. In fact, ask them for their menu suggestion. And, if you follow it, you’ll create a perfect  opportunity for you to follow up with them afterward – perhaps, over dessert or drinks.