How Tinder has totally changed restaurant culture

Restaurants have become accustomed to first dates.

(Image credit: iStock)

published 7 June 2016

That super awkward Tinder date you went on? Your waiter and bartender probably noticed.

But what restaurant staff are also noticing is the effect that 1.3 million Tinder dates a week has on their businesses. According to The Washington Post, geo-locating dating apps like Tinder, Grindr, and Bumble have given rise to a whole new way restaurants and bars operate, and that's not always a good thing:

Your awkward first date can amuse restaurant staff. But other patrons may not be that delighted. And because every restaurant seat is a piece of money-making real estate, the dozens of dates you've gone on this year may also be affecting many businesses' bottom line.Particularly when daters stare into their phones for 30 minutes without ordering, waiting for their match to turn up. And when they spend another two hours talking about their childhood and lactose intolerance while nursing a single, happy-hour-priced beer. [The Washington Post]

Paradoxically, first dates can be especially bad if they're, well, really good. "We've been closed for an hour sometimes and they're still sitting there. It's a big faux pas to say, 'Hey guys, we're closed,'" D.C.'s Bar Dupont general manager, Chris McNeal, said. He added that couples will sometimes start to make out, oblivious to other diners, and as a result "we try everything in our power not to seat the tables" around a first date.

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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.