From the Matchmaking Lab
Date ideas
Places to go, things to do, and a few rules worth following. Built for anyone dating!
Can't decide?
Set what you're in the mood for and let the Lab pick for you.
Before you go
The difference between a good date and a forgettable one is usually decided before anyone leaves the house.
Don’t small-talk over text
Text her to make a plan, not to chat. Save the small talk for the date!
Tell her where you are going
Send the plan before the date, not when you are pulling up. She should know where she is headed and what to wear.
Plan for the weather
Check the forecast. Rooftops, parks and boardwalks are useless in the rain. Always have an indoor plan B.
Make reservations
"We will figure it out when we get there" is not a plan. Book it, then confirm the day before.
Confirm the date the morning of
A short text the morning of - where, what time, and that you are looking forward to it. It settles nerves on both sides and it saves you from a mix-up at 7pm.
Pick somewhere you can actually talk
A loud bar with music you have to shout over will kill the conversation before it starts.
Be a mensch and pick her up
Do not make her travel to you. Pick her up, know where you are parking, and have the whole route figured out before you pull up.
Keep the first one short
Two to three hours is plenty. Leave it somewhere good rather than running out of things to say.
Text her after
That night or the next morning, tell her you had a nice time or that you do not see it working out. Do not wait, and do not ghost.
Put your phone away
Face down, in your pocket. Not on the table.
Dress one notch nicer
Whatever you think is right, go slightly above it. It reads as effort, and effort reads as interest.
Upper West Side 🌳
Walkable, easy to get to, and you can string two of these together into one good night.
Ample Hills Creamery
Walk in📍 2626 Broadway (at 100th St)
Ice cream. Low pressure, easy to walk and talk afterward.
16 Handles
Walk in📍 325 Amsterdam Ave (at 75th St)
Froyo. The build-your-own thing gives you something to do with your hands.
Hex & Co
📅 Reserve📍 2911 Broadway (at 113th St)
Board game cafe. The single best first-date idea if conversation makes you nervous.
Paint and pottery studio
Walk inPaint your own pottery. You will both be bad at it. That is the point.
Tap for places
Central Park
📍 Enter at 72nd St for Bethesda Terrace
Bethesda Terrace, Bow Bridge, the Ramble, Strawberry Fields. Rowboats at the boathouse in season.
Columbus Circle
📍 59th St & Broadway
Meet at the fountain. Shops in the Deutsche Bank Center, park entrance right there.
Museum of Natural History
📅 Reserve📍 200 Central Park West (at 79th St)
The planetarium is the move. Enormous, so there is always another room to wander into.
Riverside Park
📍 Enter at W 72nd St & Riverside Dr
Quieter than Central Park. Walk down to the boat basin at sunset.
Lincoln Center plaza
📍 10 Lincoln Center Plaza (63rd & Columbus)
Sit by the fountain. Beautiful at night and costs nothing.
Bookstore browse
Walk inTen minutes each picking a book for the other person. You learn a lot.
Tap for places
Chaotic Good Cafe
Walk in📍 200 W 84th St
Board games and coffee on 84th. Pick something ridiculous off the shelf and you have an easy hour.
Under 21 🎯
No bars, no problem. These are better first dates than a drink anyway.
Observation deck
📅 ReserveGo near sunset and stay for the lights.
Tap for places
Hex & Co
📅 ReserveBoard game cafe. Impossible to run out of things to say.
Tap for places
The Uncommons
📅 Reserve📍 230 Thompson St, Greenwich Village
Board game cafe downtown. Hundreds of games, coffee, and a staff that will teach you one.
Bowling
📅 ReserveLow stakes, easy to laugh, nobody has to be good at it.
Tap for places
Escape room$$
📅 ReserveYou will find out fast how she handles pressure and whether you work well together.
Tap for places
Mini golf
Walk in📍 Pier 25, Hudson River Park (Tribeca)
Silly on purpose. Best when neither of you takes it seriously.
Chelsea Piers
📅 Reserve📍 Pier 62, W 23rd St & the Hudson
Bowling at the piers, driving range, batting cages, rock climbing. Pick one, keep it to an hour.
The High Line and Little Island
📍 Enter at Gansevoort St · Little Island at Pier 55, W 13th St
Walk the High Line, end at Little Island. All outdoors, all free.
Brooklyn Bridge into DUMBO
📍 Start at City Hall Park, Manhattan side
Walk the bridge, get dessert on the other side. Go on a weekday, the weekend is a crowd.
Botanical garden
📅 ReserveEnormous, quiet, and pretty in every season.
Tap for places
Staten Island Ferry
📍 Whitehall Terminal, 4 Whitehall St
Free, twenty five minutes each way, and the skyline does all the work for you.
Roosevelt Island tram
📍 E 59th St & 2nd Ave
A few minutes in the air over the East River for the price of a subway swipe.
Coffee dates ☕
The lowest-stakes date there is. An hour, two cups, and you know if there should be a dinner.
Cha Cha Matcha
Walk inPink and green matcha bar with locations all over the city. The Flatiron one is the prime date spot of the bunch - a real corner room you can actually sit in.
Tap for places
Rooftop bars 🌇
All 21 and over. Reserve ahead, check the dress code, and check the forecast. Most are drinks and a view, not dinner.
230 Fifth
📅 Reserve📍 230 5th Ave (at 27th St)
Flatiron. The big one, straight-on Empire State views. Heated igloos in the winter.
The Press Lounge
📅 Reserve📍 653 11th Ave (at 48th St)
Hell’s Kitchen. Pool, skyline, sunsets over the Hudson.
Refinery Rooftop
📅 Reserve📍 63 W 38th St
Garment District. Glass-enclosed part means it survives bad weather.
Magic Hour
📅 Reserve📍 485 7th Ave (at 36th St)
Moxy Times Square. Playful, a little over the top, good for a fun night.
Ophelia
📅 Reserve📍 3 Mitchell Pl (49th & 1st Ave)
Beekman Tower, Midtown East. Art deco and quieter than most. Good for talking.
Westlight
📅 Reserve📍 111 N 12th St, Williamsburg
The Manhattan skyline from across the river, which is the better angle.
Harriet’s Rooftop
📅 Reserve📍 60 Furman St, Brooklyn Heights
1 Hotel Brooklyn Bridge. Bridge and skyline together.
The Roof at Public Hotel
📅 Reserve📍 215 Chrystie St, Lower East Side
Greenhouse feel, wraparound views.
Empire Hotel Rooftop
📅 Reserve📍 44 W 63rd St, across from Lincoln Center
The UWS rooftop. Close enough to walk to after dinner uptown, which most rooftops are not.
Spyglass Rooftop
📅 Reserve📍 Archer Hotel, 45 W 38th St
Small, intimate, and the Empire State Building is close enough to feel like it is in the room. Best rooftop on this list for actually talking.
Top of the Strand
📅 Reserve📍 The Strand Hotel, 33 W 37th St
Retractable roof, so the weather cannot cancel your night. Relaxed, and the Empire State view is straight on.
Cocktail bars 🍸
All 21 and over. Reserve ahead where you can - these fill up on a weekend night. Tap the Reserve badge on any card to book.
Nobody Told Me$$$
📅 Reserve📍 Amsterdam Ave, UWS · second location in DUMBO, Brooklyn
An over-the-top cocktail bar the moment you walk in. Fun without being loud, and the drinks give you something to talk about.
Titsou Bar$$$$
📅 Reserve📍 28 Desbrosses St, Tribeca (inside Fouquet’s)
A 1920s Paris speakeasy behind a sliding door in the Fouquet’s lobby. Candlelight, velvet, serious cocktails around $30 - dress business casual or better.
De Capo Bar$$$
📅 Reserve📍 Upper West Side
The UWS option when you want a drink without a trek downtown. Close enough to walk to Central Park after.
Overstory$$$$
📅 Reserve📍 70 Pine St, 64th floor
Sixty four floors up, and the drinks are as serious as the view. Small room, so reserve well ahead.
Nebeluz$$$
📅 Reserve📍 25 W 28th St, top floor
Top floor cocktail room in NoMad. Dark, close, and easy to lose two hours in.
Keys and Heels$$$
📅 Reserve📍 1488 2nd Ave, UES
The uptown one. A real cocktail list without the downtown wait.
Hotel lobby bars 🛎️
The classic. Quiet, dressed up, and you can sit for two hours over one drink. Evenings are generally 21+, and check the dress code before you go.
The Bar at Baccarat$$$$
📅 Reserve📍 Baccarat Hotel, 28 W 53rd St
Crystal everywhere, all glamour. The impress-her lobby bar.
The Wallace Lounge$$
Walk in📍 The Wallace, 242 W 76th St
UWS. Calm, pretty, and easy to talk in - a natural first-date lobby.
Bemelmans Bar$$$$
📅 Reserve📍 The Carlyle, 35 E 76th St
Hand-painted murals and live piano. The most iconic room on this list.
The Whitby Bar$$$
Walk in📍 Whitby Hotel, 18 W 56th St
Colorful and a little whimsical, without the scene.
Peacock Alley$$$$
📅 Reserve📍 Waldorf Astoria, 301 Park Ave
The grand old Waldorf lobby, back and gleaming after the renovation.
The Palm Court$$$$
📅 Reserve📍 The Plaza, 768 5th Ave
Under the stained-glass ceiling at the Plaza. Afternoon tea or an evening drink.
Lobby Lounge, Mandarin Oriental$$$$
📅 Reserve📍 80 Columbus Circle, 35th floor
A lobby bar with a full skyline - Central Park from the 35th floor.
The Bar Room at Temple Court$$$
📅 Reserve📍 The Beekman, 5 Beekman St
A nine-story Victorian atrium downtown. Quietly stunning.
The Campbell$$$
Walk in📍 Grand Central, 15 Vanderbilt Ave
A restored 1920s office inside Grand Central. Not a hotel, same energy.
The Bar at The Peninsula$$$$
📅 Reserve📍 The Peninsula, 700 5th Ave (at 55th St)
Old-guard Fifth Avenue hotel. Quiet, formal, and the rooftop upstairs if the weather holds.
The Surrey Bar$$$$
📅 Reserve📍 The Surrey, 20 E 76th St
UES, low light, and a room built for a long conversation. Check the dress code.
Dinner spots 🍽️
Kosher only - Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, Riverdale, Great Neck, and the Jersey Shore. Reserve ahead, confirm the hashgacha and hours yourself before you book (certifications change), and ask about her food before you pick.
Price
Where
Casual
Under $25 a personHoly Schnitzel$
Walk in📍 Brooklyn, plus other locations
Fast, casual, zero pressure. A coffee-date alternative when dinner feels like too much.
Bravo's Pizza$
Walk in📍 378 5th Ave, Midtown
A slice and a walk. The cheapest way to see if you actually want to keep talking to her.
Saba's Pizza$
Walk inPizza on both sides of the park. Grab a slice and walk into Central Park from either one.
Tap for places
Cafe Premiata$
Walk in📍 72-08 Main St, Flushing
The Queens cafe date. Easy, unhurried, and cheap enough that nobody is watching the bill.
Essen New York Deli$
Walk in📍 1359 Coney Island Ave
Old-school deli. Zero pretense, endless food.
Easygoing
About $25 to $50 a personNoi Due Cafe$$
📅 Reserve📍 491 Columbus Ave (at 84th St)
The dairy Noi Due. Pasta and fish, lighter and easier than a steakhouse.
Mocha Burger$$
Walk in📍 127 4th Ave, Union Square
Burgers, no ceremony. Open until 2am, so it works as a late second stop just as well as a dinner.
Mr. Broadway$$
Walk in📍 209 W 38th St, Midtown
Casual, big menu, zero pressure - a solid early-date dinner.
Tiberias$$
📅 Reserve📍 45 E 34th St, Midtown
Dairy - pasta, fish, pizza. Lighter than a steakhouse.
Basil Pizza & Wine Bar$$
📅 Reserve📍 270 Kingston Ave, Crown Heights
Dairy - wood-fired pizza and a real wine list. Date-night casual.
Carlos & Gabby’s$$
Walk in📍 Riverdale Ave, Riverdale
Mexican-style grill. Fun, casual, easy first-date energy.
Date night
About $50 to $100 a personLe Marais$$$
📅 Reserve📍 150 W 46th St, Midtown
French steakhouse, a classic special-occasion room.
Talia’s Steakhouse$$$
📅 Reserve📍 668 Amsterdam Ave (92nd/93rd)
UWS steakhouse, sit-down, dressier. Ask for a quiet table.
Wolf & Lamb$$$
📅 Reserve📍 10 E 48th St, Midtown
A quiet date, not a vibe restaurant - go here to actually talk.
Malka$$$
📅 Reserve📍 Amsterdam Ave, UWS
The UWS date-night room. Book ahead, it is small and it goes fast.
Akimori$$$
📅 Reserve📍 858 Lexington Ave, UES
Sushi and Japanese. Sharing plates keeps a first date moving.
Mocha Burger Lux$$$
📅 Reserve📍 4 E 46th St, Midtown
The dressed-up sibling, with its own menu and a real room. Book it when the date has earned a proper dinner.
Boeuf & Bun$$$
📅 Reserve📍 1670 Coney Island Ave
Burgers done seriously. Trendy without being stiff.
Orchidea$$$
📅 Reserve📍 4815 12th Ave, Boro Park
Upscale dairy and fish. Beautiful room, quieter pace.
Hapisgah$$$
📅 Reserve📍 147-25 Union Tpke, Flushing
Israeli and Middle Eastern, generous to the point of absurd. Come hungry.
Paprika$$$
📅 Reserve📍 8 Bond St, Great Neck
The Great Neck sit-down. Worth the drive if you are already out on the Island.
Dagiim$$$
📅 Reserve📍 Great Neck Plaza
Fish and dairy. Lighter than a steakhouse and easier to talk over.
Salt Steakhouse$$$
📅 Reserve📍 15 Morris Ave, Unit 106, Long Branch, NJ
The Jersey Shore steakhouse. Worth the drive if you are already down by Deal.
Special occasion
$100+ a personReserve Cut$$$$
📅 ReserveUpscale steakhouse. The impress-her dinner.
Tap for places
Sen Sakana$$$$
📅 Reserve📍 28 W 44th St, Midtown
Japanese-Peruvian. Interesting menu, great for a date with some adventure in it.
Noi Due Carne$$$$
📅 Reserve📍 141 W 69th St, UWS
Italian meat. Intimate and consistently good.
Nōmé$$$$
📅 Reserve📍 100 E 13th St, near Union Square
Kosher Nikkei - Japanese technique, Peruvian flavor - in a small candlelit room with a speakeasy behind it. Dairy free. The reservation is the hard part.
Mike's Bistro$$$$
📅 Reserve📍 127 E 54th St, Midtown
Fine dining, tasting-menu energy. Save it for a date that has earned it.
Barnea Bistro$$$$
📅 Reserve📍 211 E 46th St, Midtown
Israeli bistro. Warm room, food worth talking about.
Wall Street Grill$$$$
📅 Reserve📍 128 Pearl St, Financial District
Downtown sit-down grill. Quiet at night once the office crowd clears out.
Rothschild TLV$$$$
📅 Reserve📍 1129 Lexington Ave, UES
Tel Aviv on a plate. Small plates you share, which does half the work of a first date for you.
Tabernacle$$$$
📅 Reserve📍 W 8th St, Greenwich Village
The vibe restaurant - big energy, a scene. For a date that wants a night out, not a quiet talk.
Loft Steakhouse$$$$
📅 Reserve📍 1306 40th St, Brooklyn
The Brooklyn steakhouse for a serious dinner. Dress for it.
Castell$$$$
📅 Reserve📍 Brooklyn
Upscale dairy - the dressed-up Brooklyn dinner. Quiet enough to talk, expensive enough to mean something.
Bison & Bourbon$$$$
📅 Reserve📍 191 7th St, Brooklyn
Steakhouse, and priced like one. Save it for a date that is already going somewhere.
Five Towns
Close to home, and the boardwalk at the right hour is genuinely hard to beat.
Long Beach boardwalk
📍 Boardwalk at Riverside Blvd, Long Beach
Walk it at sunset. Two miles of ocean and nothing else to do but talk.
Marvel Frozen Dairy
Walk in📍 W Park Ave, Long Beach
The Long Beach ice cream stop, right by the boardwalk. Cone in hand, then walk.
Max & Mina's Ice Cream
Walk in📍 71-26 Main St, Flushing
Legendary for flavors nobody else would dare make. Order the weirdest one on the board and split it.
Date Escape
📅 Reserve📍 Mineola
The Long Island escape room built for dates. One room, one hour, and you find out fast how you work together.
Red Sea Lounge
📅 Reserve📍 Five Towns
A private lounge stocked with board games - the whole room is yours. Text or WhatsApp Esti Calko at (516) 695-6682 to book, at least 48 hours ahead.
Doin' Dishes
📅 Reserve📍 Central Ave, Cedarhurst
Paint-your-own-pottery. You each make something and trade at the end.
Point Lookout
📍 East end of Lido Blvd
Smaller and calmer than Long Beach. Go for the jetty at sunset.
Jones Beach
📍 1 Ocean Pkwy, Wantagh
A little further out, but worth it for a longer date on a good day.
Chocolate Works
📅 ReserveChocolate-making workshop. You get to eat the results.
Tap for places
Topgolf Holtsville$$
📅 Reserve📍 Long Island - Holtsville
Golf for people who do not golf. Your bay, your pace, food comes to you.
Go-karting$$
📅 Reserve📍 RPM Raceway, 40 Daniel St, Farmingdale
Indoor karts. A little friendly competition never hurt a first date.
Activate (Roosevelt Field)$$
📅 Reserve📍 Roosevelt Field Mall, 630 Old Country Rd, Garden City
Room after room of physical game challenges. You are a team, and you find out fast how you play together.
New Jersey 🌉
Across the river and worth the drive. The skyline looks better from this side anyway.
NOHU Rooftop Bar & Restaurant$$$
📅 Reserve📍 550 Ave at Port Imperial, Weehawken
Rooftop right on the Hudson with the full Manhattan skyline across the water - the view Manhattan itself cannot have.
Activate (American Dream)$$
📅 Reserve📍 1 American Dream Way, East Rutherford, NJ
Room after room of physical game challenges - lasers, mega grid, basketball. You are a team, and you find out fast how you play together.
Glenpointe Hotel Lobby$$
Walk in📍 100 Frank W Burr Blvd, Teaneck (Glenpointe)
A quiet hotel lobby to sit and talk - low-key, comfortable, and easy to hear each other. Good low-pressure first date.
Rita's of Hoboken$
Walk in📍 121 Washington St, Hoboken
Italian ice and frozen custard on Hoboken’s main strip. Grab a cup and walk Washington Street.
Israel 🇮🇱
For dates in the holy land. Jerusalem and beyond - cafes, parks, museums, and a few only-in-Israel ideas.
Places to eat (16)
Gan Sipur Cafe
Walk in📍 Sacher Park, Jerusalem
Great vibes, good indoor and outdoor seating, in a great area for walking.
Tmol Shilshom
Walk in📍 Yoel Moshe Salomon St 5, Jerusalem
A bookstore cafe with indoor and outdoor seating - cozy and full of character.
Andalucia Cocktail Bar
Walk in📍 Ze'ev Raban St 2, Jerusalem
Fun cocktails, right in Kikar Musica - a great location to walk around after.
Kikar Musica
Walk in📍 Ma'avar Beit Haknesset, Jerusalem
Live music with different restaurants and bars all around the square.
Rachel Ba-sdera
Walk in📍 Sderot Ben Maimon 13, Jerusalem
A lovely outdoor cafe on a leafy boulevard.
La Goffre
Walk in📍 Henrietta Szold St 1, Jerusalem
Gelato and desserts - a sweet, easy stop.
Mousseline
Walk in📍 HaNasi St 10, Jerusalem
An ice cream store with fun flavors.
Nucha Rooftop Bar
Walk in📍 Ben Sira St 16, Jerusalem
A rooftop bar in the center of town.
Nocturno Cafe
Walk in📍 Betsal'el St 7, Jerusalem
At night there are cocktails and live music.
Katsefet Kikar Denya
Walk in📍 Shderot Herzl 102, Jerusalem
Ice cream at Kikar Denya.
Denya Cafe
Walk in📍 Shderot Herzl 102, Jerusalem
A neighborhood cafe at Kikar Denya.
Yoelis Restaurant
Walk in📍 Beit Yisrael St 2, Jerusalem
A good place for cholent.
Muffin Boutique
Walk in📍 Daniel Yanovski St 13, Jerusalem
A sweet spot for muffins and coffee.
Urbun Cafe
Walk in📍 Ha-Shikma St 5, Jerusalem
A neighborhood cafe to sit and talk.
Metaphora Art Cafe
Walk in📍 Jaffa St 31, Jerusalem
An art cafe right on Jaffa Street.
Birma Coffee
Walk in📍 Emek Refaim St 20, Jerusalem
Good coffee on Emek Refaim.
Things to do (22)
Gan Sacher
Walk in📍 Sacher Park, Jerusalem
Lots of walking trails and places to sit.
Bowling (Kanyon Lev Talpiot)
Walk in📍 Hauman St 17, Jerusalem
Classic bowling - easy, fun, and takes the pressure off the conversation.
Tayelet Haas Promenade
Walk in📍 Daniel Yanofsky St, Jerusalem
A beautiful place to walk around, and at night there is a light show.
Yemin Moshe
Walk in📍 Yemin Moshe, Jerusalem
A beautiful neighborhood to walk around, with lots of places to sit, a fountain, and a great view of the Old City.
Train Ride
Walk in📍 Any station, Jerusalem
Take the train there and back - bring games and snacks and make it the date.
San Simon Park
Walk in📍 Ma'ale Ze'ev St 3, Jerusalem
A nice park to walk around, with a coffee cart and a dog park inside.
Hypnosis Escape Room
Walk in📍 Hillel St 39, Jerusalem
An escape room right in the center of town - solve it together.
Escape Room Jerusalem
Walk in📍 Hebron Rd 105, Jerusalem
Another escape room option - a fun way to see how you work as a team.
Gazelle Valley
Walk in📍 Gazelle Valley, Jerusalem
A really nice park to walk around with actual gazelles, nature trails, and places to sit.
JClay Studio
Walk in📍 Ha-Nevi'im St 67, Jerusalem
Pottery painting, and you can order coffee while you go.
Kad vChomer
Walk in📍 Emek Refaim St 12, Jerusalem
Pottery painting on Emek Refaim.
Israel Museum
Walk in📍 Derech Ruppin 11, Jerusalem
The country's flagship museum - art, archaeology, and the Shrine of the Book.
Bible Lands Museum
Walk in📍 Shmuel Stephan Weiz St 21, Jerusalem
A museum tracing the ancient Near East.
Israel Aquarium
Walk in📍 Aharon Shulav St, Jerusalem
Israel's national aquarium - a fun indoor afternoon.
Biblical Zoo
Walk in📍 Aharon Shulav St, Jerusalem
The Jerusalem Biblical Zoo - a full day of walking and animals.
Bloomfield Science Museum
Walk in📍 Sderot HaMuze'onim 3, Jerusalem
Hands-on science exhibits - playful and interactive.
Wohl Rose Garden
Walk in📍 Rothschild St 24, Jerusalem
A gorgeous rose garden across from the Knesset.
IKEA
Walk in📍 HaMelacha St 7, Eshtaol
Surprisingly fun to walk around, and you can sit and eat in the food court.
Biblical Museum of Natural History
Walk in📍 Choshen St, Har Tuv
A cool museum with a tour and interactive animal displays.
Soreq Stalactite Caves
Walk in📍 Beit Shemesh
A stunning stalactite cave - cool, quiet, and completely different.
Apollonia National Park
Walk in📍 Herzliya
Coastal ruins and cliffs over the sea in Herzliya.
Mini Golf Herzliya
Walk in📍 Ben Gurion Blvd 121, Herzliya
Mini golf in Herzliya - lighthearted and easy.
Activities 🎳
Doing something beats staring at each other across a table. Most of these need a reservation - book before you go.
Topgolf$$
📅 Reserve📍 Edison, NJ + Holtsville, Long Island
Golf for people who do not golf. Your bay, your pace, food comes to you.
Axe throwing$$
📅 ReserveSounds intense, is actually hilarious. Instructors set you up.
Tap for places
Arcades$
Walk inGames, tickets, and something ridiculous from the prize counter. Loud in the good way.
Tap for places
Go-karting$$
📅 Reserve📍 RPM Raceway, 40 Daniel St, Farmingdale
Indoor karts. A little friendly competition never hurt a first date.
American Dream ice skating$$
📅 Reserve📍 1 American Dream Way, East Rutherford, NJ
The rink at American Dream. Skating plus a whole mall when you are done.
American Dream laser tag$$
Walk in📍 1 American Dream Way, East Rutherford, NJ
Also at American Dream - make it a double header with the rink.
Activate (American Dream)$$
📅 Reserve📍 1 American Dream Way, East Rutherford, NJ
Room after room of physical game challenges - lasers, mega grid, basketball. You are a team, and you find out fast how you play together.
Activate (Roosevelt Field)$$
📅 Reserve📍 Roosevelt Field Mall, 630 Old Country Rd, Garden City
The Long Island one. Same game rooms, closer to home, and the mall is right there when you finish.
Beat the Bomb$$$
📅 Reserve📍 247 Water St, DUMBO
Hazmat suits, a ticking clock, and a paint bomb if you lose. Unforgettable.
Spyscape (Spy HQ)$$
📅 Reserve📍 928 8th Ave (at 55th St)
Spy museum with actual challenges - lie detectors, laser tunnels. You get a spy profile at the end.
SPIN$$
📅 Reserve📍 48 E 23rd St, Flatiron
Ping pong club. Rent a table, order snacks, play badly.
Lawn Club$$
📅 Reserve📍 Flatiron
Indoor lawn games - bocce, croquet, shuffleboard - on real grass. Closed Mondays, so check the day before you plan around it.
Electric Shuffle$$
📅 Reserve📍 Flatiron
Shuffleboard reinvented, with a scoreboard that keeps things moving. Book a table, order food to it, and you never run out of something to do.
Barcade$$
Walk in📍 388 Union Ave, Williamsburg
Old arcade cabinets and pinball, with a bar. No reservations, so just show up. 21 and over.
Comedy club$$
📅 ReserveSomeone else carries the conversation for an hour, and you have plenty to talk about after. Book ahead and there is usually a two drink minimum.
Tap for places
Slate NY$$
📅 Reserve📍 54 W 21st St, Flatiron
Pool, ping pong, and shuffleboard under one roof. Reserve a table and the night plans itself.
Carreau Club$$
📅 Reserve📍 Industry City, 68 34th St, Brooklyn
Petanque, the French lawn bowling game, with local beer and food. Outdoors and laid back. 21 and over after 5pm.
Swingers$$
📅 Reserve📍 35 W 29th St, NoMad
Crazy mini golf with food and drinks. 21 and over, so bring ID and expect a real bar crowd.
Cellar Dog$
Walk in📍 75 Christopher St, West Village
Live jazz, pool tables, ping pong, and board games in one basement. A whole date in one room. Evenings are 21+.
Color Factory$$
📅 Reserve📍 251 Spring St, SoHo
An interactive color museum ending in a ball pit. Playful and easy.
Museum of Illusions$$
Walk in📍 77 8th Ave (at 14th St)
Small, silly, and made for taking pictures of each other.
Shot of Art$$
📅 Reserve📍 28 W 36th St, 10th floor
Art studio session - everyone leaves with something they made.
Glass making$$$
📅 Reserve📍 Brooklyn Glass, 142 13th St, Gowanus
A glassblowing intro class. You will talk about it for weeks.
Candle making$$
📅 ReservePick your scents, pour your own candles, trade at the end. Cozy and low pressure.
Tap for places
Apotheke candle making$$$
📅 Reserve📍 Apotheke, Brooklyn
The nice version of a candle class. You each blend a scent and pour your own. Book well ahead - it is not cheap and it fills up.
Build-A-Bear$
Walk in📍 Roosevelt Field + American Dream
Silly on purpose. Make one for each other, not for yourself.
Pedal boating at the reservation$
📅 ReserveOut on the water, just the two of you. Reserve a boat ahead of time.
Driving range$$
Walk in📍 Chelsea Piers Golf Club, Pier 59, W 23rd St
Easy to talk between swings, and nobody is keeping score.
Central Park Boathouse rowboats$
Walk in📍 The Loeb Boathouse, enter at E 72nd St
Rent a rowboat, 10am to dusk daily in season. One of you rows, both of you remember it.
Coney Island$
Walk in📍 Surf Ave & the boardwalk, Brooklyn
Boardwalk, rides, and the ocean. Silly and cheap, and there is always something to look at when the talking pauses.
Big days out 🎡
For a third or fourth date, when you already know you like each other and want a whole day of it.
Six Flags
📅 Reserve📍 1 Six Flags Blvd, Jackson, NJ
Great Adventure. A full day, big lines to talk in, and roller coasters as a shortcut to holding hands.
Yankee game
📅 Reserve📍 Yankee Stadium, 1 E 161st St, Bronx
Three hours, open air, and the game fills every silence for you. Tap to see the schedule and grab seats.
Tap for places
The Beast
📅 Reserve📍 Circle Line, Pier 83, W 42nd St
The speedboat ride. Thirty minutes, very fast, very wet. Summer only.
Broadway show
📅 Reserve📍 Theater District
Make a night of it - dessert after to talk about the show. Tap for the big ones running now.
Tap for places
Pier Village
📍 Long Branch, NJ
Boardwalk, beach, and shops in one place. Walk it, eat, walk it again - and Salt Steakhouse is minutes away for dinner.
The zoo
📅 ReserveA whole afternoon of wandering with built-in things to point at.
Tap for places
Make a night of it
Dinner and a second stop that are actually near each other. Two places, one neighborhood, no forty minute ride in between.
Midtown to Flatiron
Dinner on 44th, ping pong on 23rd. A short ride, and you go from sitting across a table to standing next to each other.
Upper West Side
Dinner
Malka$$$
📍 Amsterdam Ave, UWS
Then
Nobody Told Me$$$
📍 Amsterdam Ave, UWS · second location in DUMBO, Brooklyn
Both on Amsterdam. Eat, walk a few blocks, and have one drink somewhere with a little theater to it.
Upper West Side
Dinner
Noi Due Carne$$$$
📍 141 W 69th St, UWS
Then
Empire Hotel Rooftop
📍 44 W 63rd St, across from Lincoln Center
Dinner on 69th, rooftop on 63rd. Six blocks, and the second half of the night is already planned.
Upper West Side
Dinner
Noi Due Cafe$$
📍 491 Columbus Ave (at 84th St)
Then
Chaotic Good Cafe
📍 200 W 84th St
Same corner of 84th. Dinner, then board games and coffee across the street - the whole night on one block.
Upper West Side
Dinner
Talia’s Steakhouse$$$
📍 668 Amsterdam Ave (92nd/93rd)
Then
Central Park
📍 Enter at 72nd St for Bethesda Terrace
Dinner on 92nd, then walk into the park at 90th. Best on a long summer evening.
Midtown
Dinner
Wolf & Lamb$$$
📍 10 E 48th St, Midtown
Then
The Bar at The Peninsula$$$$
📍 The Peninsula, 700 5th Ave (at 55th St)
A quiet dinner on 48th and a quiet drink on 55th. For a date where the whole point is the conversation.
Midtown
Dinner
Mr. Broadway$$
📍 209 W 38th St, Midtown
Then
Refinery Rooftop
📍 63 W 38th St
Both on 38th. Casual dinner, then up to the roof. The glassed-in section means rain does not kill it.
Financial District
Steak on Broad Street, then a drink under a nine-story Victorian atrium. Ten minutes on foot.
Gifts
Early on, small and specific beats big and expensive. A gift that proves you were listening is worth more than a gift that proves you can spend.
Small
Under $25Flowers before Shabbos
Ask what she actually likes before you default to roses. Getting her flower right is the entire gift.
Her coffee order, remembered
Show up with the exact drink she mentioned two dates ago. Costs five dollars, says everything.
The candy she grew up on
She told you her favorite. Find it, hand it over, watch her face.
A handwritten note
Three sentences on real paper. Nobody does this anymore, which is exactly why it works.
Thoughtful
About $25 to $75A candle in her scent
Not a generic one. The one she stopped to smell when you walked past the shop.
The book she mentioned
She named a title in passing. You remembered. That is the gift.
Gluten free and kosher, so nobody has to ask. Get the thing she always orders plus one she has never tried.
A box of mini cupcakes. Impossible to eat seriously, which is the point.
A nice notebook and pen
If she writes, plans, or lists. Quiet and useful.
Museum or show tickets
The gift is the evening, not the object.
Your photos, animated by a little crank. Costs about thirty dollars and hits harder than anything on this page.
Serious
About $75 to $200A delicate necklace
Simple, thin chain, nothing loud. Ask her friend or her sister first.
A spa afternoon
She will not book it for herself. That is the point.
A charm bracelet with her initials
Small, delicate, and hers. Add one charm now and you have a gift you can keep adding to.
Big
$200 and upA weekender bag
A tote or duffle she will actually pack. Good leather or good canvas, nothing branded across the front.
Put her initials on it. The customizing is what makes it hers instead of a gift card with a zipper.
Got an idea?
Send in a date spot or a tip. If it's good, it goes on the list.
Matchmaking Lab