‘Dinner and a Movie’ has become the standard go-to date in America. I’m surprised by its popularity, especially as a first date since a movie provides you very little opportunity to talk and get to know each other, and dinner will only start off on an embarrassing note when you can’t pronounce hors d’oeuvres.
It’s your first chance to make an impression, show some personality and creativity, and you lazily end up choosing the exact same activities as everyone else. ‘Dinner and a Movie’ has a certain ring to it, and I’m convinced other dates could become just as popular if they had a similar cadence and were even more fun to say. Give some of these dates a try:
Soufflé and a Spelling Bee:
“S-o-o-f…um is it two fs? I should know this.”
Steak and a Stakeout:
“Whose house are we watching?”
“My ex-girlfriend’s. When she comes out the front door we’ll get out of the car, walk past her and pretend to be having a good time.”
Peach Cobbler and a Police Auction:
“I bet plenty of guys have given you flowers, but how many have given you a slightly damaged CB radio?”
Lemonade and a Lemonade Stand:
“You can have anything on the menu as long as it’s lemonade.”
Banana Bread and Breakdancing:
“Unfortunately the recipe says these bananas need to ripen for another week so we’re going to be popping and locking for a long time. We’ve got to stay hydrated. You should have drunk more at the lemonade stand.”
Tacos and a Tarot Reading:
“And your last Major Arcana is the Justice card. Did you happen to yell at a waiter recently? Are you familiar with Montezuma’s Revenge?”
Pie and a Piano Lesson:
“Why don’t you come over to my house tonight and give me a piano lesson?”
“But I don’t know how to play the piano.”
“Then maybe we could build a piano.”
Baby Corn and a Book-signing:
“To be honest, I don’t have a book coming out, but I do have a copy of Slaughterhouse 5, and nobody knows what Ernest Hemingway looks like anyway.”
Toffee Apples and a Topless Bar:
“You’re going to regret slapping me once you realize it’s actually a hangout for people born without torsos.”
Pasta Prima Vera and a Plastic Surgery Consultation:
“I’m absolutely not implying you need any work done. I’m just saying I have a coupon that expires tomorrow.”
The Good Greatsby 
georgettesullins
October 1, 2012
Popcorn and reading a screenplay on the internet. I already have popcorn in the pantry and we can search p. 17’s without using my Amazon card.
The Good Greatsby
October 1, 2012
I actually would prefer that to seeing a movie. We’d each take turns reading the lines and doing all the voices.
Vanessa Chapman
October 1, 2012
Love the steak and a steakout idea, I think that could really catch on.
The Good Greatsby
October 1, 2012
You heard it here first. Spread the word.
dianasschwenk
October 1, 2012
You might actually have something here…unless…. you’re aiming for a second date. 😉
The Good Greatsby
October 1, 2012
If she doesn’t want a second date after all that effort then she’s obviously not a keeper anyway.
Carl D'Agostino
October 1, 2012
My best line was “Terry I have been meaning to ask you out for a long time now. Howdya like to spend the weekend and get really toasted?” Now three decades later it’s “Howdya like to get together for an Ensure and a nap?”
The Good Greatsby
October 1, 2012
I’ve heard both activities can be equally romantic if shared with the right person.
Kharma
October 1, 2012
Hehehe. Oh, dear Good. You make me laugh. I’m sure you get told that a lot.
Tacos and Tarots split my side. 🙂
The Good Greatsby
October 1, 2012
Tacos can sometimes do that.
Soma Mukherjee
October 1, 2012
They are really good..all of them ,hope people take them seriously
The Good Greatsby
October 1, 2012
I hope so too. Spread the word. Tell your friends.
Curmudgeon-at-Large
October 1, 2012
How about “Ecstacy and the Emergency Room?”
The Good Greatsby
October 1, 2012
And make sure to do them in that order.
Jorie
October 1, 2012
If someone asked me out for pie and a piano lesson, I would most definitely go.
susielindau
October 1, 2012
I could be a banana bread break dancing fool! ….off to buy bananas while break dancing out the door…..
The Good Greatsby
October 1, 2012
I’ve heard you should wait 30 minutes after eating before breakdancing, otherwise you get a cramp. Or is that swimming?
susielindau
October 1, 2012
I am sure it was breakdancing…
Eireen
October 1, 2012
Cocktail Bar and Black Hole Formation Watching?
spilledinkguy
October 1, 2012
Date-Lady-One…
Date-Lady-One…
Should I take the complete radio silence to mean this date is over?
Over.
Tor Constantino, MBA (@torcon)
October 1, 2012
I actually met my wife at an “Apple turnover and Appendectomy” social. Personally, I found the beauty of meet-ups around vestigial organs enabled me to have my appendix reinserted and removed repeatedly until I found “Mrs. Right”….
writerdood
October 1, 2012
We tend to go on “dates” with the kids in tow. I know, not really a date, is it? We have “salad on a swing” or “sliders and a slide,” or “pizza and a park.” And if it gets really wild, it might include “beer in a brown bag.”
Kim
October 1, 2012
You said “popping and locking”!!!! I would totally tell you that I love you but that sort of thing seems to infuriate my Husband…
The Good Greatsby
October 1, 2012
I bet I use ‘popping and locking’ in conversation at least once a day.
Kim
October 1, 2012
Beefaroni and bike repair?
qwinkly3
October 2, 2012
Signs of a really cheap guy for sure.
thelifeofjamie
October 1, 2012
I think banana bread and breakdancing sounds like a sure-fire way to end up in the ER…
Taichi
October 1, 2012
toffee and topless bar,
my condolences to the topless ones…..
qwinkly3
October 2, 2012
At least you’d know your guy is not a breast man.
aparnauteur
October 1, 2012
I would totally go on a soufflé and spelling bee date! I have another idea based on that: ‘Coffee and French’ date—have coffee and learn French together using the coffee break French podcast on iTunes . Sounds super geeky, but learning French with another person can be quite a romantic, even funny experience!
The Good Greatsby
October 2, 2012
That’s really a great idea. Doesn’t a language lesson seem a lot more fun than a movie? And if the date goes well you can start talking about a second date in Paris. No girl is going to say no to a second date in Paris.
aparnauteur
October 2, 2012
tout à fait
mistyslaws
October 1, 2012
Toffee Apples and Toplessness just sound kinda . . . sticky. But a date to remember for sure.
fishducky
October 1, 2012
How about pork rinds & psychoanalysis? Or, for a first date, coffee & a colostomy bag?
The Good Greatsby
October 2, 2012
I think she might be the one to suggest psychoanalysis if I suggest a colonoscopy.
Jackie Cangro
October 1, 2012
I once went on a date that was Tequila and a Tattoo.
I could tell you how it ended, but I think you already know.
becomingcliche
October 2, 2012
Steak and a stakeout. And they say romance is dead!
The Byronic Man
October 2, 2012
The best thing about break-dancing on a date is that if it’s going well you can have a Dance Challenge, and if it’s going badly – same thing.
The Good Greatsby
October 2, 2012
I like to start every date with a dance off. And every day of work. And…pretty much everything.
tanooki555
October 2, 2012
Could that be salmon steaks with the stakeout? I don’t eat things with legs.
Anna
October 2, 2012
This is hilarious 😀 My personal preference is the topless bar… because they can never see you stealing the place mats.
The Good Greatsby
October 2, 2012
I stopped going because I ran out of space to store all the place mats.
zannyro
October 2, 2012
O.K, I’ve had two bouts of spontaneous laughter so far over the topless bar.
The Good Greatsby
October 2, 2012
Make sure and get all the laughter out of your system before entering the topless bar.
Tor Constantino, MBA (@torcon)
October 2, 2012
G2, another dating alternative that’s growing increasingly popular among my Jewish friends is the “Bris with Brie” – obviously the cheese would have to be kosher…
The Good Greatsby
October 2, 2012
It’s hard to plan anything more romantic than that.
Kathryn McCullough
October 2, 2012
Hard to pick, but I think I like steak and stakeout best!
Audrey
October 2, 2012
And to think, my boyfriend just took me to dinner on our first date… I think I got jipped!
The Good Greatsby
October 2, 2012
You’ve got to let him know you’ve raised your expectations.
Binky
October 2, 2012
“I’m surprised by its popularity, especially as a first date since a movie provides you very little opportunity to talk and get to know each other,…”
Well isn’t that why it is popular? Who wants to get to know someone on a first date?
The Good Greatsby
October 2, 2012
I guess there’s some truth in that. You want to get to know the other person but you don’t want them to get to know you. It’s best to hide your flaws for as long as possible.
Jess Witkins
October 2, 2012
My favorite is the Steak and a Steakout idea. It totally worked for Richard Dreyfus in that one movie with Madeline Stowe. 😉
The Good Greatsby
October 2, 2012
As far as I know, you don’t need a detective license to conduct a stakeout.
benzeknees
October 2, 2012
My first husband took me to Dinner & a Movie on our first date – we didn’t last 5 years. My 2nd husband just took me out for burgers, we’re still together 16 years later! My personal favorite from your list would be Tacos & Taroh Readings – then you would know if your signs are compatible & if your fates are intertwined. Who would want a second date with a guy who is going to move to the other side of the world or going to go broke!
jella millado (:
October 2, 2012
I suggest random question and answer with grape soda and potato chips (:
Scintillatebrightly
October 2, 2012
And yet….these are still more interesting than Dinner and a Movie.
The Amused Onlooker
October 3, 2012
Or, for the teenagers out there, pizza and pimple-popping. “Hey, let’s bond over our skin problems…”
Bridgesburning Chris King
October 3, 2012
See any of these is a good idea as I read an article in the paper today saying that women who date should wait six months to have sex. Now if everyone takes that seriously (hahaha) they are all going to have to find new things to keep them occupied.
Thoughts and Rants in Jogging Pants
October 3, 2012
Cheese Doodles and Racing Poodles……. i like it because it rhymes
The Guat
October 4, 2012
Ha! This was hilarious. Banana Bread and Breakdancing, Pasta Primavera and Plastic Surgery. Ha! Love it! Susie actually mentioned you in passing on her site and thought I would stop by. Pretty great stuff. Glad I stopped by 🙂
Barb
October 4, 2012
Hey Mr. Great, I have a copy of For Whom The Bell Tolls. Would you sign it for me. I think it would sell great on ebay. I need some cash to go to a police auction. (Great post)
jaiepicure
October 5, 2012
Pasta Prima Vera and a Plastic Surgery Consultation!!!!! Hilarious
jolynproject
October 5, 2012
Thank you so much for the inspiration for dates. I will definitely have to try some of them out, especially the Pasta Prima Vera and a Plastic Surgery Consultation. What man doesn’t want some pasta and plastic surgery?
The Good Greatsby
October 5, 2012
I hope plastic surgery doesn’t require an empty stomach.
Life With The Top Down
October 5, 2012
Toffee apples and Topless bar….I don’t want to know how you came up with this marvelous combo, but I’m glad you did….hahahahaha
Thomas Stazyk
October 7, 2012
Car repair and auto eroticism. Or is it the other way around?
innamazing
October 8, 2012
Genius.
Teena Lovern
October 13, 2012
Brilliant! *recalls the first time i saw “hors d’oeuvres” in print and wondered what WERE these “whores duvores” and how could i get somebody to make me some*
JordanTaylor|Photography
October 22, 2012
Stellar!
HoaiPhai
October 31, 2012
I hate to admit it but I’ve actually taken a girl out on a steak and a stake-out date. She didn’t know it and the steak was thinly sliced beef in out bowls of soup. I thank you for the rest of the ideas, though… I’ve been married 17 years and my date-night creativity is wearing thin.