Planning a date is the worst I-don’t-have-a crystal-ball activity there is, and it doesn’t get any better with age. Guaranteeing a good time just by making a dinner reservation and getting Uber is the impossible.
So I helped. I pondered what it would take to meaningfully suggest a great date. Challenge accepted. Challenge delivered:
A Guide To Charlotte Dates By the Decade for Scoop Girls
In your 20s
If you are you gonna brewery on a first date — do it in Southpark. Go to Legion Brewery Southpark – the atmosphere is ripe for making all kinds of promises.
Post-brew debrief at Amelie’s in Park Road Shopping Center. Settle in and be cozy. Share a dessert. Share more.
In your 30s
O-ku for sake and the potato roll. Extra crunch is always a good thing. Share the wasabi — for the heat.
Down to Golden Cow Creamery or Jeni’s for ice-cream to cool things down. Enjoy the walk and handholding and always go with one spoon.
In your 40s
Fuel up with a low-key dinner at Baoding Chinese for fried tofu and a ginger salad. Drink the hot green tea with a sprinkle of sugar — for sweetness.
Nordstrom. He will look for new loafers (go for the vans) and you will get lost up in the Free People section. Take your time and wander. Let him find you — always make him come to you.
In your 50s
Bundle up. Get close. Wrap a scarf around your neck and sit ice-side for a Checkers hockey game in uptown. There’s something romantic about a rink.
Wander up to the 7th street market and enjoy some wine and cheese. Maybe more? Definitley more.
60s and beyond
Shag lessons? Who doesn’t need at least few of those? Hands up ya’ll. Enjoy a Thursday night lesson at Lynn’s Dance Club to get close and then stay for the band to get even closer.
Head to Sullivan’s Steakhouse for a night cap at the bar. Make it a double. Neat. Neat.
At Any Age: The Girl Date
The best kind of dates can be the girlfriend kind. So do these things next time for the ultimate Charlotte update on girls’ time:
Sleepy Poet for inspiration. Everyone should spend a rainy morning walking off breakfast calories and making all those Instagram ideas possible.
Swoozies for buying all the things we kinda need. Last year Emily Ley was there on a rainy winter night with her new book. We were served prosecco while in line. I mean — sure. Follow on Instagram for upcoming events.
PS, you are as old or as young as you feel so feel free. Drop right into any decade you choose, no rules, no judge. Have fun, that’s all.
