Dine™ is an Innovative Dating App That Encourages Its Users to Meet Offline at Local Bars, Restaurants & Coffee Shops

The Short Version: Dine is a forward-thinking dating app geared toward singles who would rather meet in person than chat endlessly online. The app facilitates IRL dates with its Dine Request and Date Lock features, which arrange where and when users can meet. With its unique date-spot recommendations, Dine helps turn your mutual matches into date nights on the calendar.

I’ve been online dating for quite a while now, and I’ve probably been asked on, roughly, a bazillion dates (I’m rounding up). These conversations tend to follow the same pattern. After some chitchatting, the guy states his intentions to meet in real life. As in, “It’s so cool that you like [insert interest here]. We should get together and talk about it some time.”

Next comes the what-day-are-you-free schedule wrangling. Fun fact: Any date planned more than a week in advance is almost certainly never going to happen. “I’m free in two weeks” is online dating code for “You will 100% forget we made this plan by then.”

Dine is a dating app designed to help users plan their first dates.

Once we’ve settled on meeting Thursday at 7 p.m., the next obvious question becomes, “So, what do you want to do?” This part takes me the longest as I try to politely figure out the foods/activities I have in common with a total stranger. Such a high-pressure guessing game sometimes ends with me agreeing to a date in a place I don’t particularly like just so I don’t seem overly difficult or picky.

Scheduling a date shouldn’t be so complicated, and the Dine dating app has done a lot to simplify the process. Dine users outright state where they’d like to go on dates on their profiles, and anyone can book a date using its recommendations. The app highlights top-rated bars, cafés, and restaurants in the area, so asking an online crush out becomes a snap. Dine users can look at the profile, find custom date ideas, and send an invite (aka a Dine Request) for coffee, drinks, or dinner.

Since its launch in March 2016, Dine has shaken up the online dating scene by offering a shortcut from “Wanna hang out?” to “I’ll see you then!” The app facilitates in-person meetings and is a breath of fresh air for serious daters who are tired of swiping and chatting online. You can download Dine in the App Store or Google Play.

“Many people are feeling fatigue with online dating,” said Mike Tudda, Dine’s Marketing Director. “The online dating experience is all swiping and no real gratification. It’s sensory overload, especially for single women. We’re trying our hardest to make a dent in the online dating industry and give people a better experience.”

Dine’s founders are former members of DeNA, one of the largest video game companies in Japan, and place a high premium on online user satisfaction. They were shocked to find that many dating sites and apps do not satisfy users or yield fast results. One of the founders actually got the idea for Dine after feeling frustration on Tinder and imagining what he would do to make the experience easier for singles. Then he went and did it.

In July 2015, Mrk & Co started developing a modernized online dating service that could disrupt the industry and combat online dating burnout.

The Tokyo-based company chose to launch Dine in North America first to see if the app could thrive in a highly competitive and diverse dating market. And it did. The dating app’s quality-driven concept attracted thousands of users. Once Dine had caught on and built a reputation in the States, the team started working to expand internationally.

In 2017, Dine went live in Japan and quickly became one of the most well-known apps in the space. Mike told us Dine will launch in Europe in the next year or so.

The Dine app has become tremendously popular thanks to its straightforward and practical approach to online dating.

Dine’s main goal is to get its users off the app and on real-life dates as quickly as possible.

Online daters have to manage competing interests and hidden agendas while choosing a first date spot, and the negotiation process can take away from the excitement of putting a date on the calendar. Fortunately, Dine’s interface can make these conversations run a lot more smoothly.

Dine allows users to select up to three of their favorite restaurants, bars, or cafés when creating their profiles. Its list includes pretty much anything that’s on Yelp, and the app sometimes promotes special discounts for certain locations.

Dine’s restaurant recommendations make it easier to get the ball rolling with someone new. Users send Dine Requests when they want to go on a date with someone who has similar tastes in food or drinks. Once someone accepts the Dine Request, a match is formed, and the Date Lock tool seals the deal by suggesting available times and days.

“It’s perfect for foodies looking for a partner with similar taste buds.” — Bianca Heyward of Refinery29

Now you can easily suggest a date idea that will appeal to your online crush and use the scheduling tools to get it on the calendar. From start to finish, Dine motivates its users to skip past the polite small talk and get right to the logistics of meeting in real life.

“We’re proud to be part of what we call the third wave of dating apps,” Mike said. “We cater to online daters who are feeling burnt out and fatigued by low match ratings and date options on traditional apps.”

Dine brings people together over something more substantial than looks or age — it appeals to singles who want to turn dating into a culinary adventure and find someone special to go out on the town with them. The app has set itself apart from today’s fast-paced and superficial swiping culture by creating an interest-based dating environment where matches share common date-night goals and preferences.

Dine fosters a safe, quality-driven environment for meeting dates.

The Dine Request feature has given daters a solid foundation for a first date and facilitates fun experiences at top-rated eateries in the area. Whether you prefer an upscale Italian restaurant or a casual coffeehouse, you can make your preferences known to your date prospects from the very beginning and start going on more enjoyable first dates.

“Our app is definitely for singles who are serious about meeting people,” Mike said. “Instead of swiping, you’re asking someone out. We go one step further than traditional apps by arranging dates, and that adds weight to the way our users interact.”

Dine users range in age, gender, and background, and such diversity speaks to its universal appeal to singles. As long as you’re ready to actually go out on a date, this app is for you.

“I was actually pretty impressed,” wrote New York foodie Chris Dunlap on Medium. “I like how you can display restaurants… because after all trying a new place with someone is way better than going alone.”

The Dine team is serious about improving the dating landscape by offering an effective and streamlined dating app like no other. So far, it has gotten overwhelmingly positive reviews from users who appreciate its date-oriented matching system.

“Apps like Tinder have taken every spark of magic and excitement out of dating,” said Olivia Fleming in a review. “Dine is focused on giving you both a night of culinary culture, and good company too, setting you up with people [who] choose similar restaurants in your area.”

Sometimes my where-should-we-have-a-first-date chats last far too long because he suggests a place I don’t like, and then I suggest a place he doesn’t like, and on and on until we end up agreeing to meet somewhere neither of us is very excited about — but we can’t keep talking about it forever.

Who knows how many hours of my life could’ve been saved if I’d had Dine’s date-night recommendations in my pocket? By recommending local eateries, breweries, and coffee shops, this dating app has taken a proactive step to foster IRL dates and make online dating simpler and more enjoyable.

Dine’s match system propels singles from introduction to date-planning within moments. Thanks to its clever design, the sleek dating app yields fast results for men and women interested in filling their date calendars.

“Dating isn’t always straightforward, but it should be,” Mike said. “Dine speeds up the process of making a date. It’s direct, it’s easy, it’s safe, and it’s what singles need right now.”