A shared meal can lead to a good laugh, a lifelong romance, or a future business venture – and sometimes, all those things and more. ❦ For these eight couples, first dates that included peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, COVID dating, and dancing at the top of Chicago’s John Hancock Building resulted in ceremonies under the chuppah. Even if what was on the menu didn’t matter, the memories clearly do.
Sharon and Mark Goldner
(as told by Sharon)
Mark and I met during the summer of 1991. Before sharing a meal, we had a few drinks at Worrell Brothers at the Oceanfront. A few days later, Mark made me a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Later, his mother said, “If I had known she was Jewish, I would have made her something better than a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.”
Our first real dinner date was at Rockafeller’s, where we enjoyed the conversation and the views. I wasn’t sure it was going to work out because he wanted three children and I said two, but we figured it out…
Callah and Brandon Terkeltaub
(as told by Callah)
Brandon’s first jobs were at Steinhilber’s and Ruth’s Chris, so we had no shortage of delicious date nights early on in our relationship.
One of the first memories I have is of Brandon saving up for a very nice white tablecloth dinner for one of our first dates. He borrowed his dad’s car and was so nervous that he accidentally left the headlights on when we went into dinner.
When we came out, the battery was dead, and he had to call for a jump. He was so embarrassed, but I thought it was really cute how flustered he got. Plus, we got to hang out longer while we waited for a jump.
Stephanie and Sam Steerman
(as told by Stephanie)
We met at a big New Year’s Eve party at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia in 2005. This photo is from that night. Sam was in medical school at Jefferson, and I was an admissions director at Drexel.
Our first meal together wasn’t until Valentine’s Day, and, because of Sam’s ‘busy schedule’ (insert my eye roll), it was only dessert. That said, it was a delicious chocolate dessert at the popular Alma de Cuba restaurant. Since that time, Sam has taken me out for a full dinner many times. Cheers!
Joslyn and Ari Stein
(as told by Ari)
Joslyn and I met in 2008 at a Halloween party in Portland, Oregon. The next day we went to a diner for coffee and donuts. Neither of us can remember the name of the diner, or the kind of donuts we ate, but they must have been delicious, because I called my mother immediately after we left and told her that I had just met my future wife.
Jody and Alan Wagner
(as told by Jody)
On our second date, Alan and I went to Benihana on Michigan Ave. in Chicago. Back in 1976, a Japanese chef cooking food in front of us was very special!
We shared a fancy drink from a porcelain buddha, which memento we still have today.
After dinner, we walked to the John Hancock Building to go dancing on the top floor. On our path, Alan found a $10 bill on the ground—I think he took it as a sign, and three years later we were married!
Also, our dates in downtown Chicago almost always included caramel corn, and especially Garrett’s popcorn.
Emily and Ben Leon
(as told by Emily)
Our first official date was on March 13, 2020, at Esoteric in Virginia Beach. This was the same day I drove back to Virginia Beach from my then home in NYC due to the scare of COVID. We shared a couple of plates including duck tacos and a hummus platter. We have enjoyed going back routinely ever since. They also have a great happy hour!
Patti and Jules Wainger
(as told by Patti)
I am originally from Birmingham, Alabama and met Joan London when we went to Goucher College in Baltimore together. During our first week, as freshmen, Joan had two guys coming up from the Medical College of Virginia (Fred Rosenblum and Jules). She told me not to mention my age (I was 17 at the time), because they wanted seniors. Fred and Jules flipped a coin to see who would go out with whom. That was our first date.
Our second date was at the Chesapeake Room in downtown Baltimore, an upscale seafood restaurant. I was impressed, because we had no income as students! Jules ate hamburgers and tuna fish all week so he could afford to take me to dinner on Saturday nights!
Jules was a perfect gentleman, and I just looked forward to seeing him. The Chesapeake Room became our favorite restaurant.
Betsy and Erik Cooper
(as told by Erik)
Betsy and I have always enjoyed nice meals over our 34 years of marriage. On one of our first dates, we went to dinner at La Galleria, which was then a new restaurant in downtown Norfolk. The waiter immediately recognized Betsy from her shop at the Waterside Festival Marketplace. He took her order for dinner, but I had to remind him to take mine.
We proceeded to have a nice conversation, and we were both enjoying our dinner experience, but as the various courses started being served, I noticed some issues. He took Betsy’s drink order, but not mine. He would offer Betsy pepper for her salad, but not me. When the main courses came, he offered Betsy parmesan cheese, but again, not me. This continued throughout the meal. And when he came to check on our table, he would only talk to Betsy.
When we had finished our dinner and the check was delivered to the table, the waiter handed the bill to Betsy. As I was paying the tab, I mentioned to her that I didn’t think the service was great. Betsy asked why because she thought the service was stellar. I then mentioned all of the issues I saw that evening. We both had a good laugh, and didn’t hold it against the restaurant as it became one of our go-to restaurants in town. The waiter must have been nervous as the restaurant was new and it was his first job. We still get a good laugh from this memory.