Awkward pauses, unwanted advances—who hasn’t suffered through at least one?
“My bad first dates encompass all the times I’ve been set up by customers. And if I wasn’t interested, not only did I have to be considerate to the other person, I also had to worry about losing a patron.”
—Kirk Warner
Executive chef, Savor
“The restaurant was in a downtown hotel, and the meal was good, but the conversation was awful. After the main course, the waiter came back and said, ‘Would you like dessert?’ My date replied, ‘Room service can send it up.’ I was so surprised and embarrassed, I cried.”
—Elaine Viets
Author, Dying in Style
“I was 16, and we’d gone to a carnival. I decided to give her a kiss as I walked her to her door, but she turned too early to go inside. My eyes were already closed, and as I leaned in ... I clocked her just above her left ear with my forehead and knocked her into some bushes.”
—Guy Phillips
On-air personality, KYKY (98.1 FM)
“I was on a slim budget, but I went all out for a large dinner and very good seats at a theater production. In the end, it turned out that the theater and dinner were great hits—just not with me.”
—David Robertson
Music director, Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra
“I had what I thought was a really great time with a blind date, but the next day I was walking in the Central West End and this jogger bumped into me—it was my date from the previous night. He didn’t recognize me at all. I never heard from him.”
—Ellen Futterman
“Everyday” Editor, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
