Finding Hot Dates in Boston

HowAboutWe.com cofounders Aaron Schildkrout and Brian Schechter / Courtesy photo

The premise behind the dating site HowAboutWe.com is pretty simple: post about an activity or restaurant that you want to try (as in, “How about we … see “Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure” at Coolidge Corner Theatre?), connect with other users, and go out.

“It’s based around the idea that chemistry happens offline,” cofounder Brian Schechter says. “It’s all about natural, easy icebreakers between people.” And, if there aren’t any sparks when you meet up for dim sum, you are still trying something new, he adds.

Schechter grew up in Newton, as did his best friend and cofounder Aaron Schildkrout — the two hashed out the idea in Boston and spent time interviewing people about online dating habits in Kenmore Square bars. HowAboutWe.com launched in New York in April 2010, and hit Boston in December 2010.

Schechter and Schildkrout are now based in Brooklyn and HowAboutWe.com powers the dating verticals for New York Magazine, Los Angeles Magazine, and Eater.com. With a half-million dates now posted on the site, the duo has been able to suss out some city-specific trends and stats.

Here’s a look at dating in the Hub, just in time for Valentine’s Day:

There are three times as many bookstore dates posted in Boston than in any other major city. (“How about we … read our favorite Slyvia Plath poems at Harvard Book Store?”)

Bostonians are 20 percent more likely to post a date that involves beer, wine, or some other cocktail. (Does this help prove the DailyBeast’s assertion that Boston is the drunkest city in the U.S.? No comment.)

The top five date spots mentioned in Boston are:

1. Museum of Fine Arts (especially concerning the newish Art of the Americas wing, according to Schechter)
2. Institute of Contemporary Art
3. Museum of Science
4. Drink
5. New England Aquarium
   (Don’t worry, hop heads: Cambridge Brewing Company is also in the top ten.)

Dates involving Italian food are more popular in Boston than in any other city. And so far this winter, the number of dates mentioning Italian food in Boston area has increased two-fold.

And, just for fun, here are two of the wackiest date suggestions posted in the Boston area:

1. “How about we … watch ‘Night Court’ and get a drink to talk about the decisions the judge made?”
2. “How about we … pretend that we’re married and then see a priest for marriage counseling to determine whether we’re compatible?”