I’m a female member, and I always enjoy reading the anonymous Q&A.

I’m Saito, a columnist♪ I suppose it’s the app Mamiya-san was talking about...? Apparently, a restaurant owned by someone I know has suddenly seen a sharp increase in that kind of customer for some reason. They said it had somehow become a “recommended” venue without their realizing it. And it’s not usually the same men coming back—the more common pattern is the same women coming with different men. There seems to be some kind of preference or selection process on the women’s side. Apparently, the women generally give the chef a look that says, “You know how to read the atmosphere, right?” Since the reservations are made under the men’s names, the restaurant only finds out when they arrive that the woman has visited recently as well. As a result, they can’t change the menu, and apparently the chef feels bad for the woman.

I’ve had the same experience, so I thought I’d answer! I’ve been hooked on an app called Dine lately. It makes scheduling dates easy, suggests a few restaurants, and even handles the reservations for you, which is really convenient. However, if you don’t change the restaurant options, it may end up scheduling you at the same place again! I had the same course meal twice, but thankfully the staff were different… The way he reacts may depend on the type of man he is. If he’s a foodie, you could mention that you’ve been there before, and he might say, “Then let’s go somewhere even better next time,” or ask you to recommend a place of your own. It could lead to something more. But I think many older men would get suspicious and wonder, “Who did you come here with? How can someone this young be dining somewhere so nice? It took me until my fifties to be able to come to a place like this.” As long as you enjoy the meal in front of you, no problem!

Maezawa answers: “I guess the right thing to do in this situation is to enjoy the meal as if nothing happened, right?” I think that’s the right approach. There’s no point worrying about it, and if it’s a good restaurant, there are probably plenty of men who take their dates there. Besides, on a first date, it would be much stranger to dictate the restaurant or say you don’t want to go there. (That said, men do want to be liked by the women they’re seeing, so I think they’d prefer you to tell them if you genuinely don’t like a place.) It seems like the only thing you can do is go to the restaurant he takes you to and enjoy the food. However, if it turns into a long-term arrangement, I do think you should take some consideration—for example, avoid meeting different men at the exact same place. (If you choose different meeting spots, you’re less likely to end up at the same restaurant.)