NYC Men Complain Dating Is Too Expensive – ‘It Takes About $1,000 To Realize I Don’t Really Like Someone’

The search for love will cost you.

In the past six years, the price of eating out in NYC has risen nearly 30%, according to the NY State Department of Taxation and Finance and the New York City Comptroller’s Office, while other costs associated with going out, such as taxis and Ubers have also increased significantly.

Local men complain that dating has become too expensive.

“Dates keep getting more expensive,” said Benny Boas, a 31-year-old CEO of an education technology startup who lives on the Upper East Side. “It takes me about $1,000 to realize I really don’t like someone.”

“You can dig yourself into a hole,” added Charles Gargano, a 31-year-old lawyer who lives on the Upper East Side and recently dated a Staten Island woman. Wanting to be a gentleman, he offered to meet her at a restaurant near her house — and ended up spending $150 to Uber there.

“And she turned out to be absolutely terrible,” he sighed.

Jeremy Seaman, a 31-year-old Upper East Sider, recently had a third date with a woman he set up online that really turned him around.

The food event producer chose Sip and Guzzle, a trendy new Japanese spot in the West Village for the occasion. He offered to pick up his date, who lives in Murray Hill, in an Uber on the way downtown.

At Sip and Guzzle, they sipped on cocktails and shared several food items, including a $150 Wagyu steak sandwich that has gone viral on social media. Everything added up.

“We each had two drinks and somehow it ended up being almost $500,” he said.

They then grabbed a cab and headed to another place for a nightcap.

In the end, with taxis and Ubers, “It turned out to be a $700 night,” he said.

East Harlem resident Michael Hollander suggests avoiding sushi places on first dates.

“I know dinner everywhere is going to be at least two bills, and chances are I’ll never see the person again, but there’s no ceiling on the price at some of these sushi places,” he said. “I’m not saying the wife should get a California roll, but the waiters start with ‘this was flown in overnight’ and it’s a half-inch piece of fish I’ve never heard of.”

Instead, he arranges initial meetings in a casual Turkish neighborhood called La Turka, where entry prices range from $22 to $38.

He considers himself generous, but says he has to draw a line.

“I’m entertaining, but I’m not Rockefeller,” he said. “Who needs a $500 date? You can go somewhere for the weekend at that point.”

Matchmaker Jason Roberts, who lives in NoHo, said his clients are definitely feeling the pinch. He suggests getting creative and thinking beyond dinner and drinks for dates.

“You can go see Christmas lights and it can bring back stories about your childhood,” he said. “I had a client who just brought his date to a place on Nomad.

But some women say cheaper dates are a red flag.

“If someone asks me for a coffee or a drink, it’s ‘no,'” said Kasey Karaisaridis, 26, an esthetician who lives in the Bronx. She recalled a dating guru telling her, “Even a homeless guy can buy you a cup of coffee.”

If a man doesn’t take her to dinner, she said, “They obviously don’t appreciate me.”

She commiserates with the men about how expensive things have become, but says they should get on the phone and see if there’s chemistry before going out.

“Do your due diligence.”

Real estate agent Gabriella Oros, 37, who lives in the East Village agrees that not being asked to dinner is inherently a little insulting. A date once suggested a walk in the park, and it came across as cheap and lazy.

“At this stage [in my life]I appreciate the quality and effort put in,” she explained. “I would appreciate a little more thought and planning. That doesn’t mean I have to go out for a nice dinner, but even sharing a casual meal creates a deeper connection and I’m looking for a quality experience.”

Jasmine Mellis, a 42-year-old hairstylist who lives in Staten Island, thinks some “creative” alternatives just seem stingy.

“Guys suggest a sports bar and act like it’s fun, but it’s just cheap,” she said. And she’s looking for more than a drink.

“I’m a carnivore and I’m hungry, so I just say ‘I’ll eat and pay,’ but don’t think I’ll go home with you.” A lot of guys can’t afford it anymore. They have to think ‘how many drinks will I drink? How many drinks is she going to have?” she said. “Unfortunately, inflation has killed the romance.”