I asked the bartender at Mojo Record Bar to surprise me with a cocktail.

How did you meet? Tinder - Sydney, Australia

Name: Steven

Height: 5' 10"

Age: 41

Occupation: Something cool with digital

Good quotes from date(s):

"Aussies don't like to complain." On Why Sydney's restaurant service culture is shit.

"I don't dress up." On what he'll wear to his circus themed company Christmas party.

Why is he still single? I don't know. He's divorced but I don't know how recently.

Did he pay for the date? yes

Did he contact you after the date? Yes, we're Facebook friends

How many dates did you go on? 1

Would you recommend to a friend? Yes, if you live in Oz

Comments:

Fourteen hour work days were not conducive to setting up a date in Sydney, but during my last week I found an evening free to meet up with Steven. My first out-of-town date made me realize how great these out-of-town dates are. I had zero expectations and only hoped for good conversation.

Steven did not disappoint. He greeted me with a big hug and was very cute in a manly way with a salt and pepper beard, blue eyes and a sexy gap between his front teeth.

He choose one of the coolest cocktail bars in Sydney (apparently there aren't many because the pub culture still dominates), in a basement in the city center with a record store in front. Felt like Brooklyn.

This was the kind of date where the conversation was free flowing, with no awkward pauses, and no weird meta-moments where we talked about online dating or Tinder.

We touched on a bunch of other subjects like American versus Australian customs and manners, snowboarding, traveling, politics and personal life goals. Two of his are to run the NYC marathon and to snowboard-hop across the US with his brother.

We hugged goodbye and became Facebook friends. Maybe I'll wave to him next year when he runs by my house during the marathon.