Did you know that every Wednesday night at 7 p.m., small groups of strangers sit down to enjoy a meal together at several restaurants across Seattle?
Aside from living in the same area, there’s one thing they indubitably have in common: they’re all meeting for the first time.
Since we’re in the business of meeting folks in the community (and we’ll never say no to making new friends), we decided to give it a try.
How it works
Timeleft is an app on a mission to curb modern-day loneliness (and help solve that tricky question, “How do you make friends as an adult?”) by building connections through shared experiences + genuine interactions.
Users start by creating an account and completing a short personality test, where they share their age, career field, interests, diet, religious beliefs, and more. Based on their answers, Timeleft’s algorithm chooses five locals they’re most likely to enjoy conversations with. Tickets are $16 per booking (monthly packages are also available), and attendees are responsible for their bill at the restaurant.
The day before dinner, participants learn more about their mystery guests broken down by percentages (i.e. 33% of the table works in the medical field) and receive safety tips for their excursion. One secret is revealed on the morning of the dinner: where the group will eat.
Timeleft picks the restaurant based on the general area the user chooses in the survey and how much they normally spend on a night out. You might be dining at local establishments like Barrio Capitol Hill, Violet, and Arigato Sushi.
Participants arrive at the restaurant at 7 p.m. and meet the five strangers — er, new friends — in their group. During the meal, Timeleft provides a game (think: fun icebreaker questions like “Explain your job to the table as if you were talking to a 5-year-old.”) for everyone to play.
At 8 p.m., the app reveals the location of the “Last Drink” — an optional after-dinner meet-up point that’s sent out to all dinner guests in the area, so people can meet up with other Timelefters if they want to keep the party going.
Creating connections
We love a good recommendation and we heard great things about Timeleft from our friends over at ATXtoday and PDXtoday.
Even though PDXtoday City Editor Cambrie’s group was comprised of Timeleft newbies, the conversation flowed smoothly and never felt awkward. After connecting about travel and food and using Timeleft icebreakers like “What TV show did you binge watch recently?” and “Which day would you relive if you could?,” most of the group agreed they would book a Timeleft experience again.
ATXtoday City Editor Morgan’s fears of the dinner turning into “The Menu” quickly disappeared as her group discovered their shared love of cocktails, animals, and living in Austin, TX. She’s grateful she took a chance on this out-of-the-box experience.
For ATXtoday City Editor Figi, the conversation continued after dessert as the group headed for a final drink — and even met another Timeleft group and chatted for another hour. In the three hours they spent together, there was never an awkward silence, and they left making sure they followed each other on social media.
See how City Editor Madeline’s experience at Grappa went. Hint: It carried over to Sully’s Irish pub for a round of post-dinner music bingo and some drinks.
See you there?
