Top News

Picture it: You are on a second date with a new guy. You’re about to dig into one of your favorite meals at a restaurant you love, and the only thing your date can seem to talk about is how grossed out he is by your order. What would you do? One woman in this exact scenario was not about to have a practical stranger yuck her yum, so she literally packed up her meal and left. 

Posting to Reddit about her experience, she explained that her date wasn’t done with the insults even after she walked out. He took it upon himself to text her about how embarrassed he was by her behavior, calling her “too sensitive.” Instead of counting her blessings that this guy is not her actual boyfriend, this woman is now questioning if she was actually in the wrong for walking away.

A woman said her dinner date spent most of their meal insulting her food choices.

In her Reddit post, she explained that she recently went on a second date with a guy that she’d been chatting with for about a month. The two had decided to go to an Asian-Latin fusion restaurant, which she’d been to before and absolutely loves.

Dmytro Zinkevych | Shutterstock

“I ordered my favorite dish (beef empanadas with kimchi). When it came, he made a face and said, ‘That looks disgusting. I don’t know how you can eat that,'” she recalled. “At first, I laughed it off and told him it’s actually amazing. But he kept making little comments like, ‘The smell is intense’ and ‘I’d never date someone who eats weird stuff like that regularly.'”

The barrage of food-shaming comments continued until she finally told him that he was being rude. She ordered the dish for herself, and there was no requirement for him to eat it, let alone disparage her for enjoying it. She argued that he didn’t need to insult her meal, and that she understood him the first time that he turned his nose up at it.

: Man Shows Up To First Date With His Mom To ‘Save Time’

His comments didn’t let up, so she packed up her food and left the date mid-meal.

Instead of apologizing or at least acknowledging the fact that he was being overly rude, he just smirked in response to her scolding and told her he was only being “honest.” Needless to say, she wasn’t impressed.

Rather than ruining her meal further, she called the waiter over, packed up her leftovers, and paid for her share of the dinner before leaving. You’d think that was the end of their interaction, but he decided to text her later, accusing her of embarrassing him, and then saying she was “too sensitive.” 

Unfortunately, his attempt to make her feel bad worked, which led the woman to ask Reddit if her leaving the date was “disrespectful.” Thankfully, commenters had this woman’s back and assured her that she dodged a bullet by cutting the date short.

In fact, one insightful commenter pointed out why his behavior was so problematic, stating, “I don’t think some people realize how much food means to others. Food is history, culture, family, and memories all rolled into one. When you insult someone’s food, you’re denigrating and disrespecting all of that. That food you call ‘gross?’ That’s what my grandmother would make for me whenever my family would go to visit. That soup you called ‘smelly and disgusting?’ That’s what my mom would make me whenever I was sick and had to stay home from school.” They went on to say, “You don’t have to like everything someone else eats, but being respectful is not too much to ask.”

: Man Cancels On Date 30 Minutes Before They Were Supposed To Meet Because She Told Him She Doesn’t Drink

The woman was justified in ending the date early because he was a textbook bad date.

While it may seem minuscule to some, in the first few weeks to months of dating someone, you’re filing away information about their personality and what they would be like in a relationship. His continuous comments about her food, even after she expressed that it was bothering her, not only showed a lack of respect for her boundaries but also a lack of respect for a culture different from his.

Rawpixel.com | Shutterstock

Early dating behavior is best-case scenario behavior. In other words, those initial interactions are when people put their best foot forward to make a good impression. If this was her date’s best, he gave her some pretty good insight into what a relationship with his worst might look like. Let’s just say, not good.  

Considering they had only gone on two dates, she had no obligation to continue seeing him if she was already put off. The fact that he didn’t even think to apologize but decided to double down on his behavior was proof enough that he was not a match.

Experiences like this are why many people are hesitant to date nowadays. A survey from the American Enterprise Institute’s Survey Center on American Life found that more people, especially young women, are choosing to be happily single over settled and unhappy or indifferent.

They’re simply enjoying their own company and spending time with friends and family, rather than going on a dinner date with a man who probably eats plain oatmeal and because brown sugar makes it too spicy. 

: It’s Easier Than Ever To Get A Date — But Harder Than Ever To Fall In Love

Nia Tipton is a staff writer with a bachelor’s degree in creative writing and journalism who covers news and lifestyle topics that focus on psychology, relationships, and the human experience.