{"id":179512,"date":"2025-08-27T10:47:10","date_gmt":"2025-08-27T10:47:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/179512\/"},"modified":"2025-08-27T10:47:10","modified_gmt":"2025-08-27T10:47:10","slug":"skip-the-coffee-try-these-expert-approved-second-date-spots-in-l-a","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/179512\/","title":{"rendered":"Skip the coffee. Try these expert-approved second-date spots in L.A."},"content":{"rendered":"

In the vast catalog of relationship science research, very little focuses on the second date \u2014 or at least beyond what it takes to land one<\/a>. <\/p>\n

There are ample studies about first dates and initial attraction, which are often conducted in speed dating-style experiments<\/a>. On the opposite end of the spectrum, some researchers devote their entire careers to studying long-term relationship trajectories. But few delineations are made among the dates that make up the period between meet-cute and making it official. <\/p>\n

Even under a pop-culture dating framework, which assigns some value to early dating milestones including the third date<\/a> and the three-month mark<\/a>, Date No. 2 falls to the wayside. <\/p>\n

Yet the second date is psychologically significant, because it marks most daters\u2019 first venture past \u201cinitial clearance,\u201d said Bree Jenkins, a licensed marriage and family therapist and dating coach based in Los Angeles.<\/p>\n

Instructions for a first date are clear: Introduce yourselves and decide whether you\u2019re compatible. This \u201cmeet and greet,\u201d as Jenkins called it, most often happens over coffee or drinks. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe second date is different, because you have some level of psychological reassurance that the other person is interested,\u201d Jenkins said. \u201cSo some of the anxiety comes down, and I think it\u2019s a little bit easier for people to be more intentional about how they want to connect.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Times spoke with relationship scientists and dating coaches to determine what types of second-date activities might foster that early sense of connection, which ideally snowballs into successive dates. <\/p>\n

Their insights distilled to the following criteria:<\/p>\n

Keep it affordable<\/p>\n

Money puts the pressure on, and the goal of a second date should be to take the pressure off.<\/p>\n

Duana Welch, a dating and relationship coach and author of \u201cLove Factually: 10 Proven Steps From I Wish to I Do,\u201d said that when someone spends heavily on their date, \u201cresearch shows that a lot of times, there\u2019s a sexual expectation that\u2019s implied or actually real.\u201d<\/p>\n

Such a dynamic can hinder daters\u2019 ability to effectively gauge their compatibility, \u201cso take that expectation away from it,\u201d Welch said. \u201cDo something that\u2019s pretty simple and pretty low cost.\u201d<\/p>\n

In other words, don\u2019t be stingy, she said, but focus on being generous with your time and compliments rather than with your money.<\/p>\n

Get active, but don\u2019t cut the conversation<\/p>\n

General second-date advice suggests incorporating an activity as a divergence from the first date-style, sit-down conversation. Relationship scientists agreed but issued a caveat: Make sure you can still talk.<\/p>\n

Paul Eastwick, a psychology professor at UC Davis specializing in the science of relationships, said that whereas in the past people might have interacted 10 or 20 times before they went on a first date, with the advent of online dating, \u201cthe archetype that people often have is, \u2018I met you on the first date.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

In that paradigm, a follow-up date is still ripe for introductory conversation, which can\u2019t easily occur in many default second-date settings like a movie theater. Instead, Eastwick recommended a cooking class or immersive show \u2014 \u201csomething that permits interaction, but you\u2019re also doing this third thing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Welch recommended a bike ride or museum stroll, as \u201cpeople sometimes open up more where they don\u2019t feel like they have to look right at each other.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lean into novelty<\/p>\n

Lastly, the suggestion to try something new may seem like a clich\u00e9, but it\u2019s also scientifically legitimate.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnytime that you have a novel experience, especially if it\u2019s enjoyable, you\u2019re going to release more dopamine,\u201d Jenkins, the dating coach, said. \u201cIt gives people a way to connect and feel more positive emotion behind the connection.\u201d<\/p>\n

With all that in mind, here is a list of second-date ideas in L.A. that relationship experts can get behind.<\/p>\n