Mrk. & Co. CEO Keisuke Kamijo is of the opinion that this "Tinder problem" can be solved. The company he leads has therefore brought out a new dating app dubbed "Dine". The focus of the app is, you guessed it, find a date to dine with (or go for drinks... it's up to you). This is of course the goal of all online dating, but Dine aims to get you there quicker. While being charming on screen is easy, it's still not the best way to determine chemistry.

Mrk & Co. was set up by employees of DeNA, the Japanese gaming giant that also partnered with Nintendo. Unlike their predecessor, however, the inventors of Dine aim to remove all of the "game-like" elements that dating apps have and forge a single path towards actual dates. Apple was indeed impressed by the whole thing and have featured them on their list of "best new apps".

How Dine Works

With Dine, you still need to fill out a profile as you do with most dating apps. There is Yelp integration, therefore allowing you to choose three establishments in which to meet your potential date (bars or restaurants, take your pick). Registered singles then get 2-5 suggestions per day, including the places that those people chose. After this, you can request a date.

After a date request is sent, and it is of course accepted, the chat function opens. You can then chat with them and see if there is any kind of chemistry. The big difference between Dine and Tinder, however, is that there is already a place that you have organized to meet up at. It makes the whole experience feel a lot less like you are chatting aimlessly.

After beta testing done in Vancouver, a rough estimate of success could be brought out: around 50% of the date requests ended up as real dates. The app is now making its way through North America, and there is no telling where it will lead. Of course, with an app like this, your own personal success will depend on how many people are in your area!