Finding love in a hospital, supermarket and cooking class: Unexpected places romance blossomed

UNITED STATES – There seems to be a lot of misery related to dating these days: unreciprocated energy, commitment issues and swiping fatigue (to name a few).

Many singles prefer to meet romantic prospects organically while out and about. And, while there are hot spots where meeting new people is common, some of the most romantic encounters happen – what is that cliche again? – when you least expect it.

That seems to be the case for the roughly 120 submissions The New York Times received in response to the call-out for summer meet-cute stories. Readers shared stories of locking eyes at cooking classes, seminars, museums and airports. Many met their lovers abroad.

While the narrative of the horror that is the dating scene in 2024 feels inescapable, here are some delightful stories about meeting someone special this summer that might make you believe in love again. Submissions have been edited for length and clarity.

A museum meet-cute

I was visiting Washington, DC, and randomly decided to go to the National Gallery of Art. I caught myself looking at a girl and she must have been looking at me too. We both smiled at each other.

Emboldened, I asked her to take a picture of me in front of a few Rothko paintings. That turned into a 15-minute conversation about where we went to college and graduate school, then more pictures and a trip to the botanical garden. What stood out to me is that meeting someone in person is so much better than meeting someone online.

Our connection was instant and felt genuine. It also was unexpected – something missing from modern dating.

We are definitely still friends – we exchanged numbers and followed each other on Instagram – but I am not sure if I’ll ever see her again. If I am ever in her city, I’ll certainly text her, and I said, “If you ever find yourself in my neck of the woods, we should meet up.”

– Louis Shaheen, Columbus, Ohio

When the plus-ones mingle

We met at a birthday party for someone neither of us knew. She was a plus-one, and I was the plus-one of a plus-one. My friend and I took control of the aux at the bar we were at in the West Village, Automatic Slim’s, and started playing some Latino music that we could dance to. When we started dancing, she and I locked eyes from across the bar.

What stood out to me first was how beautiful her smile was when we first saw each other. She later went outside to text a friend, and I followed after her to talk.

We spent that night together dancing, and she came over to a friend’s party with me the next day. We spent every day since then talking. We went on our first actual date the following Wednesday, and we started officially dating on July 29.

– Daniel Bastidas, Queens

Flirting in the... hospital bed?

Unfortunately, this summer I was diagnosed with a 6mm kidney stone. After the diagnosis, I waited an agonising 24 hours before I could get into surgery. I was cringing in the hospital bed around hour nine, when the nurse staff shifted duties. In walked the most handsome, bubbly caretaker, in uniform no less. I was immediately invested. He was so kind, intelligent, concerned and attentive. His shift ended while I was in surgery and I thought I’d never see him again.

Three days later, I received a text from him asking me out on a date. We have been on multiple dates since, and I will never forget the experience of meeting Robbie for the first time doubled over in that hospital bed.

– Jordan McHenry, Colorado Springs, Colorado

Finding love at the supermarket

One afternoon, I arrived at my local market hall to do grocery shopping. I walked to the egg and cheese stand, where I was on friendly terms with the woman who was usually behind the counter.

At the stall, I said an enthusiastic “hello” only to look up and realise that I was at the wrong stand: the Italian stand. I explained my mistake, walked to my intended destination, one stand to the right, and waited for someone to occupy the vacant counter.

To my surprise, one of the men working at the Italian stand came over to say hi while I was still waiting to be served. He told me that after I got my eggs, I should come back over for a glass of rose. Fifteen minutes later, I did that and, soon, we were on the terrace sitting together with glasses of rose.

He told me how much he liked to cook, and I asked if he would teach me how to make one of his favourite dishes. He obliged and taught me how to make asparagus risotto. I’ve been eating homemade Italian deliciousness ever since.

After many lovely picnics and evening walks, Antonino and I made our relationship official in August.

– Kellie Jones, Berlin

Sparks fly at a cooking class

While travelling in Italy with my best friend, I signed up for a cooking course, hoping to immerse myself in Italian culture and better my cooking skills. When I arrived late, I found only one seat left – next to an attractive guy travelling solo. What started as a casual conversation over pasta-making quickly turned into something much more appetising.

We soon discovered we had an uncanny amount in common: We are both black American, Duke MBAs, mutual friends, ambitious – him in consulting, me in tech – living on the West Coast and first-generation college students raised by single mums in the Northeast.

What stood out most was how natural our conversation felt – as if we were old classmates catching up over gelato.

After the class, he and I aimlessly wandered the streets of Milan, joking and talking until 4am on the steps of Duomo di Milano. A month later, he surprised me by flying to Seattle from Los Angeles just to take me to dinner. We hiked, went to the zoo and sailed in Puget Sound. The time together was laughter-filled, picking up right where we left off in Milan.

While we have taken romance off the menu, friendship is still the main dish – cheering each other on with work, and shooting the occasional text or call when life gets interesting.

– Rachelle Olden, Seattle

Reliving summer camp love

As a kid, the Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth summer programme changed my life. I went back in 2024 to teach. It was the first place I fell in love, and this summer, it happened again.

I taught writing and imagination, and David taught philosophy. The kids had just left, and we had a meeting with new staff members. I saw him walk in, and I had that feeling like I was 16 again. I stared at him throughout the meeting. After the meeting, I introduced myself and used as an excuse that I was reading Kierkegaard.

And I relived my camp experience – sneaking out at night, gabbing about boys, swaying to American Pie at the weekly dance, meeting surreptitiously in the dining hall under prying eyes. It was magical. The last time I felt this way was when I was 14. Except this is real – or at least, I think so.

David has changed my life. I don’t know where it will go, since he lives in Boston, but it is amazing. He is 25 and I am 30 – a new age gap for me. But he has taught me so much, fundamentally altered the way I see the world, inspired me to pursue a PhD in theory/philosophy and made me believe in things again.

– Camille Goering, Tallahassee, Florida

A late night at a summer retreat

After a game of croquet at a summer education programme called Inspiring Oxford, the night ended with a group of us in a 500-year-old dormitory room sharing a last bottle of wine.

That included Sara, a lawyer from Miami who stole my heart.

We were together with a group for a little while before she stood out. We both had our eyes on each other.

But the key moment was the next day when we started sharing life stories and backgrounds. It was that moment that I realised she was the smart, witty and playful person I had always dreamed of.

For the next week in Oxford and several weeks later in London, we were shameless tourists, relentless gourmands and the happiest people together. I have never smiled and laughed so much in my life.

Sara continued in Britain and Europe for another month of travel, but we chat multiple times every day. We’ll see if a long-distance Miami-Houston relationship bears fruit.

– Thomas McGuffey, Houston

NYTIMES