Dating on a BoardPlus Budget

Between sleeping in section and not doing the reading, it can be hard to squeeze in an evening out with your squeeze. And then, there are monetary concerns.

By Ben G. Cort and Emma K. Talkoff

Finding time to date while leading the high-pressure life of a Harvard student can be quite the ordeal. Between sleeping in section and not doing the reading, it can be hard to squeeze in an evening out with your squeeze. And then, there are monetary concerns. Dates are hella expensive, and you’ve got to save up for that handle of Rubinoff you hate that you’re going to be drinking this weekend. Luckily, FM has done the legwork for you, and discovered the premier BoardPlus- friendly date locations for the starving college student. Or, uh, we did our best.

LAMONT CAFÉ AND BARKER CENTER CAFÉ

Notoriously rife with despair and sadness, Lamont Cafe did not initially seem like a promising spot for a first Board Plus date. Dressed to the nines, we joined the Wednesday afternoon

P-setters and Expos crowd, as well as those students who seem never to leave the fluorescent eatery, just before the dinner rush. We settled at a window table for slightly rubbery Lamont su- shi and awkward small talk. Several “friends” glanced towards and then immediately away from us. Things were not off to a great start. Then, a stroke of fortune: We found out that Lamont of- fers unlimited soy sauce. Date salvaged.

Still looking sharp as a pair of tacks, we took a sunlit stroll across the street to the illustrious Barker café to grab after dinner sweets for our sweets (each other). Peering into the glass display case, we took our pick among the various misshapen pastries that weren’t good enough to be eaten before evening fell. We settled for a piece of bread draped in chocolate. Neither of us wanted to use our hands to eat the pastry, but neither was able to come up with a better alter- native. Bonus points? Our table came pre-equipped with an electric candle to add to the romantic atmosphere.

CHAUHAUS

We texted to arrange the second date before the obligatory three days—we weren’t desperate, just on a deadline. Itching to leave the confines of the Yard, we set out for the mysterious concrete jungle of the Graduate School of Design. The veritable city of poster board and plastic building models obscuring Chauhaus’s entrance made for pleasant pre-date entertainment, and allowed us to pretend to be giant marauders in a tiny abandoned city, always a plus. Inside, Chauhaus looked equally devoid of life—apparently, after 3 p.m. the cafe serves only fruit, leftover pastries, and weird-looking refrigerated sandwiches.

We opted for pastries, and then the Kong (which did not accept BoardPlus).

SEBASTIAN’S CAFE

For those looking to impress dates with their local knowledge, the empire of Board Plus has spread its cheap tendrils far past the Cambridge zip code. Its Bos- ton outpost bears the name Sebastian’s Cafe and has a location just outside of Downtown Crossing. Eager to dine in distant lands and spend some of our parents’ money on a date (over lklten bucks in train fare between the two of us), we set out at what seemed like a reasonable 2 p.m. to grab a late lunch. For Good Friday, this turned out to be unreasonable, and we arrived to find the store locked. We pressed our hungry faces against the glass. It sure looked good in there. Dejected, we left. Date...successful?