About the daters ...

How you’re D.C. ...

Eli: A lawyer and a news/politics junkie. Moved here with the vague intention of doing something good for humanity.

Laura: I write about politics for a living, and I love to get into heated debates with people about random topics such as whether a cheesecake is technically a cake or a pie. I always win.

Brag a little ...

Eli: I’m tall, athletic, smart and (I think) funny. I’m a good storyteller. I’m a manly guy, but I am a romantic at heart. I love kids and dogs, and I have impeccable grammar.

Laura: I have a very dry wit, I’m up for any kind of adventure, I have a great job that I love, and I’ve got dance moves you’ve never seen.

Your type ...

Eli: If a girl has soft, pretty eyes, I just melt. I also tend to go for the petite/athletic body type. And I love girls who are mentally quick and are able to banter with me.

Laura: Really smart, really witty (this is a necessity), fun to dance with, has a big heart. I tend to be attracted to guys who are tall, dark-haired and athletic.

Interests to share ...

Eli: I’d like her to have a general awareness of the world and what’s going on in it. She should also have a sense of purpose in life that extends beyond making money. Finally, I’d hope we could share an interest in travel and physical fitness.

Laura: I love ’60s soul and blues music, traveling to places I’ve never been and absorbing the local culture, being on boats, discussing great books, experimenting with cooking, really bad romantic comedies and reality show competitions, tennis, volleyball, fishing, and deep, memorable conversations.

About the date ...

7:30 p.m., The Heights, Columbia Heights

Eli:I was probably more nervous than I am before most first dates. But I was excited. I got there right at 7:30.

Laura:I had no idea what to expect, so I was pretty nervous about it. I showed up maybe five or 10 minutes late. I felt really bad about that. The host took me to the table, and [Eli] stood up and I think we did the shake/hug, awkward, don’t-know-what-to-do thing.

Eli: She’s tall; she’s got an athletic body. She’s got dark hair, dark features, very attractive. She was definitely the type I would usually go for.

Laura: He’s very, very handsome. Probably not my type, or at least not what I normally go for. He was very big and muscly. I tend to go for guys that are maybe skinnier, lankier and, I don’t know, maybe artsier. I pegged him as maybe a jock from the Northeast.

Eli: We actually started off trying to figure out exactly why we had been matched up. That started a more free-flowing conversation. She’s a reporter, so she’s used to talking, and I just talk a lot, so I never felt like there was any awkwardness.

Laura: We’re both into sports, and we both read a lot. He’s clerking for a judge, and my dad and both my brothers are lawyers, so we seemed to have a lot in common on that front. The conversation flowed really easily. He’s a smart guy; he’s really funny and he had a lot to say.

Eli: We split a sampler platter, and then I ordered the duck for my entree and she had a steak. Then, we ended up getting into a freewheeling conversation about politics and current events. I’m something of a news junkie, so I tend to follow that stuff closely.