When you go on a date for the first time, what things really put you off

[electra]

that you feel you probably couldn't look past?

For me it's bad breath and when someone is waaaaaay too smooth.

-Yes, smooth moves.
-If he was rude to the waiter. This happened to me once and I was so mortified I just left before the end of the meal.
-If he seemed like his conversation had come straight from the Daily Mail or appeared too right wing.
(though DH was RW but only with regards the economy not at all on social issues so that was ok )
-If he looked like he hadn't washed.
-I would always talk travel/current news/politics on a date and if he appeared to have no interest in any of those things then I'd no it was a non-starter.

I'd know

Rotten teeth yuck!!

Rude to other people (staff etc) and being really wound up and impatient!

noisy eating
ew ew
or a fussy eater

• if he looked at me with a "i know you are finding me irrestible right now" expression

• silence/excessive shyness

-lack of imagination.

-Anyone who says "Oh, Elephants" in a disapproving tone is straight off the menu.

As a general rule, the less you know about the other person (in terms of hard facts) by the end of the date, the better. It means you've been caught up in conversation and having too much fun to ask the boring questions. By the end of the Most Boring Date Ever I knew the guy's parents' middle names FFS.

B.O. would put me off straight away, and bad breath.

Being rude to others would definitely be a no-no.

The thought of dating again fills me with dread though

Men who tell me their life plan on a first date. Booooring.

This is going back over 15 years though, I shouldn't really be on this thread.

From the other side (for interest)

• evidence of being "high-maintenance"
• neurotic and expecting constant reassurance
• likes R'n'B
• can't stop talking about previous boyfriend
• can't stop talking about herself
• can't stop talking
• talks about things that "men" do as if they were all the same
• is impressed by the overtly superficial, such as what kind of suit someone is wearing or what kind of car they drive
• wants to know how much you earn
• expects you to pay without demurring.

Oh, and doesn't eat much. Pushes a salad around a plate as if it is toxic. Big no-no for me.

needless to say, anyone who brings out a "all women are bitches" line or (perhaps worse) "you're not like normal women, they're all slags" type remark (or similar but watered down), is just begging to have you sneak out en route to the toilet.

For me personally..

The way he eats. Someone told me a long time ago the way a man eats is how he is going to, ahem, make love to you. If he is sloppy or messy or has stuff left in his teeth YUK.

Splitting the bill to the penny or not tipping, er you asked ME out..

Badly dressed, ungroomed. Getting drunk. Making a crude pass at me, get lost.

Jut to clarify, I am an old-fashioned gentleman on dates (well, I was) and so I would pay, but I'd expect a bit of token polite resistance!

I love "polite resistance"

er no let me

No

OK then

I HATE smooth! Smell is very important to me as well, so if they hadn't washed or had a really horrible scent, I would be put off immediately. Being too dominant is another thing. And being over friendly is a total turn off.

Messy eating
Hygiene
Manners
Not footing the bill
Shyness

Not having a high paid job and an expensive car

by the end of my first date with my lovely boyfriend I didn't know his second name or how old he was, but I knew that his employer had threatened to cavity search the staff where he is employed if things didn't stop going missing.

grape I heard that too about the eating thing and it is so true! Never go past the first date with someone who dabs their mouth with a napkin

And ohhhhh picky eating

"I don't really eat vegetables"

"I only like my meat very well cooked"

"I can't stand the smell of fish"

"I don't like garlic"

You are a twat, then

colditz - possibly the wrong thing to focus on here, but did your boyfriend get searched?! And what was going missing?

Yeah, I'm just being nosy. But I'm pregnant and home alone....bored lol.

so true dreamy

no, and mobile phones

And he mentioned this just before I bought 3 cucumbers off the market, and after I bought them he said "And how are you going to get those home? oh, you have a big handbag. That's a good idea when you're shopping"

And I thought "Fantastic, someone who truly appreciates smutty remarks without taking it uncomfortably far!"

mentioning his mother as if she is God or in a derogatory sense.