After reading the multiple reviews posted across multiple cities two things have become clear : 1. My experience is far from atypical and 2. SpeedLA Dating has some obvious issues, and instead of accepting constructive criticism and attempting to better the experience they choose to blame their clients.
I'll start off by saying that I went into this evening with my only expectation being that I would have a fun, interesting evening and maybe an interesting story or two to tell by the end.
The problem is that what SpeedLA Dating promotes, on their website and in their emails and advertisements is not what they are actually selling. I purchased my event ticket through a Groupon type deal site, and I'm glad I did, because I can't even imagine how much more disappointed I would be if I had paid the full $44 that this event is supposed to cost.
Their website is slick and professional and full of promise, but in reality the event I attended was unorganized, understaffed and lacked personality.
Yes there was one makeup artist in place to do makeup for almost 10 women in less than half an hour. So their response is that they don't have a set start time, but that is *not* what is presented in their emails or on their website. There is a start time listed. If some of the girls hadn't chosen to forgo the makeover , which they push women to take advantage of, the event would have started at least an hour after the listed start time.
The hostess of our event seemed uninterested in being there, spent much of the evening at the bar with her back turned to us (even during the pre-dates ""mingling"" stage of the evening) and was awkward, at best, at transitioning daters between rounds. There was also a problem with there not being the correct number of tables which was resolved awkwardly, and at the last minute. The ""delicious"" appetizers that they offered amounted to a bucket of spring rolls and a bucket of dumplings of some kind that mostly sat on the bar untouched because 1)they arrived after the mini-dates had started and 2) they weren't presented in an appealing way. In short, the main things that the company plays up as setting them apart from other speed dating services (makeovers, food, personality!) are all hugely disappointing in practice.
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