- Singles are reportedly ditching dating apps and flirting with performers at Medieval Times instead, according to the New York Post.
- Guests say knights tossing roses and making eye contact feels more exciting than modern app dating.
- Psychologists say the playful, in-person experience offers relief from dating app burnout.
Love is hard to find these days. Dating apps are exhausting, and sliding into Instagram DMs feels like a full-time job, so singles are thinking outside the box. Like… way outside the box. As in, back to medieval times.
Not actual medieval times. The restaurant.
According to reporting from the New York Post, singles are ditching dating apps and heading to Medieval Times Dinner & Tournament, where turkey legs and dramatic sword fights are unexpectedly becoming the backdrop for flirtation. If you’ve somehow never been, Medieval Times is the dinner show where you eat with your hands while knights battle on horseback and toss roses into the crowd. It’s pretty campy and honestly kind of iconic. And now? Apparently, a dating hotspot.
The Post reports that social media helped kick off the trend after internet personality Brittany Broski mentioned flirting with knights at Medieval Times on her podcast. Since then, clips have popped up across TikTok of women swooning over armored performers making eye contact and crowning audience members “Queen of the Tournament.”
And honestly, compared to modern dating, it kind of makes sense. There’s cheering, pageantry, and a man literally fighting (and grunting) for honor in front of you. Much different energy than a midnight “You up?” text, I’d say.
Several attendees told the Post that the appeal is partly fantasy and partly relief from dating app burnout. One guest said getting handed a rose by a knight felt more exciting than getting a match notification. Others joked that watching men joust and ride horses somehow makes them more attractive, adding that modern dating rarely feels this fun or direct.
Psychologists also told the outlet that the appeal comes from shared experiences that feel playful and real, without algorithms or curated profiles getting in the way. It taps into old fairytale tropes, sure, but also into something pretty basic: being noticed in real life.
Will you actually leave with a boyfriend? Probably not. But as far as memorable nights out go, watching a knight wink at you while you inhale garlic bread and cheer for your color-coded team beats another awkward bar date.
And hey, at least this time, someone actually shows up in armor.