The most underrated first date of 2026 doesn't happen at 8pm. It happens at 8am.
A new Kellogg's survey out of Australia found that 64% of singles are open to meeting for breakfast on a first date — and it's not hard to see why. When the average first date now costs $252 for millennials (BMO's 2026 figure, up 32% in a year), a $12 coffee date starts looking less like settling and more like strategy.
Why mornings work better than nights
Nearly a third of singles in the survey said a morning first date takes the pressure off — and they're right. Dinner dates come loaded with expectations: the right restaurant, the right outfit, the unspoken question of how the night ends. Breakfast has none of that baggage. As one dating coach put it, it's "casual, there's less pressure, and you can actually talk."
And here's the underrated part: if it goes badly, you're out $12 and it's 9:30am — the whole day is still yours. If it goes well? You've got the entire day to keep going. Almost a quarter of singles said they liked that a breakfast date could turn into a spontaneous adventure. Try doing that after a 9pm dinner.
The real reason: everyone's tired of performing
The same survey found 66% of singles feel dating apps have made it harder to find a genuine connection. That's the deeper shift — people aren't just economizing, they're exhausted by the performance of modern dating. The curated profiles, the clever openers, the $252 auditions.
A breakfast date strips all of that away. No dim lighting to hide behind. No three-course meal to fill the silences. Just two people, coffee, and actual conversation. It's dating with the filters off.
How to do the breakfast date right
Pick a place with good coffee and somewhere to sit — not a to-go counter. Arrive five minutes early. And here's the move most people miss: bring something to talk about beyond "so what do you do." A card game on the table changes everything — it gives you both something to do with your hands and questions worth answering.
That's exactly why Dating Assassins was made for moments like this. It's a 150-question card game for new daters — $15.99, fits in a jacket pocket. Draw a card, answer honestly. One round over lattes and you'll know more about each other than three dinner dates' worth of small talk. The best $16 you'll spend on your dating life — right after the coffee.
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