What is your favorite spot for a first date in Denver?

For this week's cover story, "Money can buy you love, if you have a contract with this Harvard MBA," I spent roughly a month working with local matchmaker Jamie Richards. We've already covered her tips on finding a matchmaker, taking a profile picture and creating an online dating profile. But...

By Kelsey Whipple

February 6, 2012

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For this week's cover story, "Money can buy you love, if you have a contract with this Harvard MBA," I spent roughly a month working with local matchmaker Jamie Richards. We've already covered her tips on finding a matchmaker, taking a profile picture and creating an online dating profile. But now we're getting to the results -- the first date.

And for that we'd like to know: Where is your favorite spot for a first date in Denver?

After following all the steps in the process and saying yes to an online date, I chose the Walnut Room, but as a cat-owning vegan, my date's rabid dislike of animals was a dealbreaker. And while Richards stresses that her clients should never indulge in a hard and fast list of reasons to dislike a date, that has to be a big one. (She later forgave me.)

But maybe if I had chosen a different date site.... Again, Richards encourages her daters not to indulge in maybes. For a definite first date success, she recommends heading to the top of the Hyatt Regency for dinner. But given that Valentine's Day, the year's most romantic (and most corporate) holiday, is getting close, that might no longer be an option.

So where would you suggest? Let us know in the comments section -- and in the meantime, brush up on Richards' advice on preparing for first dates:

1. Women, change out of your work clothes, even if you have to bring a change of clothes with you. 2. If possible, go home and do what you need to do to relax, unwind, and come out of work mode before heading out. 3. Whatever you do, do not go out with a negative attitude toward the opposite sex. It will come through no matter what! 4. Make sure you're on time! Do not cancel on someone last-minute unless it's absolutely unavoidable (like the stomach flu, or a car accident). Doing so says "I'm more important than you are." No one wants to feel that way. 5. Turn off your cell phone when you arrive and don't set it face up on the table!

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