I’m a dude who 100% of the time can’t finish a meal when I go on dates. Sometimes I leave a lot of food. Like, I’ll eat less than half of the dish. Is this a bad look? Do girls see this as some sort of inadequacy? Does it make me less of a man?
If you need to take some of your meal to-go, take it to-go. If the girl judges you for it (and I can’t think of a reason why the heck she would), she’s not worth it. You’re buying, right?
Have you tried ordering less food when you go out?
Doggy bags on a first date IS kind of tacky.
As long as you’re just asking for a doggy bag for YOUR leftover food, I don’t see a problem with it.
Heck, my last GF would fuss at me if I dared to leave even three bites of food on the plate:
“You’re not going to get that to go?”
I usually hoped that the date wouldn’t end after dinner. I wouldn’t take a doggy bag with her to a bar or out dancing. I wouldn’t ask a date to keep my doggy bag in her fridge. I wouldn’t leave a doggy bag in my car while I did those things. Perhaps if we were going straight to my house, taking the doggy bag would be okay but I don’t ever remember doing that.
I’ve never understood what’s so shameful about taking food home that we’ve had to invent the euphemism “doggy bag.” I’ve even been known to order a large portion of some item that the restaurant prepares to my liking, telling the waitress/er that I expect to take some of it home. A large size is cheaper per portion, anyway.
What does a first date have to do with it? Are you trying to impress a new acquaintance with your thriftiness or profligacy? Why would you want to hide either? Will either tactic be more likely to get you laid?
I don’t think anyone calls it a “doggy bag” anymore. I think most people (male or female) would not care if their date asked for a “to-go” box. OTOH, I would think a person wasteful if they just let half of an expensive meal get thrown in the garbage rather than taking home the leftovers.
Oh yes, I always buy first date. I think I’ve been lucky, because whenever I do manage to get a second date, the girl has always offered. Then we alternate from there. By the second or third dates, I’m pretty comfortable getting boxes. But it’s that first date where I’m like, “Hmm… maybe she’ll think less of me.”
I have. I used to get big, ridiculous pasta dishes that I would never finish in even two sittings. Now I tend towards a small steak with a side or two. The problem is I have to pretty much always get an appetizer - you know, something to share - like a dip or calamari or THE GRAND SAMPLER. Then, with a salad, I start to fill up before the meal even comes out.
I could just go with soup and a salad, but that could raise even more inadequacy questions.
I would strive to date people who don’t judge you based on what you order and how much of your meal you finish.
Be yourself. If you end up together you’re gonna have to be eventually.
The only judgement I’d make of such a man is “oh, good - he has self-control!”
“First date as a guy” – you mean after your sex change operation? :eek:
You might have worded that a bit more clearly.
I guess you’re not Adam Richman then… 
Meh. Just do it with confidence and it’s as manly as anything could get.
Personally I would only be concerned if your date was pacing or gauging how much she eats based on how much you eat. That is, if she might be intentionally leaving hungry to avoid the appearance of overeating.
If she looks at you askance, just wink and say, “We can share it for breakfast.”
Nah, just kidding. Do whatever you feel comfortable with. I seriously doubt you will be judged harshly for not wanting to waste food. And if she finds it tacky, she’s probably not the girl for you anyway.
Personally I’m opposed to taking home food from restaurants at all - but that’s mostly because if I were to attempt to reheat it or something I’d burn down my apartment. I’m sort of not the cooking type.
Regarding boxing up food on a date, it only makes you look weak if you make some kind of production of it - or if you previously somehow implied that you’re a man who eats man-sized stakes manlyly. Weakness aside, though, the logistics of the situation suggest that you shouldn’t ask for a to-go box unless your next stop is your own house. On some dates that’s a reasonable assumption, and on some dates it’s not.
You know, you can use this excuse for almost anything:
“Should I shower before my date?” “Nah, if she finds that off-putting, she’s probably not the girl for you anyway”
“Should I dress nice?” “Nah, if she cares about your clothes, she’s probably not the girl for you anyway”
I wouldn’t get a to-go box because if you do anything afterward, what are you going to do with it? Carry it around with you as you walk around or go to a club or something?
You want to impress the girl? Get a to go bag and then give it to the first homeless person you see. Don’t make a show of it. Just be cool. Don’t be all, un-cool.
Use the cat defense, she’ll find it sweet and endearing. I do like the homeless thing, too.
Actually, I’ve changed my opinion. Do this.