9:50 = Love o’clock
by Christine Kim
Booking is out, tablet-ing is in. Trendy young Koreans have found a new way of finding their next potential partners through tablet computers at a bar in Seoul, according to the Chosun Ilbo.
Utilizing a special program that links the devices — provided at each customer’s table — patrons can communicate with those they take a liking to at other tables.
Not surprisingly, the love-hungry bunch usually consists of college students. Even on a Monday night, a large crowd can be seen busily judging the photos of each person on the screen.
First, they chat via instant messages and then casually transition to video chats. By the end of the process, if both parties express mutual interest, they join tables. Despite using a somewhat impersonal match-making method, the bar has received favorable reviews from patrons.
“At ordinary bars, I’m reluctant to meet someone, because I can only judge them based on their looks, but this bar is great because we can talk before we meet,” a 22-year-old female college student told the Chosun Ilbo.
While the young miss says that less burden is placed on turning someone down, a 33-year-old office worker finds the atmosphere uncomfortable “as it seems as though the kind of bad manners you encounter on the Internet have found a good home [there].”
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