Attention Chicago singles: According to a new survey from Match.com, the hot and steamy months of summer are the time for romance. A survey taken by over 1,100 single Chicago residents reveals some quite interesting and potentially unexpected statistics. The data shows where Chicago singles hope that real love (that's, "Love. Real love. Ridiculous, inconvenient, consuming, can't-live-without-each-other love,") connection happens, with hometown guys and gals revealing their favorite date-night venues, what they deem as the sexiest professions in the city and the most sought-after dreamy Chi-town celebrity dates.
While River North is considered the best neighborhood for a date, also doubling as the 'hood filled with the hottest singles, the survey stats also show that Chicagoans love to check into some of the city's trendiest restaurants, where haute tables are snapped up this quick for a date. Season Four Top Chef winner Stephanie Izard's Girl & the Goat was voted the top destination to impress, with 34 percent of singles saying they'd most want to go on a date there. Japonais came in second at 17 percent, RPM took third place with 16 percent and Hooters (not surprisingly) came in as the worst date-night spot in the city by a vote of 55 percent, who said they would never take a date there. Taking in a neighborhood street fest also ranked high as 34 percent said it was their favorite place for a date.
What are the sexiest professions in Windy City? According to Chicago men who voted, guys want to date high-powered, strong women and find the most attractive professions to be advertising executives by 49 percent, followed by doctors at 47 percent and professors/teachers coming in third at 45 percent. The survey data suggests that women also seek strong, professional men, and the sexiness scale weighs most heavily with entrepreneurs at 63 percent, followed by doctors at 62 percent and lawyers at 54 percent.
Companies that were voted to have the hottest employees include United Airlines by a total of 43 percent and Wrigley Field by 30 percent. Speaking of Wrigley, the survey also digs into the long-standing rivalry between the White Sox and the Cubs; and according to the data, it's the Cubs that win this game by over two-thirds or 64 percent, by having the hottest players between the two hometown teams (sorry, South Siders).
Chicagoans also like the funny. In fact, when it comes to a dream date with a hometown celeb, it's having a sense of humor that creates sparks. Given the data, it shouldn't come as a surprise that 40 percent of women said they'd want to date comedic actor Vince Vaughn more than any other male Chicago-rooted celebrity. Men also like the amusing, choosing SNL alum Tina Fey by 32 percent.
Compared to other big cities like New York City and Los Angeles, the Chicago dating scene has its advantages. Match.com's Chicago Dating Expert and founder of Smart Dating Academy, Bela Gandhi, has this advice; "The good thing about dating in Chicago is a lot of people who are in Chicago tend to be from here and kind of have that good, homegrown Midwestern value system to them and we tend to favor commitment and getting into relationships and getting married at younger ages versus what I see with my client bases in New York and LA."
Still looking for that special someone? Gandhi says to try (again) online. "Online dating can feel like a needle in a haystack to people; and frankly it is," she says. "It's about playing the numbers, but it's playing them smart. Don't be discouraged by online dating, this is an unbelievable tool at our fingertips that we didn't have 20 years ago."
It was revealed that 43 percent of singles think that summer is the most romantic time of year in Chicago. Given that it's July, maybe love is in the air? Better book that table now at G&G.