Ruben knew as soon as he met Liv that his single life was over. He left their first date in Rotterdam and ran immediately to tell his friends he’d met the one. Six weeks later, they were official and have been inseparable ever since; scuba diving in Egypt, island-hopping in the Philippines, wine tasting in Champagne. “We never get bored together,” he says. This July, the couple will get the keys to the home they’ve bought together. “What may the future hold? We don’t know yet,” Ruben says. “Who knows, maybe getting married?”
The Dutch couple are one of many success stories spawning from the dating app Breeze, which launched in Europe in 2020 before landing in London in 2025. Breeze promises date nights without endless swiping, and banishes the talking stage (what’s your favourite colour? How many siblings do you have?”) by only opening the chat window two hours before the date. When you match with someone, you put your availability into the app and it books you both a table at one of its partner bars. You each pay £9.50 for a “date token” that covers your first drink. Anyone who cancels is frozen out of the app for a week.
