Blind date: In the deep

Photos and video by David Brooks
Matchmaking by Jessica Pelligra
Megan and Brian met an hour ago in the Epic Limo that’s about to drop them off at SeaQuest Water Adventures for a holy-sh*t-level underwater experience. Before they emerge to get submerged, let’s review their pre-date interviews.

PACIFIC: Where are you from and where do you live now?

MEGAN: I was born and raised in Seattle, Washington, and then moved down to San Diego after I graduated high school. Right now, I live a block from Mission Beach in San Diego.

BRIAN: From Huntington Beach and currently live in Mt. Soledad, San Diego.

What do you do for a living?

MEGAN: I go to school full time at SDSU in pursuit of my B.A. in marketing. I also intern at a marketing/media agency, as well as working at three different nightlife venues in the Gaslamp District.

BRIAN: Own an internet marketing company.

Why are you going on a blind date in PACIFIC magazine?

MEGAN: I’m always down to meet new people, try new things and do spontaneous things. If this date goes well, fingers crossed, I would love for it to be something more. But we’ll see.

BRIAN: Recently single and thought it would be a fun way to meet someone new.

What do you do for fun?

MEGAN: I love going to the beach, going to the gym, hiking, hanging out with my friends and anything adventurous. I also love traveling - Thailand and Greece are the top two places on my bucket list right now.

BRIAN: Fly planes, snowboard, scuba dive, hang out with my friends, Starcraft and party.

What are you best at?

MEGAN: Socializing - I have no filter and no holds barred. I’ll talk to anyone and everyone about everything.

BRIAN: Beig honest.

What do you suck at?

MEGAN: Being quiet and sitting still. I always have so much on my mind and things I want to get done.

BRIAN: Trusting people and making new friends.

What are you looking for in a date, physically and/or otherwise?

MEGAN: I’m looking for a man that is tall, in shape, charming and successful. I love when a man is confident and treats me right and is down to try new things with me.

BRIAN: Prefer blonde hair and blue or green eyes with a good smile and cheekbone structure. Someone who won’t lie to me, tell me straight, not run off with my friends.

Describe your special brand of sex appeal in five words or less.

MEGAN: Tiny and flirty, but dirty.

BRIAN: Unique, captivating, caretaker, happy, people pleaser.

What do you like least about yourself?

MEGAN: Honestly, I accept and love myself for who I am, so there’s nothing I don’t particularly like about myself.

BRIAN: My ability to pick GFs, and (I) need to be outdoors more.

Rate yourself on a scale from one to 10 for looks.

MEGAN: I don’t want to come off the wrong way, so I’d rather not. Plus, I don’t think looks can be measured on a scale, because everyone is attractive in their own, unique way.

BRIAN: Seven-point-five.

How about for personality?

MEGAN: Despite my size, I have a huge personality. Some people love it, a few people don’t, so it’s really dependent on what you like in a personality.

BRIAN: Solid

What’s your biggest fear?

MEGAN: Getting kidnapped and murdered. I’m a tiny blonde girl - easy to get snatched up.

BRIAN: Spiders and being unsuccessful.

What traits could your date exhibit that would be deal-breakers?

MEGAN: If he is quiet and doesn’t know how to hold conversation well or is boring. I think conversing is a huge part of dating, so I wouldn’t want to be with someone I can’t hold a convo with easily.

BRIAN: Sloppy and unoriginal.

Fill in the blanks: I want my blind date to be “blank” and “blank.”

MEGAN: Fun and sexy.

BRIAN: Fun, attractive, outgoing girl that can keep my attention.

What’s the most important thing in the world?

MEGAN: Love. That’s corny, I know. But what good is the beauty in this world if you have no one to share it with?

BRIAN: Authenticity and loyalty.

When the limo arrives at SeaQuest Water Adventures, Megan and Brian jump out and walk to SeaQuest’s shuttle boat for the ride across the bay to the SeaBreacher, a shark-toothed mean machine that does wheelies (sans wheels), dives underwater and scares the squid ink out of even the most fearless landlubbers.

Whatever Rocks Your Boat

Satisfying a need for speed

As the shuttle boat pulls alongside the Seabreacher, Megan hops aboard and straps in for the first ride. Then the cockpit door closes, the jet engine roars, and the vessel rockets forward, bouncing across the surface of the water before diving under, and then jumping back into the air like a dolphin. Looks intense.

After about 10 minutes, the Seabreacher returns to the shuttle boat. Megan hops out, visibly excited and with a big smile. Brian goes next, leaping in and out of the water and making a big splash by the USS Midway.

After Brian’s ride, the couple returns to shore and change for dinner. Next, the limo takes the couple to Officine Buona Forchetta in Liberty Station. Inside the restaurant, they sit in a restored red Fiat for dinner. They appear to be getting along well as they talk and laugh over drinks. Once they’ve had a chance to enjoy their entrees (and, hopefully, each other’s company), they’re split for mid-date debriefings.

PACIFIC: How’s it going so far?

MEGAN: It’s going super good. I’m having a great time.

BRIAN: It’s been a blast.

What were your first impressions of your date?

MEGAN: He’s really nice, he’s sophisticated, he’s really easy to get along with. He’s fun.

BRIAN: Nice girl, well spoken. Wild, too, which is good.

Is this the type of person you’d normally date?

MEGAN: Yeah.

BRIAN: Very different than what I normally date - in a good way. Different is probably good, considering nothing I’ve done in the past has been successful.

What do you think of the way your date is dressed?

MEGAN: He’s dressed really nicely. He has a good sense of style.

BRIAN: Great. The dress is good. Both outfits.

How was your experience at Officine Buona Forchetta?

MEGAN: Amazing. Sitting in the car is so much fun. Their food’s so good. I got this lobster dish with gluten-free penne; it was amazing. And the service, they’re all, like, actually Italian, so they’re doing a great job. It’s authentic.
BRIAN: Food was great. Service was good. Kind people. [The atmosphere was] calm, quiet. It was really cool to sit in a car and eat. I’ve never had that experience before. I thought that was pretty creative from a restaurant’s perspective.

What did you have to eat and drink there?

MEGAN: I was drinking The Smoking Gun cocktail, which was super fun. The smoke came out of it when they open the glass. That was yummy. And then the food - we started off with the Caprese. It was bomb, super good. And then my lobster fish thing - blown away. It was so good.

BRIAN: Tequila, not traditional, but we both like tequila, so that worked out. I just had pasta and meatballs; she had a really great lobster dish, which I wish I had.

How was your experience on the Seabreacher?

MEGAN: That was amazing. It was like a Jet Ski experience, but everything you couldn’t do in a Jet Ski, because you got to go underwater. You got to see everything. The crew was amazing; they made it a blast. I would definitely do that again.

BRIAN: Absolutely amazing. I’ve done a lot of things in my life, and that was, honestly, probably one of the top 10 things I’ve ever done out of any of my travels or adventures.

What’s the most attractive thing your date has done so far?

MEGAN: He’s really good at conversating. He’s honest, open, non-judgmental. You can tell he’s a fun person.

BRIAN: Knowledge of life at a young age.

Rate your date on a scale from one to 10 for looks.

MEGAN: Like a nine.

BRIAN: Solid eight.

And for personality?

MEGAN: Like a 10.

BRIAN: Solid eight and a half.

What’s your date’s most attractive quality?

MEGAN: His height and his style. He has good height.

BRIAN: She’s tiny.

Do you want to kiss your date right now?

MEGAN: No, I’ve got to play hard-to-get. I’m trying to change my ways.

BRIAN: I don’t know. I’d be open to it, maybe.

Does your date want to kiss you?

MEGAN: Yes, probably.

BRIAN: I’m not sure.

How and when will the date end?

MEGAN: It will end well - probably in a couple hours. I have to go to a work function. But he invited me over for Game of Thrones, which is tempting, because Game of Thrones is life.

BRIAN: After dinner, I guess?

Anything you’d like to add?

MEGAN: I would definitely do it again. They did a really good job matchmaking us, also all the activities were super fun; and then it was super chill. Our driver was amazing.

BRIAN: It ended up being an excellent day. Really good date, well planned, well thought-out.

The Sweetest Thing

Visiting a dessert landscape

After dinner, Megan and Brian walk to Le Parfait Paris in Liberty Station for dessert. As their sweet nothings arrive at the table, the magazine crew finally leaves the couple to enjoy the rest of their evening away from the camera. The next morning, we call to see what we missed.

PACIFIC: How was your experience at Le Parfait Paris?

MEGAN: All the food was amazing. I don’t know how I kept eating, but all the desserts were really, really good.

BRIAN: I was so full from dinner, I really, sadly, didn’t have enough room for dessert. But cute place.

What did you eat and drink there?

MEGAN: I think we tried three different desserts: one was this strawberry macaroon that had this really good creamy inside filling that was vanilla. That was my favorite. It had strawberries on it, too. And another one was this chocolate mousse cake. It had little Hershey’s on top, and it even had one of those little gold leaves on it. And then there was a cheesecake as well. And I also had a honey lavender latte that was amazing.

BRIAN: Cheesecake, which was good (and) a little bit of coffee.

What did you do for the rest of the evening after the camera crew left?

MEGAN: Well, I had a work outing that I had to go to. And he had to go watch Game of Thrones, but I was invited.

BRIAN: Went home and watched Game of Thrones.

Was there a kiss or a romantic exchange?

MEGAN: We just gave each other a hug, but we’ll probably see each other around.

BRIAN: Nope, not at all.

What’s the funniest thing that happened during the date?

MEGAN: When we were taking a photo outside, the photographer was trying to take a photo of us, and this little kid just ran up and tried to get in our photo. So it looked like we had a kid. It was really cute.

BRIAN: Jumping in the air at SeaQuest was a ton of fun. We both had a lot of fun doing that.

What was the best part of the date?

MEGAN: I liked sitting in the car in the back of the restaurant. It was fun because we got to chit-chat and eat and drink.

BRIAN: The SeaQuest tour was absolutely amazing. It’s something I’ve wanted to do forever. I thought that was really above and beyond.

Will there be a second date?

MEGAN: I wouldn’t say a second date. Maybe hang out as friends? We have a lot in common, but I don’t know if I see anything romantic coming from this.

BRIAN: I wouldn’t say a date, but I would have no problem hanging out with her.

Aftermatch: If last night’s date taught us anything (it didn’t), it’s that an evening that begins with a couple jumping the shark (boat) ends with a kerplunk.

Brian said Megan’s most attractive quality is that “she’s tiny.” She said, “He has good height.” He wanted someone who wouldn’t “run off with my friends” and found, in Megan, something “very different than what I normally date - in a good way.” Were old wounds finally ready to heal? Plus, the “tiny and flirty, but dirty” Megan thought Brian was “really good at conversating.”

At the mid-date break, it was smooth sailing, not to mention hot times in the back of a car. Then, the 180: “I don’t know if I see anything romantic coming from this.” Megan said it, they both felt it, and date fans remain unsatisfied, yearning for more than a catch-and-release. Luckily, there are plenty o’ fish, and brave souls Megan and Brian are sure to find their way swimmingly.

[Publisher’s note - I’m getting this quote by Megan as a tattoo, or maybe epitaph: Despite my size, I have a huge personality. Some people love it, a few people don’t, so it’s really dependent on what you like in a personality.]

Thank you to (and promotional consideration provided by): Epic Limo, 858.270.LIMO (5466), epiclimo.com; SeaQuest Water Adventures, 844.669.3483, goseaquest.com; Officine Buona Forchetta, 619.548.5770, officinebuonaforchetta.com; Le Parfait Paris, 619.245.4457, leparfaitparis.com.