I agree with Alison N. for the amount of money it's not worth it. Worse Service Ever!!! If your are thinking about it, don't do it. If you are already fooled cancel it'll save you a headache in the long run. The explanation of the terms and what it actually say on their contract are not even close. "On hold" only means that you still pay them for the service that you do not receive, even at the initial term. You might as well go out on the street and throw money in the air. Afterall, the most dates you'll get is 2 per month even though they say they have "100's" available for you. Don't do it! there are better ways to meet people for the same or less money. read more

I cannot express clearly enough my disappointment with this service. The matchmaker sells a beautiful picture of all the wonderful potential matches in the area and then encourages you to sign a contract immediately (during the conversation!). Of course, once the actual matching begins, the matchmaker ignores pretty basic criteria supplied in the application process (education level, height, religious preferences). Of course, when complaining about the "mis-matching" going on here, it is impossible to get a hold of the matchmaker and all her subordinates simply deflect in their communication. Based on other reviews here, it really does seem that this business is built to sell a product, even though they often cannot deliver the product they promise. A seriously disappointing serious investment. Take caution before you sign up! read more

Horrible. There are all over the place, and don't try to match at all. I was given men shorter than me, that they use for almost al their dates of color, not specifically for you. read more

Either I am a complete idiot or they are excellent sales people, because boy did I get duped. Their sales pitch makes you feel like they are actually "matchmakers" - getting to know you as a person, who would be a good match for you, and they search through their clientele to try to match you up with the perfect guy for you. They are not. And stupid me fell for their sales pitch. You know, they actually sent a woman into the room to interview me who said she used to be an FBI profiler, and after a short conversation, she sat there and said she knew just the type of guy I would be looking for based on my personality. Based on who they've tried to send me on a date with, I can honestly say they are just finding any guy who is in my age range, and who isn't fat. All right, granted they probably have much fewer men than women in their clientele. But regardless, since my agreement with them was they would send me on at least 6 dates in a 6 month period, well, they HAVE to send me dates. What really irks me, is that they actually argued with me on the phone when they tried to set me up with a "separated" guy. I said, "separated actually means the guy is not divorced, which means he is still married." The IJL woman said, no he's LEGALLY separated. I said, doesn't matter - he's still married. The IJL woman argued that it does matter because he is legally separated, and that the guy says he is completely ready to date and is absolutely getting a divorce. LOL!!! I was like, I'm not arguing about this. Don't set me up with married men! I don't need to pay someone to set me up with married men! They set me up with a guy who had been divorced for a month, and all he did was talk about his ex-wife on our "date." Plus he was needy (he said he really needs someone to come home to). Come ON, IJL!! In my interviews with IJL, one of the things I stressed was how I'm very independent, so why the hell would they set me up with a NEEDY guy who is not over his ex-wife? The answer: they are not really provide a matchmaking service; they are not really looking for the "right" person to match you up with. They are just setting up dates based on superficial factors, and they are collecting high fees from clients for this. They set me up with a guy who was really unattractive, boring, talked only about himself, showed no interest at all in me when I tried talking, and he certainly didn't have manners when we were exiting the restaurant. And the IJL woman argued with me that -- SHE thought he was attractive, she thought he was interesting, and he was a gentleman. She wanted to know specifically what about his features made him unattractive to me. Are you kidding me? He was just unattractive! She wanted specifics about why I said he wasn't a gentleman, so they could help him on his next date. Well, I'm not doing that anymore. It isn't my job to be a date coach for IJL, it isn't my job to give them intel on the men they send on dates. (Which, I'm sure they told that one guy who kept talking about his ex-wife to stop doing that). She asked me, why wouldn't I want to help him. Why should I give a sh#t about him? I'm not interested in him and I'm not interested in helping IJL coach their clients. During this phone call with IJL, she kept interrupting me to the point I was yelling at her to stop interrupting me and let me finish a sentence. Then I would start to let her know what I thought about the situation, and halfway through the sentence she interrupted me again! So again I yelled to stop interrupting me so I can finish my sentence. Here is the bottomline: It's a lot of money and cannot get any of your money back period. Doesn't matter if they keep sending you on dates with individuals who are not in the least compatible with you, doesn't matter if they lied to you in the beginning just to get your money, doesn't matter if they start setting up deliberately with individuals who they know won't work for you, just to get through their minimum number of dates obligation. They hold all the cards because there is no way of getting a cent back from them. I am a completely idiot for falling for a scam like this. I am hoping my review will help someone else out. Do NOT fall for their sales pitch - please. They are really, really good at scamming you. Added info: Do a google search on Its Just Lunch class action lawsuit and you'll find a big one in CA in 2016- complaints were everything I've said- they match to meet quotas and revenue goals, not based on stated preferences or personalities of "members." read more

If you're thinking of contacting them "just to ask a few questions," well don't. They will not stop bugging you with calls and messages (often without proper professional introduction) to tell you more about their services...6....years....later. Business must not be booming and I understand why. Look at these reviews before you call. read more

This is a terrible company that provides terrible service. The dates that do actually show up will reflect zero of what you told them that you are looking for and will be based strictly on them meeting the dating numbers. It's been such a terrible experience that they have even sent me out on FOUR dates where no one has showed up. I even called day of to confirm that the date was set and still no one showed up. All they say is "Oops". As a person whom works in a client facing industry, I can not imagine messing up and then just saying to a client "So sorry" and doing nothing to rectify the situation. All you will be to them is money. As soon as they have yours, they will basically set you up with whoever in their database is free and not care at all whether you might be compatible. I wish there are way to warn more people off of using them but I have definitely warned every single person I know and am hoping that people will read the reviews before signing up. I wish that I had!!!!!! THIS COMPANY IS TERRIBLE!!!!! read more

One of the things I like about IJL is that it caters to professionals. It's not a free service, which means anyone joining it pretty much has to be responsible enough to hold down a job. This immediately eliminates a whole swath of the dating population you don't want to waste your time with. I found the coordinators to be unfailingly pleasant, professional, and true to their word every step of the way. They did an excellent job of returning phone calls, and answering any question I had. Every now and again, they'd set me up on a date with an obnoxious person who had unreasonable expectations for their ideal "mate." But I never blamed IJL for this. If anything, it made me cognizant of how difficult a job they really have...especially when trying to cater to people who think they belong on Beverly Hills 90210. Overall, I found the service to be worthwhile, and a positive experience. I also found it exactly as advertised. If you keep an open mind, are respectful of others, and remember there are always "other fish in the sea."--so you don't take it personally when some dates turn out to be total duds--you should have a great time. Dating never was, and never will be, an exact science. Even if you don't meet anyone that's "perfect" the area is full of interesting people who do lots of interesting things. IJL is a great way to meet some of them without the baggage that goes along with the other dating services. read more

Our little boy is fifteen months old now. We wrestle on the living room floor. It's Just Lunch introduced me to my future wife, and this is where we ended up. Sometimes things just work out. Update. Now we have two more children and a house with a yard -- like a fairy tale. read more

I never used this service, but somehow maybe 7 years ago they got my contact information and ever since then they WILL NOT stop contacting me no matter what I do. This has been going on for almost 7 years. It will stop for a few months and then start back up again. If you do not call them back, you think they would get the point you are not interested? I block the numbers that they call me on and they use other numbers. I block the emails, they use other emails. They leave messages sounding like a friend "Hi it's so and so I have a great opportunity for you." I have asked to be removed so many times I cannot count. I am engaged to be married, I have zero interest in dating, but yet they will not leave me alone. Do not give these people your contact information, whatever you do. You will never be able to get away from them. read more

1/10/2018 I started the process.....interview, another interview, then we scheduled a face time interview. Well, I have been STOOD UP by It's Just Lunch. After dressing appropriately and re-doing my make-up and waiting 35 minutes for a no-show (call), I'm done. This was totally unprofessional and a waste of my time. Like the saying goes, "I thought you were different!" read more

I don't recommend this dating company. The customer service can not be reached unless they contact you. Every person I've matched with was NOT what I was looking for. They make you think this is the best company for compatibility but none of the people I've talked to find my interest. I don't write reviews but this one is worth writing. If I could do no stars I would. This company just takes your money. At this point I could do this myself and go out and meet people. read more

I only gave one star because I had to. Otherwise I would have given a negative rating. It was a complete waste of money. Don't waste your time or your money. First of all, they ask to meet you in person before they start setting you up. And for the price you pay, you'd think they'd meet you somewhere convenient to you. But no, they made me drive all the way into the city during rush hour. It took me over an hour to get there. Next, you'd think that after meeting me and asking me all the questions they asked they would have matched me with men that were at least somewhat near what I said I was looking for. But I think they were just setting me up with whatever men they had available. No thought given to compatibility. Finally, they had the NERVE to try to upsell me. For a low additional $10 or $15 k you can get added to the elite service which allows them to match you with "BETTER" matches and share your pic with them. Really?! I thought that is what they were SUPPOSED to do anyway!! DON'T WASTE YOUR MONEY read more

AVOID OR YOU WILL PAY DEARLY !! Trapped on airplane and fell for their slick add. Assumed, falsely, that for a couple thousand dollars there would be some good options. They pressure you into meetings to fulfill their obligation of providing the 3 or 4 meetings they commit to. All the while claiming there will be many others to choose from, just use the initial ones as a guide and to feel more comfortable. WRONG, there were no more decent options after that. Tried to get money back but that was refused and they challenged my credit card company to stop me being credited back. read more

A Complete Waste of Time and Money I signed up for this program with high hopes. The sales person I spoke with was so nice, engaging and seemed vested in helping me find love. I was told of several guys who sounded wonderful during the intake call but when it came to actual dating, these guys were never presented to me. It was a classic case of overselling and under delivering. The representatives for this company troll review sites and counter reviews because they need to keep the income flowing so beware what you read from them. Pros: You will meet people through this service. They will have a background check and they will be professional. You will have contact and follow up with IJL through the process and they will act as if they are listening to you. Cons: The men I met were all on the program for quite some time. They all told me that they were dating several times a week while I was getting maybe a call every few weeks. Clearly they have more women than men. Some of the men told me they were asked to rejoin the program and to write positive reviews. The IJL representative denied this was true but when more than one person tells you the same thing you know it is true. There was never a match for me and in fact these were people I would have never dated had I met them on my own. Yes they check a few boxes of similar interests for me but all were just so different from me at the most basic levels. No one can predict chemistry and this isn't about chemistry it is about basic compatibility. With all the dates I could tell within the first 15 minutes that it wasn't going to work but I hung in there through the date hoping something would change my mind but it never did. Getting a thumbnail sketch of someone through a bio isn't representative of who you will be meeting. What they offer is no more than a box checking service. There is no true effort in making matches. When I complained to them they took the posture that I was unreasonable and refused to entertain any type of refund. If I spend thousands of dollars on a matchmaking service, you better exceed my expectations and not ask me to lower them which is what I felt happened when I complained. I took my complaints up the chain only to be condescended to, which I later received an apology email for. More than losing a lot of money with no ROI, I wasted a considerable amount of time. Time to me is just as valuable as money and the combination of wasting time and money left me feeling very bitter. I would not recommend this service to anyone - ever. In fact, I have had several people who knew I did this ask me and I have told them to steer clear. It is not worth the money you pay and it not worth the effort. Beware of the customer blaming responses to negative reviews. Beware the slick sales spiel and "friendly" facade of the people who work there. They have everything to gain from you dumping your money on this service and you have everything to lose. The slicker they sell the harder you fall. My perspective is that this is a predatory service that preys on professionals with money and limited time under the pretense of "helping" them find love. Pay attention to the negative reviews - there are lots of them. Research the lawsuits filed against them. Before you fall for the sales pitch get your facts together. I chose to ignore the negative reviews and believe the sales person from IJL so I own that. I am grateful I have stopped several others from making this same mistake and hope this review reaches others before they invest time and money. read more

This has been the worst experience I have had in the dating game. The Washington DC team has no required for the clients after they take your money. I have only spoken to my matchmaker Kim maybe three times, and have requested several calls to discuss the matches with no response. Only to be told this is the process to have you wait over three to five weeks for a new match, but in the meantime, not even finding out what could help improve the next selection. My concerns have been dismissed and never addressed; I have been stood up twice with no explanation or regard for my wasted time. If you felt I was a waste of your time or unable to match me as a client, you should provide that information up front. It would have allowed me to take my business to a trustworthy company that wanted to assist me and look out for my best interest. Please know that everyone deserves respect and if you have no intent to give it to your clients spending their hard earn money for service, maybe you should try a new line of work. I have learned one thing from this process: no one deserves to waste their time or money on this company. read more

The worst dating service ever. Never set me up with anyone who would suit me. And you can't cancel the service and they will hunt you for money. Don't buy into this service. Match or Harmony is much better. They need to go to hell. read more

After my initial negative review, Sandra contacted me and we discussed my feedback in more detail. She agreed to give me a couple months of a break without the fee and I just started back up this month with dates. My new matchmaker, Patty, has been more much available by phone -- she actually picks up most of the time! Already a good change. Sandra suggested I contact her directly with issues in the future, and I said I would. I'll update again if there is more to share as I continue with this service. read more

I had tried It's Just Lunch about three years ago. Every once in a while they give me a call because they "have been thinking about me." Tabitha called again last week. They are not calling because they have a client who may be a perfect match. No, they are following up to see if you are still in the market for their services. I laugh to myself because I know they are just going through their former client list making calls. As it was explained to me at the time; meetings are for drinks- not lunch or dinner, meetings are suppose to be dutch, if at the conclusion of the meeting you are interested in meeting the person again you are to exchange business cards. Not everyone I met was given the same set of instructions. Oddly everyone I was matched with was described with the same set of attributes, mostly because everyone fills out the same form. No photos are exchanged, though they take your photo when you join. You have to go off of a description read to you over the phone and decide if you want to meet the person. After a while everyone sounded the same. The more socially adjusted women I met agreed that the service was not worth renewing. Guys were assigned coordinators they would work with on deciding on a match and setting up a meeting. Girls had to deal with all the coordinators, so they were basically starting from square one with someone calling about a match and scheduling meetings. After the meeting IJL calls to ask how it went. My feedback did little to influence the matchmaking. I got the distinct impression they were setting me up with every new female client they had. They wanted to set me up 4-5 times a week. I felt like I was being used to meet quota. I had a nice coordinator who did her best, but overall the service just didn't function for me. read more

This service is a COMPLETE waste of time and money. I am an oral surgeon. Most men would consider me to be fit, attractive and social. I am totally open minded about who I date. I have used this service in New York before too. DC seems to breed complacency as a franchise. There is an 1800.00 sign up fee and they never call you unless you call them to inquire why they haven't set you up in a while. Most of the guys they set up are not at all how they describe (for me education was important and few matched me ). Oh wait and that's if they actually show up! 4 out of my 6 people over 5 months did not show, or cancelled after I got ready, and there is nobody on call after hours to handle this. I could be working out, going to work events, or relaxing. I mean the service is supposed to target BUSY PROFESSIONALS. Oh and also unlike New York they provide no "hold period " during which they allow you to freeze your membership so that you can explore a relationship in which you may want to put your honest and full energy! No wonder people don't show for dates ! And it shows your greediness as a franchise. You don't care to encourage relationships .. The meter is still running! After all of this when I called to cancel no one was even upset ! Lucy left a calm cool message about how to cancel, no apology, no discussion . I have lots of single friends and I will surely state that tinder and hinge have landed me many more dates than this. and please don't bother responding to this and insulting my intelligence. Your own director of operations doesn't care to call people like me back. read more

I definitely think not - I had a 6-month contract with them back in late 2007, paid $900 + $200 in "filing fees" or something of that ilk. They definitely didn't listen to my criteria for most of the dates. One of them stood me up twice, and I had to push very hard to get a $150 refund. And guess what I just received in the mail: A proposed class action lawsuit for those who did not obtain a refund of their membership! The lawsuit focuses especially on clients in New York who paid more than $1,000 for a year's worth of services. Don't know if I qualify (as I'm not a NY resident -- I'm still reading about the non-NY criteria), but find it interesting that enough people have been ticked at the organization to file a lawsuit. As you can tell from the other responses, don't touch these guys. Go with match.com, okcupid, ourtime.com and the others, and just use common sense. read more

My over all experience was ok. But they did match me with some guys that were way outside of my preferred profile. Anyways, it was sold to me as a global organization. Now that I am moving from DC area to NYC, I am being told that my membership cannot be transferred to the NYC IJL because they are out side of a franchise or something. Then why do they say that they are a world wide organization. I was able to transfer my gym membership from DC to NYC, I was under the impression, since there is so much money charged upfront then a fee of $79 each month, that the membership would at least be transferred especially if one can provide documentation stating that our work location has moved to NYC. This is very strange. read more

DON'T DO IT!!! I had several people recommend it to me based off of their experiences in other cities. I was very impressed with the initial phone call and orientation. But my dates have been HORRIBLE! I've even had two additional meetings and multiple conversations with them about how I feel like I'm part of a scam. So not at all worth it. I have 2 more months on my membership and I think I'll quit early because I'd rather do anything than suffer through the terrible dates I've been on. A BIG OLE WASTE OF TIME AND MONEY!!!! read more

I signed up for It's Just Lunch because I am looking for a partner who is ready for a serious relationship and knows what he wants. I thought a matchmaking service would be perfect for finding men like that and it can be difficult to find men who want something serious on the dating apps. However, I was so disappointed and upset with It's Just Lunch. In about 2 months they did set me up on multiple dates, but only with men who did not fit what I was looking for at all. Namely, the men they chose lived too far away for a feasible relationship and were of a different religion, when I had expressed I was looking for someone of my same religion. After each date when I gave feedback I continued to repeat myself but kept being set up with men who didn't have anything I was looking for and my "matchmaker" knew that. My "matchmaker" was also right out of college and handled our interactions immaturely. During this time I was also on the dating apps and had much better luck meeting men I was interested in pursuing a relationship with. It's Just Lunch is VERY expensive but in no way is it worth the cost. I do not believe they actually care about finding good matches for people they only care about money. Please, save your money and energy! read more

This was the biggest waste of money. Ever. I have also had two friends sign up and they had a similar experience. It has become a joke with us. They interview you and then don't pay attention to anything you say. They are highly unorganized. The dating pool is sub-par. And you pay a premium for all of this. Save your money. read more

I got taken to the cleaners by these people. I've never written a bad review but they are crooks and refuse to give me any money back!!

This service is a complete waste of money and your time! Forget money, if you are a busy professional like me , the waste of time is even worse ! I wish I had listened to others advice ! They set you up on 1 date a month , if your lucky! And I get the concept of quality vs quantity but that one date they set you up with is in no way not a match ! The guys get one date a week but the women only one a month ! They put zero effort in actual match making ! Here is an example: They set me up with someone who is an avid Christian and had repeatedly asked them he wants to date Christian women only! Not only did they not listen to him , they didn't listen to me either, when I said I am agnostic and don't want to date anyone who is too serious about any one religion! I could go on and on but really all were a similitude story! And of course they always have some excuse ! Save your money and do sth else ! And oh good luck getting anything in email from them , they do all by phone except the contract , so there is no paper track and they can't get sued! read more

I will give one star only because you can't select 0!!! Definitely a scam, as they charge a lot of money for nothing! Before you join, they call you very often, they tell you what you want to hear, promising at least a date a week! Well, in 6 months I had 7-8 dates, and only one man was somewhat close to what I was looking for! You are better off finding a cruise for singles for the price! read more

I used this service a few years ago and was unimpressed. I was 50 years old and the first thing the young, perky creature I talked to said was something like "Men don't ask for women who are 50 or older." But she relented and set me up on six dates. The first told me that aliens walked the planet and proceeded to explain why. I barely remember the others. My perky creature also said to not be surprised if the men don't pay but I must have been somewhat acceptable because they all did. A good example of why you don't always get what you pay for. read more

Its Just Lunch also know as IJL should be called "ITS JUST LIES" Erica the salesperson/recruiter lied from the beginning. She stated she had the a good male match. After months of membership, I still haven't met that person. They will pair with men who outside of your age range (12 years older) and men out of height range ( 5 inches shorter). After complaining about the poor matches, they continue to make poor matches. 1) They have no matchmakers of diverse background. They have delusional perspective of attraction or matching. 2) They do NOT look at anyone drivers license. BEWARE. The men lie about the height and age. It should be crime, then should not be in business 3) All they care about is credit cards and money. read more

This is a terrible service, and DO NOT WASTE YOUR MONEY!!! My experience with IJL has been unconscionably poor!! Sandra, the Matchmaker, told many things that would occur once I joined--highly personalized and attentive service, blah, blah, blah. She told me I would hear the next day about my new date. Of course, this never happened. I had multiple questions, attempted to call multiple times--calling Stephanie the coordinator, and Sandra, and did not hear from them until 4 calendar days later. The date was set up via an exchange of voicemails--no human to human communication occurred. The coordinator was stupid enough to set up a date in DC, when both of us lived in Maryland--it never once occurred to her to ask, and set something up that was convenient. Ok, so the first date happens. Its fine. He's a total bore. I had already scheduled my Meet and Greet for a few days later. I have questions post the date, because they misrepresented me to him, and misrepresented him to me. They got both of our information wrong--and I wanted to know what they had told him about me. Of course, I go through the exercise of calling--no humans ever, left multiple voicemails to the coordinator Stephanie, to the Matchmaker Sandra, no response. Come to the Meet and Greet. Done by Krista, the President. A worthless session, where she asked meaningless and irrelevant questions, did not seem to understand my answers, never created any rapport with me, and the session appeared to be very rushed. Two days after this Meet and Greet, I called Patty, the COO, requesting to cancel my service and get my $$ refunded. I spoke to her directly on the phone, told her that I had been a member for LESS THAN ONE FULL WEEK, and wanted out of the program. She said she would talk to Krista, and call me back the next day. Next day, no response. In fact, nothing for one full week. I then received a generic note in the mail from Patty stating that she had put my membership on "hold" indefinitely, and never responded to my request for cancellation. I then immediately left messages for Patty and Krista. Krista sent me a letter stating that "the contract says its not-refundable"!!!! I HAD BEEN A MEMBER FOR ONLY THREE DAYS! I thought the service was atrocious, anything but attentive and personal, and was completely disgusted with the product these people had sold me. It seemed reasonable to me that any company with a modicum of service ethic would refund my $$. I have nothing nice to say about them. Why would they want to keep me as a member? They don't!!!! ALL THEY WANT IS TO STEAL MY MONEY!! This organization is a scam and the DC office has terrible people in it. DON'T DO THIS! read more

I would give it 3.5 stars... I have been doing It's Just Lunch for about 5 months. I like it because I am busy and all I have to do is show up and meet the guy and see if it works. Very low maintenance for what I need to do to make it work. And you know that these guys are looking for a relationship. I have met a lot of nice guys. A few that I have gone out with more than once. . . no one has clicked quite yet. I have only gone out with 1 painful person who was hard to talk to...and I can talk to anyone. At different points I have wondered about the availability of guys for me to go out with as there was a period where they didn't seem to have anyone for me. But as of late they seem to have more people to see. But the one question I have is...how many guys are really using their service. I have heard from guys I have gone out with that they are sometimes pressured to go out with people outside of their preference. I don't think any girls what to go out with anyone who has to be convinced. I have also wondered what difference the feedback makes in the matchmaking aspect of the process. I am still not sure. Overall, this service is an investment. It is not cheap. It is a question of whether you want to do the vetting yourself online...or do you want to pay someone else to do it. It is low pressure when you meet guys. If you don't like them, don't go out again and they don't need to know your info. I think that it is worth my time not to think about it...I do not miss the searching on online services...free or paid. read more

What a colossal waste of money. I ended my membership months ago and they still charge me membership dues. The initial cost for young professional is over $1,000, and after six months they charge an ADDITIONAL $75 a month. That does not include the cost of meeting people for lunch or drinks. As for the service itself, they repeatedly ignored my basic preferences and encouraged me to go out with guys who did not fit my parameters. A couple of the guys exhibited traits that I specifically asked to avoid. In addition to the parade of guys that I had no interest in, the service often sent me to out of the way locations and in two cases, to restaurants that were closed down. Save your money - suffer through Okcupd or Plenty of Fish. read more

Is it possible to give 4.5 stars? It's been a long time coming and I have a lot of stories to tell but I'll just say this...I am proof that if you just keep trying a have faith, the love gods will send you what you are asking for. I guess my review should be about the service. I just am not quite used to talking about my love life as though it were a restaurant, LOL! Let's see... The staff at It's Just Lunch are very attentive. I have called them to complain after a bad date and they always listen with open ears. Not everyone was a winner, but Patti was always great when it came to everything for describing the men to listening to my feedback. You have to be honest and direct about what you are looking for and who you did and did not like. Heather was really great too. She did a good job of reminding me that you are not really supposed to have chemistry with each and every one of your dates. I guess that's the point. It took me a while to figure that out. Yes this is an investment, but I can't think of anything more important to invest in. I am one of those people who does not take lunch and I work very late hours. I knew I had to get proactive about my love life because online dating is just not for me, and to be honest, my career dictates that I do not have the time to put into my personal life. That's probably why I was single...until now ;) It's difficult in a city like DC. I am sure other people feel that same way. It was kind of nice that IJL provided a sort of personal secretary to tell me where to go and then just show up. There were times that I did have to cancel but they do have a system that makes dating a little easier. I can share my story but I think it would suffice to say that I have been dating someone that they introduced me to for 4 months now. We are really in the same place in our lives and were ready to meet, I just did not know how it would happen. We are taking our first trip together next month and I have to say, I have never been happier. Thank you Heather and thank you Patti. You have made this single mom very, very happy! read more

This service is a not worth anything. I did not need to pay $4400+ to meet a bunch of women who did NOT meet the criteria I specified. I specifically said when I signed up that I only wanted thin women. I repeated it after the third date who was well over 200 lbs. They said they would change based on my feedback, but about 85% of the dates were much fatter than I am. I made the same complaint several months in after I got another women over 300 lbs. I indicated I was close to agnostic / atheist but got several women who wanted regular church goers. I got a lot of dates, but with women who seemed just as dissatisfied as I was. I did go on several dates with some of them because they were interesting as people, the vast majority were obviously a "no" after 30 minutes. They promised to give was advise / feedback, but it was completely and utterly useless. Virtually every review was the same. They rely on your date to give feedback, and either they never do, or the feed back is "sanitized" - I never got any negative feedback at all. [This review is of the Washington DC branch, but I would not expect any different results in any city] read more

I would say that roughly 90% of the good reviews for It's Just Lunch are lies. As a doctoral student and teacher, I was told repeatedly that I would do well with this company. I paid $3000, while I received poor matches. If you value your time and money, do not sign on with this criminal organization. Please note that they've already been sued and lost in court. If you have $3000 to waste, I'd highly recommend this company. read more

After a year on match.com and eharmony.com I decided to give ijl a try. The idea of a professional matchmaker's assistance and the thought that perhaps there were better quality women made the $2,400 6 month membership fee palatable. The sales pressure was the first indicator that might be less than a truly professional business with my best interest in mind. After many calls the lead matchmaker in NYC finally got hold of me and I "interviewed" for over an hour after which time she deemed me acceptable and would extend an offer of membership to me. While on the phone the contract was emailed to me and told to sign and provide a credit card for the fee. Mixed with "you will be very popular" and "I have two woman that you need to meet right away". Three weeks later I went on my first date. An hour's drive away to meet someone who all I knew about was their first name. I had expected a call from the ijl coordinator to learn more but that call never came. I arrived 10 mins early and waited. And waited. And waited. After 30 minutes I left. An hour's drive back home and I just wasted a beautiful Sunday afternoon. Fortunately they do offer a 100% money back guarantee if you cancel within 48 hours of your first date. We will see how that works out. This is NOT a professional matchmaking service. It is no better than match.com or eharmony. Save your money. read more

I was very unhappy with my experience. I read an article about IJL and thought it was promising because I was a busy working professional in my mid twenties and wanted to find a healthy long-term relationship. What happened instead was I spent a lot of money and I was set up with several people who did not really match what I was looking for. I gave feedback to them everytime, but still did not find someone I wanted to have more than a couple dates with. Maybe this is a better service for people in their 30's or was just my bad luck, I don't know. I did find a relationship outside of IJL and I am very happy in it. When that started, I told them I did not want to use their services anymore and wrote off the loss of the 6 month membership I wouldn't use. Then, after four months of no contact after that, they proceeded to charge me monthly dues. I am out over $500 more than the membership itself cost me and they didn't even end up finding me someone I wanted to see more than a few times. I thought they would correct the situation by reimbursing me, but of course it was in the fine print so all I got was a scripted reply. I understand others had better experiences, but wanted to also share mine and hope others read their contracts carefully before they get charged for services they don't want- because you will NOT get it back. read more

I participated in It's Just Lunch and have been very happy with the service provided. Originally, I thought that it was quite a bit of money to spend. I like coupons, after all! If I were to be honest though, thinking about getting a trained match maker, dating consultant who coordinates dates and actively listens to feedback, coaching (when you opt in), and exposure to quality people you would not meet, and experiences you would not have had otherwise, one could argue all of those things would cost more than what you pay for. My match maker Sandra, dating consultants, and coach Jolene have always been very responsive to me and I feel my matches are reflective of my feedback. I'm a big proponent of taking a risk and making an investment in myself, and I'm very happy I did. I've had one really great relationship from It's Just Lunch and even though it didn't last, it resulted in memories I will have for a lifetime. That person was amazing, and experiencing that joy really gives me something to hope for in the person I do end up with. In addition, I really grew personally from receiving the coaching from Sandra and Jolene. I read the books recommended and actively listened to the advice given. I'm honestly a different, more well- rounded, confident person compared to when I first joined. As with anything the experience is what you make of it. There are always matches who are not quite the perfect fit, but as they say it only takes one and you can always learn from someone even if they aren't the right one; don't let perfection get in the way of the good they say! My advice is to be honest with your feedback, and really let them get to know you. With all subjects there is a learning curve, and the more you give honest feedback the more they will understand you. The only reason I didn't give the service five stars is that the main goal is to be matched with the one. So I feel it's only fair to give five stars for when I get married/find the one :). I'm very hopeful given that I have a great team supporting me in that goal! read more

I found their matchmaking skills to be random and based on who was taking their calls that day. I was matched with a guy who was more interested in the car I drove than me, another who hates dogs - I have two - and my favorite, the guy who cheated his company and enjoyed telling me about it. A few were nice, but not a good match. As indicated by a previous reviewer, it never gets better even when you spend the time to tell them what didn't go well. And what's worse is it's been 6 months since I canceled my membership and they are still charging me. They have violated the terms of the agreement and don't seem to have any desire to get it right. This is not an organization that is trustworthy or deserving of anyone's business. read more

As many of us single folk know, it can be really tough to date in DC. Thanks to IJL, my dating life has been vibrant, fun and... successful! I'd highly recommend it. A bit on me: I'm 32, happy, pretty, fit, went to grad school, successful... I'm not the hottest thing ever, but I am lucky enough to get picked up at coffee shops from time to time. I don't have all that much experience dating because when I've been single I've usually met someone special pretty quickly. But after a recent relationship ended, I started to date again... only to realize that everyone I know is married. I mean EVERYONE. It seemed like there were no men left! So I put the word out to friends: "Set me up!," I signed up for every online dating service out there (Match, e-Harmony, OkCupid), and I mustered troops of friends to fly wing-women for me at trendy bars around town. I met people! Just not the right people... I got discouraged and frustrated. Over time my dating life grounded to a halt. My 98-year-old grandmother even noticed -- "I think you need to put yourself out there with the gentleman, honey" - Oh geez! My grandmother told me to get a little slutty!?! So when a friend of mine mentioned that a friend of hers had been dating a lot through IJL and loving it, I was interested. IJL is a big investment and there's no promise of success. For me, though, what I needed -- what I was willing to pay for -- were qualified introductions. I wanted to meet single men who were interested in dating. I've gotten that in spades and not only that -- the men I've met are interesting, hot, and fun! Here's how it works: - You get on the phone with them and spill your guts. It's a formal, guided conversation. Everything from basic demographics to more in-depth/personal stuff. Enough for them to introduce you to great people for you. - They set you up. You go on a couple dates. - After every date you call and deliver feedback on the date. They use the feedback! When something's great, you tell them and they give you more. When it's not great, you tell them and they adjust. My scheduler, Patti, is particularly fantastic at listening to what I'm saying and setting me up with great guys. - Early on you meet them in person. They get to see you and make sure they know what they're working with, you get to give them feedback about how you're being introduced etc., - You keep getting introduced, providing feedback, etc. Pretty soon your calendar is full! After only a couple months, I've met tons of great people. I absolutely have my mojo back! Because I'm in the practice of dating, I've been meeting people all over the place and getting more real dates with great guys even outside of the service. Right now I'm dating three different guys -- all total catches -- two that I met through IJL. We'll see where things go! For me IJL has been a fantastic investment. I'm meeting great men, having tons of fun dating in DC, and have become sooooo much better at meeting men in general. I'd absolutely recommend the service! read more