First Date With: Cecily Rodriguez

For this edition of First Date With, we link up with model, born-and-bred Chicagoan and good woman to know Cecily Rodriguez to chat bad first dates, her tiny seven-year-old yorkie and dirty emojis. Below, she reveals it all while revealing a little more for a ‘90s Calvin Klein-inspired shoot with Chicago-based photographer Marc Moran. Enjoy.

Instagram: @cecilymarie_

Hometown: Chicago

And now you live in: Ukrainian Village, Chicago

Best bar to meet someone in Chicago? My favorite places are small hole-in-the-wall dives. Low-pressure hangs with good times and good vibes. There are so many in my neighborhood. Rainbo Club. Happy Village. Love Big Star, too.

Do you like a guy who asks where you wanna go or just chooses? Someone who plans everything is great. I can jump into anything. Eat everything. Having a guy choose is way better than me trying to decide between 10 spots with a pros and cons list.

How do you like a guy to dress on a first date? I like a guy who has his own put-together style. It really doesn’t matter to me, as long as it’s distinctly them. No sweatpants. No gym shoes. Every guy should go to SuitSupply at least once. It’s a one-stop shop for guys: from shoes to suits to whatever.

One failsafe conversation topic you love? Three easy ones: TV, movies and music. My attention span tells me I prefer TV over movies. Shows like the Mindy Project or Broad City. As for music: I love all kinds, so hard to mess that up.

Any bands or artists that would be a dealbreaker for you? Not really. Boy bands? One Direction? Because no.

Tell us about the worst date someone’s ever taken you on … It was horrible. It was a day date, which normally I love. I love hanging out during the day — you get to know someone in a different way. Anyway, we went to lunch at Penny’s Noodle Shop in Lincoln Park, which was … fine, whatever [Ed. note: Penny’s? Really, guy? You can do better]. When we went to go pay the bill, he started flashing his Black Card — and he even made me hold it. [Ed. note: Paying with your Black Card at Penny’s? Really, guy?] I let it slide, but then we left and walked around the neighborhood and ended up at this music guitar shop that several of his friends worked at. I realized later he brought me there to show me off to his friends. I left right after that.

Yay or nay:

Onling dating? Personally, I don’t go that route. I just think it’s easier to meet people in real life. With online dating, you have to filter through so much crap. Such a waste of time.

Tinder, Bumble or OKCupid? I had made an account on Tinder and OkCupid for a friend who was getting over a breakup. OkCupid: Never, ever. Ever. It is scary. Tinder: It was … okay. From what I’ve heard, I’d probably go with Bumble. No more dick pics!

Netflix and chill — that a date? No one wants to have sex for the first time “Netflix and chilling.” You have to know each other well. I’d say 5th date.

Guys who have more shoes than you? I’d be okay with that. Love a guy who has a sense of style.

Guy who Instagrams his food? No. Why?

Call or text? Phone call. More personal.

Emojis? Oh! I do love cute texts throughout the day, though. Especially with emojis. You can do so much. Dirty emojis work, too. [Insert eggplant emoji here.]

Walk us through a perfect date in Chicago … Okay, this one was a day-to-night date. He picked me up and we got coffee at Metropolis on the North Side. After that, we went on a whole day of small adventures to parts of Chicago I’ve never been to. We went to Broadway Antique Market. Window-shopping in Andersonville. I loved Brimfield. Then we went to Barrelhouse Flat for a cocktail. Then ended at a cozy wine bar. My date was a bit of a Chicago history buff, too, so throughout the entire date he was telling me all these historical facts about the city. Events that took place in different neighborhoods. I learned so much and had a lot of fun.

Photography: Marc Moran
Makeup: Marla Del Angel