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San Francisco entrepreneur "dazzled" by date at Tokyo's Noma

Entrepreneur Stephanie Robesky and her date are in Japan, after a once-in-a-lifetime, pop-up meal prepared by the world's most exclusive restaurant, Noma at Mandarin Oriental, Tokyo
San Francisco woman takes date to dinner in Tokyo 04:21

Earlier in January, a San Francisco entrepreneur was looking online for a guy to join her for dinner in Japan. More than 500 eligible bachelors applied and now Stephanie Robesky and her date are in Japan after a once-in-a-lifetime meal at Noma at Mandarin Oriental, Tokyo, the world's most exclusive restaurant. What started as a whim, turned into a worldwide adventure to find food, fun and possibly romance, reports CBS News correspondent David Begnaud.

Robesky toasted her 39th birthday on Wednesday in Tokyo. The intrepid foodie with a blog called "Nerd Girl" has traveled the world in search of unusual treats. But she wanted a companion for this special occasion.

Two weeks ago in San Francisco, Robesky was narrowing down hundreds of potential dinner dates to one lucky guy. She was willing to pay for the meal, around $550 per person, but wanted the date to pay for his flights and a separate room. She met the final four for coffee, but one stood out.

"We got pretty deep in conversation and it wasn't superficial and it was just really nice," Robesky said.

Robesky shared his picture, but the bachelor prefers his privacy, so no cameras on the date. She did reveal she sent him a surprise package before flying to the Far East. A friend secretly left it on his doorstep.

On the ground in Tokyo, her mystery man left a surprise for her. Then it was on to the big meal.

"It was unbelievable. It's not the taste of the food, it's the experience of the food, and look at it, and smelling it," Robesky said.

Noma's chef Rene Redzepi is famous for serving up exotic plates.

"The one thing that I got a kick out of was when they brought the duck out and they served it and it was a full duck with its head," Robesky said. "The instructions were that it was really great to just pick it up and suck the brains. It was good."

And the atmosphere was romantic.

"I felt like I was going to the prom. I was joking with the date that I felt like I should go get him a boutonniere," she said. "At sometimes I was thinking my companion was out-shining the food. I was dazzled by everything."

Like a perfect food and wine pairing, Robesky found a man who shares her love of adventure. Now she's planning to introduce some of the bachelors who didn't suit her taste to her single friends.

"All of my single girlfriends have been hitting me up and have been saying, 'What are you doing with this list? This is a gold mine!' and so a friend of mine and I are going to go through the list and email some of the guys, invite them and some single ladies, of a like mind, to a dinner party and just see what a happens," Robesky said. "Dinner with the leftovers."

As for that epic meal in Tokyo, it was a photo finish, with the chef, his staff and the mystery man, who wants another date with her.

"I think there's going to be a second date, and maybe a third date, and maybe more than that," Robesky said.

She said this was the best date of her life. So much so, they were supposed to be flying home separately, but the mystery man paid for her to change her flight, so that the two of them could fly home together to San Francisco.

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