Photo courtesy of Aleksandra Czajka.
Meeting people can be hard—even in a populated area like Hudson County.
But since last year, Aleksandra Czajka has been working to connect locals more organically through Bunch, a free social app that connects participants through small group hangouts for coffee, dinner, happy hour or even just to play a game of cards. And now, Czajka will soon be kicking off a new feature to the platform: Bunch Dating.
“A lot of people that I talk with—including myself—are tired of the dating apps because they keep you swiping… [then] you’re stuck if you can’t meet your perfect match,” Czajka told Slice of Culture.
“Bunch’s philosophy is [to] get out and meet people first. Don’t stay on the electronics, go out in society.”
Bunching Up
After pivoting from its original name “Dining Social,” it was resurrected under a new name: Bunch, which officially launched in January of 2025.
Though the name was something else, Czajka, who’s the founder and software engineer, said it held the same concept: help locals organize board game nights, social hours and happy hours in different forms in Jersey City, Hoboken and beyond.
Today, it has grown to 4,000 members and has helped “make socializing better” for many in New Jersey. And there’s no cost to downloading the app or marking yourself as “going” for a Bunch hangout.
Want to grab a coffee with someone new? You can on Bunch.
Need some company while you’re working? You can on Bunch.
Looking for someone who loves playing Candy Land or Sorry! just as much as you? Yeah, you can on Bunch.
And while many connections have been made through Bunch since its launch last year, Czajka said that an “overwhelmingly” number of people have expressed their frustrations with dating. Whether it be frustration with dating apps or the actual dates themselves, a lot of people said they don’t know what to do.
No Dates—Just Group Dinners!
Bunch Dating will just be group dinners, Czajka said.
“So you’re not matched up with people. There’s no pressure of actually trying to make something work. It’s just singles, dinners, gender-balanced [identifying men and women] and you actually do get to meet enough people of the opposite gender,” Czajka added.
“Because they are not dates… no one is put in the position that, ‘Oh, I’m expected to pay for this dinner.’ I know we’ve had a lot of feedback from members… You get the privilege of actually meeting singles that could be on your wavelength… There’s no weird awkward who pays for the bill at the end.”
The dating feature will be the only paid add-on on the app. The subscription will be $30 a month or $20 per dinner.
Czajka said she’s looking for 50 identifying men and 50 identifying women to sign up for Bunch Dating to officially launch it, which she hopes to hit within the next few weeks to kick off “a few dinners and have a lot of fun meeting singles.”
To sign-up, follow these steps:
- Visit letsbunch.com and download the free app
- Set up your profile and customize it to you
- On the homepage, hit “Bunch Dating” and select “Yes” to participate when it launches
- Once that’s done, you can explore further and automatically see hangouts on your dashboard on a map
- You can start a hangout or join a hangout
- These hangouts can be if someone has met you or there’s an invitation based on your age, gender and/or interest
- The rest is up to you and “how you socialize”
“Do come join us. It’s all free and we’d be happy to have you!” Czajka said.
