In The Press

ABC News, March 20, 2009

Recession Has Some Daters Checking Credit Scores by ABC News

WASHINGTON - The recession has some singles being more careful about who they date. A recent survey shows more than 80 percent of singles are being more selective because they don't want to get involved with someone who needs their own bailout. Money may be all the talk these days but at a speed-dating event in D.C., singles say they're not bringing it up -- yet. "Money thing, that's serious stuff. I'll worry about that later," said one participant. But concerns about job security and financial stability are close to the surface. "I know a lot of my friends, their financial situations are difficult right now," added another participant. In addition to their own tight finances, many worry about a potential date's money troubles. "I met a few female lawyers who told me th Read more

Washington Post, March 08, 2009

Immigrants' Children Look Closer for Love: More Young Adults Are Seeking Partners of Same Ethnicity by Annie Gowen

Washington Post Staff Writer Sunday, March 8, 2009; Page A01 Katie Xiao emigrated from China when she was 4 and always thought of herself as Americanized -- until she started dating. Subtle cultural clashes with Caucasian or Latino boyfriends led to unhappy breakups. It made her realize she's more Chinese than she thought. Now she wants to meet a man of Asian descent. She has recently gone to a chocolate tasting in the District and a cocktail mixer at Arlington County's Zen Bistro, both catering to Asian Americans and immigrants. She spent Valentine's Day weekend making contacts at a Harvard Business School conference called "Asia in a Whole New World." Sociologists and demographers are just beginning to study how the children of immigrants who have flowed into the countr Read more

WUSA9.com, March 12, 2008

Cooking For One by Anita Brikman

Michael Karlan is head of Pros in the City and says "A lot of times people are single for all sorts of reasons, and it can be very overwhelming at first." Michael says that learning to cook for one can be very empowering for singles. Chef Vera Foresman says that single people overthink dinner and go straight for the quick unhealthy fix instead. She says, "They eat frozen foods, canned foods, and go out to the same fast food places." Chef Vera Foresman went on to say that many singles will settle for peanut butter with whatever is in the cupboard, or eat the same unhealthy dish over and over again. The cooking class today was about simple sauces, glazing, and creating your own salad dressing. Michael Karlan says the that the goal of the cooking class was teaching singles a new s Read more

American Observer, February 27, 2008

Speed-dating not just about finding love by Sabrina Parker

Some singles in the district are tired of swapping photos online. Instead they head to Chi Cha lounge for four minute speed dating hosted by Professionals of the City. Michael Karlan, who founded Pros of the City, says people can learn more about each other in four minutes than in a night at a bar, “When you go to a bar, maybe you will meet two or three people all night. Here, you know, you are meeting twenty people. It is just so much more efficient than the bars or than something like Match.” But many say they come out for other reasons than dating. One woman, who has speed dated before, says it sharpens her people skills. “I didn’t meet anybody the last time, but I still feel like if nothing else it is practice.” One man sees it as an extension on DC’s networking scene, “I a Read more

OnTap Magazine, February 01, 2008

Singles, Basketball & Babes by Linda Dickerhoof

It’s early January at the Verizon Center as the Washington Wizards battle the Los Angeles Clippers. The excitement builds as Gilbert Arenas shoots...and scores! And scores again! And again! The Wizards beat the Clippers 116-105, thanks in part to NBA superstar (and birthday boy) Arenas. On this night, some lucky fans leave the arena headed for Arenas’ star-studded birthday party to rub elbows with A-listers such as P-Diddy and Beyonce. But for other, some might even say luckier (or at least, not as famous) fans, the party didn’t leave the arena, but rather continued in the Dewars Clubhouse where 500 singles were participating in “Singles Night,” sponsored by party-planners extraordinaire Professionals in the City. What exactly is “Singles Night”, you might ask? Well tonight, it is Read more

Washington Post, January 23, 2008

Self Serve: At the Singles' Cooking Class, a Few Rules Can Liberate Or Intimidate by Jackie Spinner

They came to lay down their can openers, to embrace the mighty shallot (which some had never seen), to learn that in Vera Foresman's kitchen, rules generally do not apply. For these Washington singles enrolled in Foresman's class about cooking for one, this was their chance to learn how to make, say, chicken breast in mustard-cream sauce rather than, say, the Megan Gooch Special. That would be a toasted English muffin with peanut butter. Gooch, 24, came to Mount Olivet United Methodist Church in Arlington for the class with her friend Anish Dewan, 25. Both work in the defense industry and live in the District. Once they'd learned to concoct a vinaigrette from scratch -- in their case combining chardonnay vinegar, canola oil, salt, pepper and a sprinkle of thyme -- it was time to te Read more

Revista Cosas, January 22, 2008

Tendencies, from Washington: I am single and looking for a partner by Antonieta Cádiz

In the capital of the United States, loneliness is tied to success. Professionals who are dedicated one hundred percent to their careers need a little help meeting other people. Luckily for them, there is a company that brings them together and helps them connect. It is almost eight o’clock in the evening in a central restaurant in Washington DC. Twelve perfect strangers sit in pairs across from each other. Despite their nervousness and while perhaps drinking a cocktail, they laugh, they look at each other and they wait. Although they still do not know if they have something in common, their expectations are high. A man standing in the middle of the room tells them that they can begin talking to each other. Men and women initiate their dialogue with a traditional "Hello, what’s you Read more

WUSA 9 News, January 01, 2008

Professionals in the City New Year's Eve Gala Live Broadcast by WUSA 9 News

To see a live WUSA 9 News broadcast of our December 31, 2007 New Year's Eve Gala, see http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-0VLXoDCv4. There is a five second delay before the video starts. Read more

Fashion, August 08, 2007

Pervenia P. Brown by Bulgarian Soirée

Wouldn’t it be nice if savvy people could meet in chic, casual venues and experience the taste and tradition of other cultures? Professionals in the City, a Washington, DC-based organization with over 100,000 members, hosts a myriad of social events, from sunset kayaking to Carnaval 2008 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. On July 27, Pros in the City hosted “An Exciting Evening at the Embassy of Bulgaria” in the Nation’s Capital at the Embassy of the Republic of Bulgaria. Guests were welcomed by a delightful embassy staff and ushered into a sizable room decorated with Bulgarian artifacts, where a buffet-style dinner of ethnic cuisine was tastefully presented. The meal included salad shopska, salad snejanka (Bulgarian tzatzaki), spring salad, stuffed mushrooms, Burgas-style mussels from t Read more

DC Guide, March 16, 2007

How To Meet People in Washington, DC by Melanie Paige

I have this friend, Stacy, who would always tell me about these events that she would go to at embassies around Washington. She kept telling me that the organization that set up these events would be something fun for me to look into. I had been involved with my alumni club and with a political organization, but I found that the events that these groups hosted were few and far between. I was looking for something new and fun, so I agreed to go with Stacy to check out an event. The name of the group that Stacy was talking about is Professionals in the City. I checked out its calendar of events on its website (www.prosinthecity.com), and told Stacy that I would go with her to a dance party that Professionals in the City was hosting the following week. At the last minute, Stacy canceled on Read more

Washington Post, December 31, 2006

Partying With Taxing Precision by Karin Brulliard

For IRS Lawyer-Turned-Gala Planner, Success Is All About the Numbers By Karin Brulliard Washington Post Staff Writer Sunday, December 31, 2006; Page C01 Michael Karlan is throwing not one, but two glitzy New Year's bashes tonight. For 1,700 people. At the French Embassy, guests in glittering gowns and dapper tuxes will sip bottomless glasses of champagne, take mini-lessons in French and dance the New Year in while mimes stroll. Downtown at the Washington Plaza hotel, hundreds of young professionals will venture into "A Social Experience" -- a Madonna impersonator, massage seminars, speed-dating, a caricaturist. The galas, Karlan said, cost him "one hundred thou each." Karlan, 38, is an expert party guy, founder of the social network Professionals in the City. He takes Read more

The Examiner, June 15, 2005

Visit Cuba in D.C. by Gabrielle Shaughness

Wednesday, June 15, 2005 Page 31 Special to The Examiner Ever since the United States severed diplomatic ties with Cuba in 1961, there has been no official Cuban embassy on American soil. In an effort to foster relations between the two nations, however, the Carter administration signed a bilateral accord in the late 1970s to establish interest sections in Havana and Washington. Offering a rare occasion to glimpse the culture, cuisine and music of this often-misunderstood island, Professionals in the City will host a black tie gala in the grand mansion in Washington where the Cuban Interests Section resides on Saturday. The open bar will feature Cuban libres, "the classic Cuban rum and coke, and the mojito - a delicious cocktail made from rum, mint, sugar and lime," says Read more