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Stoop Dating has more than 30,000 Instagram followers and more than 40,000 on TikTok.
The social media dating show Stoop Dating is building a local following. Stoop Dating
February 10, 2026 | 5:00 AM
4 minutes to read
Valentine’s Day is coming up!
It’s a day when procrastinators start calling every restaurant in the North End pleading for a reservation and ultimately settle for a table at 10 p.m.
It’s a day when singles throw a lovely soiree that’s much nicer than that 10 p.m. booking.
It’s also a day when dating apps see a surge in activity.
Fun fact: ABC reported that, in 2024, Tinder experienced 3.6 million additional likes on Valentines Day.
But, according to a local social media matchmaker, you have a better chance at finding your partner at a doorstep than on a dating app.
“Boston has a bad reputation, when it comes to dating. I think it’s a generational thing, not a location thing,” Julz Radley said, creator and host of Stoop Dating.
Radley hates dating apps, to say the least. Her distaste led her to create the Boston-centered dating show last March.
“I always go back to this, but the dating apps, I know it works for some people. Obviously there’s a lot of success stories from it. But, you can write someone off behind a screen. Two, you see a person in public and then hope you see them on a dating app or on Instagram instead of just talking to them. And three, because of dating apps, it feels like the options are endless in dating, which — that’s just so unauthentic,” Radley said.
Stoop Dating is a blind dating show hosted on a Southie porch step. Paired-up singles are interviewed while on a first date and ultimately decide to either go on a second date or to part ways.
The dates usually last around an hour. One half is spent getting comfortable with fun questions involving either red or green flags or whiteboards, then the other 30 minutes is the actual date where the pair discuss their hot takes, dating preferences, and family lifestyles.
“For the most part, it’s very obvious to see if there’s chemistry there or not, and a lot of times when there isn’t chemistry, then I’ll start filling in the gaps,” Radley said.
Radley sits on the porch, which is owned by a landlord she knows, between her matched potential couple of the night.
She poses questions like:
- “What is something your younger self would be proud of you today?”
- “Do you have any bad date stories?”
- “Does walking into a big family scare you?”
On a recent date, Stoop Dating participants Bryan and Jenna were asked about their hot takes.
“My hot take about Boston is that people are so, so nice,” said Jenna.
Stoop Dating has racked up 13,800 followers on Instagram and 44,300 followers on TikTok.
The dating show has even gone national, with some episodes filmed in Rhode Island and in Nashville.
Radley, 25, moved to Boston after she graduated from Montclair State University and started working full time at Shadow Lion, Tom Brady’s video production company.
Living in a new city, Radley met the most people authentically when she sat on her front porch.
“Ive always wanted to start my own content page. I just didn’t know what I wanted to do yet. And I thought ‘why not do something with this,’ because it was just so wholesome to me,” Radley said.
Radley, a self-described hopeless romantic, said she dreamed up Stoop Dating because she wanted to see more face-to-face interactions in the dating scene.
“I think we should have face-to-face conversations again, and authentic, real conversations to get to really know people,” she said.
She formulated the show and asked her friends who were in — as she describes — a “flirtationship” to go on her new show.
“After I posted [the video], we got applications immediately. I think that just proves how bad dating is nowadays, where people are doing any option even if it’s going on a random stoop instead of the dating app,” Radley said.
The selection process involves a bottle of wine and sifting through hundreds of applications with the help of matchmakers, Radley said.
The team selects the man (for matches between a man and woman) first and then picks a woman based on the guy’s listed type. Stoop Dating also matches same-sex dates.
Stoop Dating receives more female applicants than males ones, so the man is chosen first due to a larger pool of women to choose from.
If you think going on a Southie porch is a crazy first date, Radley can attest that it’s nothing compared to a blind date she had in New York City.
“I went on a date in New York City, and the guy got so drunk on it, like so hammered, I literally had to have my friends come hangout with us because I didn’t want to leave him alone. And I’ve never been on a date where the guy got blacked out drunk so I’m just like, ‘I don’t know what to do in this situation,’” Radley said.
Radley ended up calling a friend that was also on a date at the time and the pair hung out until her date sobered up.
The date clearly didn’t work out, but Radley says she’s dating someone or something right now … and it’s Stoop Dating.
“I am not really dating at the moment. I am single, but I am open to it, but not really at the same time. I am very, very focused on my career right now,” Radley said.
As for any advice Radley can give to ensure a first date doesn’t go as poorly as her first date horror story:
- “Always trust your gut.”
- “Do not be afraid to be weird.”
- “You can’t do the wrong thing with the right person.”
Those who are interested in going on a first date on the stoop and want to ditch the apps can apply here.
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