New Yorkers reveal how they found true love

It was the question that started it all – “Excuse me, are you two a couple?”

In 2023, three friends — Aaron Feinberg, Jeremy Bernstein and Victor Lee, all 31 — began approaching unsuspecting couples on the street to ask how they met and what made their relationship work. Bernstein conducted the interviews, while Feinberg and Lee filmed the encounters and posted them online. About half the time, they were rejected, but the other half produced very relevant and hopeful content.

Their initiative “Meet Cutes” quickly went viral, amassing 3 million followers on Instagram and 1.9 million followers on TikTok. Now, the trio has turned this phenomenon into a book, “Meeting Lovely People in New York: True Stories of Love and Connection” (Artisan Books, out now).

From more than 5,000 videos, Feinberg, Bernstein and Lee selected 85 couples of various ages and backgrounds for the book.

“It’s a hope that love is possible and shows you that it can mean a lot of different things to different people,” said Feinberg, who is single and “looks like.” “There is no science behind this.”

Here, they share some of their favorite couples.

Alice and Jeffrey

The two first met decades ago when she was working at Channel 13 as an assistant on “American Family.”,” He was a postman. Every week, Jeffrey would deliver the stacks of fashion magazines Alice ordered to her office. One day, he overheard her saying dramatically on the phone: “Oh, honey, I was just in Morocco. Death to Morocco, my dear,” he could not help laughing at her. Alice caught him and shouted: “Who the hell do you think you are?

Later, when she had an extra ticket to the hit late night show, she invited Jeffrey to come along. Afterward, they walked the 46 blocks home, talking the whole way—and they haven’t stopped since.

“The story of Alice and Jeffrey is one of our all-time favorite stories,” Feinberg told The Washington Post. “It’s poignant, unexpected and utterly unforgettable. Proof that love doesn’t always start with a spark. Sometimes it starts with irony and a mail truck.”

Mike and Karen

The two met in the university lecture hall. Mike secretly wished Karen could sit next to him – and she did. He asks her out, only to learn that she has a boyfriend.

Years later, she was single and they began dating. But after a few years together, they broke up because Mike wasn’t ready. Two years later, they met while crossing the street and have been together ever since.

“Their video is one of our top five most popular videos,” Lee told The Washington Post.

“Their story resonates so deeply because it’s about second chances, an imperfect, whole love that feels both cinematic and real,” Feinberg added. “Timing is important, and love doesn’t always unfold in a straight line.”

Cuihe Mountain

Feinberg, Lee and Bernstein were grocery shopping in Clinton Hill when they spotted Thuy and San wearing matching hoodies. The two met at a climbing gym in New York when Thuy was visiting from San Francisco. “Sang followed her up the wall and they talked and that was it, or so it seemed,” Lee said. “A few months later, Thuy moved to New York and she met San again at a climbing gym. This time, San knew it was fate.”

Feinberg, Lee and Bernstein were grocery shopping in Clinton Hill when they spotted Thuy and San wearing matching hoodies. The two met at a climbing gym in New York when Thuy was visiting from San Francisco. “Sang followed her up the wall and they talked and that was it, or so it seemed,” Lee said. “A few months later, Thuy moved to New York and she met San again at a climbing gym. This time, San knew it was fate.”

Joe and Lisa

Feinberg saw them one day when they were alone in Williamsburg and was struck by their affection. “I thought they were a new couple, but they’ve been together for 15 years,” he said.

Lisa and her boyfriend met when they walked into Joe’s hardware store.

“Jo immediately thought, I hope to meet someone like her one day. As it turns out, it wasn’t someone like her, it was her,” Feinberg told The Washington Post. “Lisa was unhappy in her relationship and eventually made a change. The connection between her and Joe was undeniable and they have been together ever since.”