Rent A Gent is a startup that lets you rent a platonic male friend for $200 an hour - here's what it's like to use

The company, founded three years ago by entrepreneur Sara Shikhman, employs a simple process: they have a listing of available "gents" across many major metropolitan areas in the US, to whom they will match you based on your mutual interests, needs, and availability. Then they'll put you in touch with him, and let everything progress from there.

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They have about 150 regular gents across the country, with many hundreds of applicants to sift through. A public voting process helps them choose which ones are worthy of the gig, and each is vetted intensively for quality control. Right now, it's not a huge business; they facilitate a handful of dates a week, with New York and Los Angeles being the most consistent markets.

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I had been matched with Aaron, who I knew from the photos on the site would be tall, dark, and handsome. It wasn't hard to find him: even in the mobbed entrance of the Met Museum, he stood head and shoulders above the crowd.

First, we checked our coats. I was already warming up, the Arctic chill outside a fading memory. At 6'3", he towered over me, but was excellent at maintaining eye contact as we chatted about the neighborhoods we call home.

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We started our museum tour with some Renaissance art, which we both admitted was not our favorite. Aaron told me of his day jobs — as an actor, music video producer, and screenwriter. I was rapt. I'm naturally inquisitive and — as a reporter — prone to asking a lot of questions. But he would constantly find ways to bring me into the conversation organically.

As this portrait room emptied out, conversation turned to his job with Rent A Gent. The company had scouted him on Facebook, sending him a message on the site. He was initially leery, but they won him over with the unique business pitch.

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Renting a date for an event "makes total sense," he said. Then the woman doesn't have to worry about her plus-one's behavior. Instead, the gent can be an asset — working a room, charming away. We took a moment to inspect an oil painting by Vermeer: a lone young woman bathed in suffused light. Was that contentment on her face? Or did we see a trace of loneliness?

Gents run about $200 per hour, with the company taking half of the fee; tipping is discretionary.

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The company has a five-star Yelp rating, and women rave about the professional conduct of the men. Classy bachelorette parties are a popular use of the service. Gents can bartend, play music, dance, and otherwise amuse a group, with none of the more salacious (and sometimes uncomfortable) undertones of other options.

In the sculpture gallery, we paused to admire a stone figure. If you're concerned about safety, Rent A Gent has you covered: all the guys are under contract to ensure there will be no misbehavior. That means no kissing or other sexual contact. But offering a gentlemanly arm or sharing a friendly hug? That's fine.

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During our two hours together, Aaron was never anything other than fully professional and fully engaged. He didn't once check his phone.

By the end of our date, I felt like I had made a new friend, whose work and intellect I respected.

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Afterward, he texted to say that he'd enjoyed our conversation. What parts of our newfound friendship were real? What was fake? As Aaron said, he's a good actor, and it was hard to tell.

While Rent A Gent was fun to try, I don't feel the need to pay for platonic companionship in the future. But if I were in a fix and had the means — would I hire someone like Aaron for a fancy event? I'd consider it.

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If you were surprised to find out that Rent A Gent exists, you may be even more surprised to learn that it has a competitor, and we tried that service out too.