A faceless company that, beneath the bags, included members of the military, bankers, teachers, people from media and advertising, and a few from construction. Aged 20 to 50, with a couple of outliers, they all had two minutes one-on-one to get to know each other.
They filled in a card with their date's name, ID number, any comments they wanted to make, and then ticked romance or friendship boxes based on their interest in the person.
When the bell went, they moved on to the next table - with the MC sometimes providing a little encouragement: "Everyone with a penis attached, move clockwise ..." The matches would be sent through to attendees early the next week, once the organisers examined the dating cards.
However, there were whispers of a few eager participants exchanging numbers on the night, with some seen leaving together.
Meanwhile, at a table near the back, 23-year-old property manager Ben was "very impressed" with 27-year-old teacher Juliet, so much so he stayed for a second round to talk to her some more.
But Juliet, who thought Ben was a "lovely boy", said she was only there for a bit of fun.
"It's more like a fun night out," she said with a laugh. "If you meet someone, then cool, but if not, I'm not going to be gutted about it."
Paper bag speed dating was an easy and interesting way to meet and talk to new people, Juliet said, and she would definitely do it again.
She preferred face-to-face dating and meeting people through friends rather than options like Tinder which, she said, had its "ups and downs".
The perfect match, maybe, for "very single" Jordan Palmer.
The 24-year-old - our would-be Romeo - is on Tinder but said from his experience, dating apps did not compare to paper bag speed dating.
"I reckon I could [meet someone here]. It's going really well so far and it's definitely better than Tinder, because you're face-to-face and you've got to back yourself with someone if you like them."
Jordan, who works for 2degrees, said Tinder was actually very difficult.
"Girls and guys have different intentions - it's hard to work out what they actually want."
Apart from breathing and talking with the bag on - "it's seriously difficult to breathe" - Jordan said this version of speed dating was a good way to get to know someone without judging them on looks. And while some people took their bags off, Jordan preferred to keep his on, to "keep mystery involved".
He had even met a couple of nice teachers, he said. But who they were was a mystery.
For there never was a story more touch-and-go, than this one of Juliet and her maybe Romeo.
