If I can think of a situational opener, I use it to great success. If I can't, I use "Hi, how are you doing tonight." Then, I almost immediately run out of things to say.

Let me break an approach into 3 steps: 1. The opener, 2. The next 2-3 minutes, and 3. The rest of the interaction. Step one is easy. Step 3 is easy if I can get to it. I feel like there's a bit right after the opener, but before your target and her group fully accept you into the group. That's where I struggle when I don't have a situational opener.

In my experience, women are more talkative when I use a situational opener ("Those are some big ass margaritas!"), which takes the pressure off of me. When I just walk up and say hello, they're a little uncertain about my motives and they tend to clam up until I hit on a topic that gets them talking.

What has worked for you to get from step 1 to step 3?