Valentine’s Day is fast approaching, carrying with it the weight of considerable expectations. Where to eat? What to reserve? Which flowers to buy? How much to spend?
This year, we recommend leaving the crowds and the pricey prix-fixe menus behind, and celebrating your love at home -- in a truly relaxing fashion. Here are our top recommendations for a romantic evening en casa.
Candyland: Order a DIY chocolate-covered pretzel kit, like this one from Fatty Sundays & Co., and create your own salty-sweet treats.
White Russian Roulette: Pick up a bottle of your favorite liquor, plus a few cocktail ingredients you don’t normally keep on hand but sound alluring, and line them up on your kitchen table. Then fire up CocktailBuilder.com, and take turns playing mixologist.
Game Night: Choose your own adventure! Monopoly, Risk, Truth or Dare, or maybe even a little strip poker (preferably in conjunction with White Russian Roulette).
Cooking Adventures: Pick a dish from your favorite restaurant and try to replicate it (cheater alert: the recipe will almost certainly be online). Even better, have someone come to your abode and cook for you: Ring up a chef, who will whip up a heavenly meal while you sit back and relax. (Worried about the movie-star cost? Thanks to a number of food-focused startups, there are affordable ways to make this happen.
Soundtracking: Think back -- what’s an album, artist or musical era that has some special significance to your relationship? Maybe it’s the band you saw on your third date. Maybe it’s a song that was playing the first time you... you know. Cue it up while your partner’s in the other room, then press play when he/she come back, and get the dancing started for a sweet nostalgic trip.
Bonus culture round: Go to the Met without leaving your living room.
Bonus lazy round: Three words: House of Cards. Start Netflix’s new series tonight, play hooky tomorrow, and watch all 13 episodes of On-Demand goodness while snuggling up.
Want more great date ideas? Sign up for HowAboutWe for Couples, a new site that makes it easy for you and your partner to share one-of-a-kind experiences together. Still looking for that special someone? Check out HowAboutWe Dating, the offline dating site.
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