He said:
Love is patient, love is kind. Unless, that is, you screw up Valentine’s day.
Ladies, a little secret: for us, it’s just another day. But you probably already knew that, didn’t you? And you pretty much don’t care either, right? One of the prices of admission to congress with the fairer sex is making this day important. And part of that is Valentine’s Day dinner.
We’ll be dining in this Valentine’s Day, working on an ambitious attempt at Duck Confit. You’ve probably heard all the stories about Valentine’s Day, along with Mother’s Day and New Year’s Eve, being among the worst times to dine out. Much of that is true: Valentine’s dinner means restaurants packed to the rafters. More importantly, they are packed to the rafters with people who almost never dine out. Otherwise lovely venues are overwhelmed with complaints about portion size, demands that the tuna be cooked medium well, rants about the fact that the sweetbreads aren’t sweet, and sure ain’t bread, and requests that they serve the steak tartar with the tartar on the side.
Blah, blah, blah..so what? Assuming celibacy was not among your 2011 resolutions, you really don’t have a choice, do you? You’re going to dinner one way or the other, and no amount of uber-foodie superciliousness is going to make it any better. (FYI, the guys at Blackened Out have teamed with Sucre for a Mad Lib Valentine’s Day contest in lieu of dinner. We think it’s a hysterical idea. If you’ve got the stones to substitute a Mad Lib for Valentine’s dinner and still somehow maintain conjugal access, we salute you.)
For the rest of us, where do you go? We’re here to help. First, make a reservation. Right now. Don’t be that guy, waiting till the day before and forced to grab a table next to the kitchen at Oceana where your special someone can listen to whoever’s channelling Gordon Ramsey tell the sous chef he’s a pathetic excuse for humanity. That’s not what you’re looking for.
What are you looking for? Well, duh, romance. This is not the night to review a restaurant. Tonight, first impressions are really everything. It goes without saying it needs to be a place she’s not been to before, and it needs to give her the wow factor when she hits the door. Forget about Gastropubs, and there should be no television in your venue of choice. So here are my top five, plus a few to avoid. You know what you have to do, so get on the phone and do it. Good luck and Godspeed.
5 Lilette: Very French, tres romantic. Good enough for Kate Hudson and Luke Wilson when they are in town. Whisper sweet nothings over the beet salad and the white truffle toast with marrow. Detailed review here.
Take her if she wears: Hermes
4. Bistro at Maison De Ville: French again, They know a little something about romance, don’t they? Without question the best choice in the Quarter. Cheaper than taking her to Paris (trust me), and nearly as satisfying. More info here.
Take her if she wears: Christian Dior
3. Gautreau’s: Nestled on Soniat uptown, this feels like a secret club. Fabulous food, divine atmospherics, and James Beard recognized chef Susan Zemanick make it an easy choice.
Take her if she wears: Chanel
2. Coquette: The most romantic space in the garden district, Coquette makes hearts flutter in a beautiful room on the corner of Washington and Magazine. Be sure to start with something from the amazing cocktail menu.
Take her if she wears: Stella McCartney
1. Dominique’s on Magazine: New, trendy, and the most gorgeous restaurant to open in NOLA in some time. The number one choice. You’ll score the moment she walks in. Keep it to yourself, but they’ll give her cotton candy at the end of the meal. Yes, cotton candy. If you can’t win with this, I can’t help you. More details here.
Take her if she wears: Agnes b
And as lagniappe, here are three to avoid:
Stella!: Brain food, not romance food. We love Stella, but not for Valentine’s. Shock and awe will be performed on your wallet while your date ignores you, wondering about the nitrogen smoke pouring off her entrée.
Meson 923: Big press, big reviews, big dreams for this newbie, but they are struggling under the weight of those right now. Too expensive to subsidise while they figure things out. Maybe next year.
Galatoire’s: The ultimate table-hopping party joint and the worst possible place for Valentine’s. If you end up crying in your drink while your date goes home with the king of Momus, don’t say I didn’t warn you.
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Aahhh Valentine’s Day. A day dreaded by chefs, cooks, & even waitstaff whose pockets WILL team w/ cash by night’s end, but they’d still rather not work.
You hit great key points to avoid going out on Valentine’s Day in your post. From another vantage point consider this- everyone wants a table for two, near a window, away from the Kitchen & the foyer. Sure Mr. Nobody- no problem.
So, if you MUST go out on that night- do yourself, your server, and the kitchen a favor by making reservations EARLY, making reservations for 4 or 6 people (if you have 2-4 friends you wouldn’t mind dining with), CONFIRM your reservation 2 days out, and be on time.
LOVE the sweetbreads comment btw…
What if she wears jeans & T-shirt?
He Said: On Valentine’s day, she looks to you like she’s wearing French couture, no matter what she’s got on!
2 Things:
1) Iris is not a bad choice either. Was pleasantly surprised two years ago.
b) I told Gourmand to surprise me this year and now, due to this post, am beginning to regret it. A little push in the right direction may be sorely needed and the above suggestions will be forwarded post-haste
He Said: You are so right! Iris really belongs on this list. Shame on me for missing and good catch. And, speaking for my gender, we pretty much always need a push in the right direction.
Dear HSSH- I follow most all on the net, besides everything else in print to keep current with what is out there. I am always humored by who is a critic and who is not. Also who is knowledgeable about food and who is not. Being in this field of public relations for 22 years, strictly focused on food and highly regarded and awarded chefs worldwide, I have been honored to learn a great deal of information from whom many will call the best in the culinary arena! It takes a great deal of experience and time to learn the fundamentals of good food vs. bad food then to comment on it. How ingredients and dishes are executed? What you see and experience in the front of a restaurant is not necessarily what is occurring in the kitchen? To place a strong comment or statement, I hope extensive research was done about the philosophy, the influence, the ingredients, the source, etc.
To say where not to go for Valentine’s is a serious stretch. Valentine’s Day is simply disliked in the restaurant industry as most chefs will comment it is not a good representation of their food. It is an overbooked night. I find the comments you have made go too far. Let people choose where they wish to experience and why say a bad comment for such a happy occasion for so many.
Stella is a wonderful asset to the Quarter and Scott Boswell is a superb chef. His cuisine allows people to experience something outside the norm. Why ruin it for the adventurers.
Meson 923- Struggling is a harsh word for a place that has a chef in the kitchen who trained under one of the best chefs and restaurants in the country- La Cote Basque. A chef left and Baruch Barasa stepped up to the plate ( excuse the pun) that has been doing most of the behind the scenes cooking since the inception of Meson 923. That is what you do not know!
They garnered the press for incredible cuisine, because of him and no one else. So judge what you taste and not what you hear. One dinner does experience does not validate the comments. If you are going to play the game of being a critic get your information from the source.
Galatoire’s is an institution. It is a New Orleans experience. If you are from New Orleans then you will understand why it is worth the trip. And many New Orleanians enjoy that atmosphere. It is perfect for those wanting to have comfort in food and a place they know.
I would say it is ‘here say’ instead of he said!
Simone… Point taken, but be a little more careful with your spelling and grammar if you want to be a reputable PR person.
He Said: And Simone, is Meson 923 not in fact a client of yours? In which case you have a financial incentive, or more accurately an obligation to defend them? Some might say you should have disclosed that information in your comment. We have no dog in the hunt with Meson 923 or any other restaurant in town, but it appears you do. We’re happy to post your opposing point of view, but a paid publicist is biased by definition, correct?
He said: Simone, thanks for the feedback. Opinions by their nature will vary. I agree with you that Valentine’s is NOT the night to review a restaurant, and I mentioned that specifically. It’s a tough night. There are certainly other great choices for Valentine’s, and one commentor pointed out the excellent Iris, which I love.
Feel free to disagree, but I’ll stand by our ability to give substantive reviews. Take a look at our Big Restaurant List: we’ve been to every one of those personally, as well as many places in Paris, Rome, Venice, Stockholm, NYC, Santa Fe, and Copenhagen among others. We have more than enough context to draw meaningful conclusions (but we’re ok if you disagree. We love a good debate!)
Regarding your specifics: All restaurants are not all things for all events. Stella!, as I’ve written many times, is my favorite restaurant in the city. But not for Valentine’s Day. To your point, why try the best (and one of the most expensive) places in town on the night it’s most difficult for them to execute?
Galatoire’s is another of my favorites. I’ve often said that if a one-time visitor could choose only one NOLA dining experience, Friday lunch at Galatoire’s is it. Galatoire’s is a public party, not a private romance. That’s an observation, not a criticism.
Meson 923 is in fact struggling. High prices yield high expectations, as they should. Right now 923 is not executing on par with other NOLA restaurants in this category. How do I know? I’ve been to all of them. Many times. I know what a $250 dinner should deliver. I don’t know anyone associated with 923, so this critique is not personal. But it is what it is. I hope they soon return to what in the opinion of many was an amazing beginning. That would be good for all of us.
I have a question regarding Simone’s commentary- copied from above, will someone please explain what the following sentence means?
“One dinner does experience does not validate the comments.”
Thanks!
We celebrated Valentine’s day with friends over a wholesome home-cooked comfort meal of fancy meatloaf with ground veal, pork, and turkey, mashed potatoes, haricots verts, and chocolate espresso mousse with fresh raspberries for dessert. Lovely and laid back = romantic indeed. Staying in with the one you love or the people you love is totally the way to do it. Of course, we had a late valentine’s inspired (little black dress included) dinner at Herbsaint a few nights ago. Which goes without saying that yes, dinner is a must, but not always ON valentine’s day.