Looking for an idea for Valentine's Day? Here you can find many, to suit all tastes and budgets even though, as you know, tasting menus for Lovers' Day involve a slightly higher expense...
I always thought that those who love each other should celebrate every day and not wait for a specific day to commemorate it. Consumerist holiday then? Cheesy and redundant? For the less romantic and more pragmatic but nonetheless passionate foodies like me, it must be said that there is a silver lining to Valentine’s Day as well. So many restaurants, including very good ones, offer a special menu with suggestions for Valentine’s Day at prices sometimes cheaper than usual.
Dedicated tasting menus
There are countless dedicated tasting menus, and as a personal tip I tell you to carefully avoid places that have “Cupid’s Embrace” or “shrimp in love” style names of dishes. For the rest, indulge in the choice of the place that feels best to you And it entices you. If you are happily accompanied it is a way to surprise your loved one but also in any case to pamper yourself with a special evening.
So here is a roundup of Valentine’s Day suggestions for some restaurants up and down the Peninsula. Those that impressed me the most either because of the menu or the place or the experience. In some cases, packages also include accommodation and wonderful spas.
Mountain scenery
If you love mountains, cold weather, and typical winter views, this is where you need to go. At
Radici – Restaurant in the Vineyard
, in the hills of Costigliole d’Asti, led by the Turin chef Marco Massaia. Part of the Relais Le Marne and the farm. Mura Mura, owned by Guido Martinetti and Federico Grom. A stellar menu from €90 per person. Another dream place is in the quiet village of Calamandrana, and it is
Amaranto Boutique Hotel and Relais
. On Valentine’s Day for couples, in the intimacy of an old farmhouse, there will be a special menu (5 courses for €65) in its restaurant
Adagio
And for after dinner suites of a thousand and one nights. At thehotel Gardena in Ortisei you can dine in the prestigious Anna Stuben restaurant. Young South Tyrolean chef at the stove Reimund Brunner, in the room the sommelier Egon Perathoner also here at €65. If you are in the area, don’t miss the opportunity to take a dip in the heated waters of the outdoor thermal pools at
Aqua Dome
in Tyrol.
Love lake view
On Lake Como there will be the sound of a harp playing in the background of dinner at
Roteo
Of the beautiful Musa hotel. Between panbrioche and foie gras he keeps to the super classic that I like so much (150€). At the Palace Hotel in Como, a four-star hotel nestled in the heart of the city you will find a priceless lake view. In his
Antica Darsena Restaurant
led by Chef Ercole Sandionigi dinner will be by candlelight (€90 wines included).
The City of Lovers
More related to tradition albeit with creative touch is the restaurant menu proposed for Valentine’s Day by the Chef Fabio Aceti of the
Hotel Vista
, 5-star luxury in Verona. We are in the city of lovers par excellence, and if it couldn’t be more obvious, the beauty of Verona is timeless. During the period from February 9 to 14, “
Verona in love
“, the quintessential Valentine’s Day event, during which the city’s most important places and monuments will be enveloped in an even more romantic and evocative atmosphere.
Extraordinary experiences in contact with nature
The Valentine’s Day of
Palace of Varignana
, near Bologna is a true journey of the senses. Not just a dinner but rather two full days to celebrate couples through a gastronomic journey in the Royal Train-Carriage Restaurant And a spa treatment at Varsana spa. An authentic vintage carriage, class of 1921. The only drawback is the cost: 1,300 for two, but it is definitely worth it. For a unique lovers’ night go to the
Antico Podere San Francesco
, located in Vada, in the heart of the Etruscan Coast. Among Tuscan olive trees and vineyards where you can enjoy tranquility surrounded by nature. There are 34 apartments here but the jewel is the Bubble Suite, a room with transparent walls surrounded by the green Tuscan hills where you can rest while admiring the stars (220€ per night). There is no restaurant on the farm, but not too far away you will find the
Castello del Terriccio
with its
Terraforte Restaurant
and here you go on the safe side both for the gastronomic side but especially for the extra-good drinking.
In San Giustino Valdarno (AR), on the occasion of Valentine’s Day,
The Borro
, an Albergo Diffuso hotel and Tuscan farm and winery in the heart of Upper Valdarno offers special initiatives to celebrate love. From relaxing treatments at Spa La Corte to exclusive tastings of the winery’s finest organic wines and tasting menus curated by theExecutive Chef Andrea Campani (€100) and the Wine&Chocolate to discover the sweet combination of wine and chocolate for €45.
To stay “in the middle” but moving to the opposite side of the Peninsula, I couldn’t help but point you to a place where only two people dine. We are in Ascoli Piceno, and this is where you go if you really want to impress your loved one. A unique meeting in the “
Turret
“, on the top floor of the historic Kursaal Palace in Grottammare, which houses Attico Sul Mare, Sara and Simone Marconi’s celebrated restaurant featuring the cuisine of chef Tommaso Melzi. In this beautiful seaside turret there is a unique opportunity, even in winter, for just one table for two in a breathtaking setting.
On the rooftops of the Capital
I am “Roman by adoption,” as they say, since I moved to the capital at age 18 for college and have never left. Therefore, I could not help but have a large slew of places to suggest just in my own city. To get a breathtaking view of Rome you have to go to the
Imago
. You don’t have to spare any expense but you will have Trinità dei Monti and the Spanish Steps in the foreground and a sophisticated and welcoming environment. L’Executive Chef Andrea Antonini is proposing a nine-passage menu for dinner on Feb. 14 at €320 per person excluding drinks. At
Maio Restaurant
the romantic dinner is on the top floor of the Rinascente on Via del Tritone. The view here is also wonderful and the menu costs 75€ per person. At Uliveto restaurant Of the Waldorf Astoria, the menu is delicious and the room refined. Dishes inspired by the fire theme (€290 per couple).
Around the Eternal City
From
53 Untitled
in Campo dei Fiori, dishes with authentic flavors and rich contaminations that enhance the love of the Chef Cecilia Moro for seafood cuisine (95€ pp). For an evening of oriental flavors go to the Dao Chinese Restaurant Montesacro. The menu is sweet/spicy with dishes to share (50€). In its Bistrot version in Bologna Square, same philosophy but leaner menu at 35€. From
Il Pescatorio
(Colli Portuensi area), celebrated fishmonger, delicatessen and seafood kitchen of Simona Bontà and Emanuele Smimmo Valentine’s Day evening will feature a menu with the best that the Tyrrhenian Sea has to offer at €60.
A Valentine’s Day with the Dolce Vita in the elegant Via Veneto. 114 Via Veneto, Cheerfulness. In the heart of Monteverde, inside the beautiful Villa Zaccardi,
Giano Bistrot
for Valentine’s Day has come up with the ”Valentine’s Week” (12 to 18) and tasting dinner with overnight stay in Superior Room at Hotel ** Villa Zaccardi for €220/couple.
One initiative that I really liked is that of the chain
Rocco Forte Hotels
. In all their locations, from theHotel Savoy in Florence, at theHotel De La Ville in Rome, at the De Russie also in Rome there will be a Valentine’s Day Social Table. So Both in pairs and with friends or even alone, you can sit at the sharing table proposed for the occasion. The common denominator? Love. For self, for others, for food and wine, the love of beauty and sharing. A celebration-with the social table flanking the traditional offerings for individual reservations-curated by the dining and kitchen staff that will accompany the tasting of the menu designed by Chef Fulvio Pierangelini, Creative Food Director.
The heat of the South
To close, a place that brings back my Apulia. In Polignano a Mare, which certainly needs no introduction and in terms of romance has few equals. Here is an old farmhouse restored to its former glory. La Masseria AuraTerrae, nestled in the countryside and overlooking the coast. Here, the “Romantic Escape to the Masseria” package includes the 4-course dinner, one-night stay at the masseria, and the very rich Apulian-style breakfast: with dairy products, focaccia, typical breads and pastries, and local jams for €400 for 2 people.
