Winter in Chicago can be downright ornery, with sub zero temperatures, Arctic winds and mounds of that salty, black slush that just loves to ruin your boots, leaving you shivering below depressing, grey skies. Before cabin fever puts a strangle hold on you, make a double take on all the good things we have around here! And with Valentine’s Day being just around the corner, you need to come up with something a little different than what everyone else is doing without breaking the budget!
The first place you're definitely going to want to check out is the Garfield Park Conservatory for their annual Chocolate Festival! It happens the weekend before the big day, allowing you to indulge your sweet tooth and take in some of the most beautiful exotic flowers at the same time, all while being in a warm and soothing environment. Sure does break the mold on the old fashioned staple, now doesn’t it? After dark, head due east to Millennium Park for their Museum of Modern Ice Exhibition! Who knew frozen water could be so breathtakingly stunning? (Well, perhaps the Inuits do, but then again, they have a whole dictionary full of words to express their respect and awe, so go figure!)
Now, for those of you who love to put things off until the last minute, scoring a reservation at a fine dining establishment is probably out of the question, especially on the 14th! Besides, the mantra of the procrastinator is, “Reservations? We don’t need no stinking reservations!”. Fortunately for Chicagoans, there are plenty of places to wine and dine your snuggle bunny that don’t require more than a little patience. Italian restaurants abound around here, and their traditional dark and high backed booth settings make them the perfect places to drop on by. Gullivers on the far north side has plenty of seating to accommodate even Reverend Moon’s reception parties, the place is just so darned purty and wow – the pizza ain’t half bad neither! La Villa’s is another great spot for good food, of which they tend to feature items like Surf and Turf without costing an arm and a leg.
But of course, there are those who wrap their question popping around the most romantic of holidays, and I can’t think of a more memorable place to do so than right at home, where the mood is allowed to strike immediately afterwards. In this case, I recommend hitting the Sunflower Market and offering to make the dinner yourself! They have just about everything you need to make the night special, but it’s their customer service that wows me every time! Just remember us ladies get just as scared as you guys do, so relax and enjoy the moment!