Great Dates in Connecticut for Valentine’s Weekend Romance
Connecticut Magazine February 2015
By Staff
What do you do for Valentine’s Day? Go out for dinner? Pick up flowers and bring home a bottle of wine? It used to be that lovers aspired to be very creative in orchestrating special-occasion dates meant to impress. That got us thinking about how easy it would be to put Connecticut’s manifold amenities center-stage in some great dates this Valentine’s Day. Here’s some inspiration for some good, old-fashioned romance.
Arts & Culture, New Haven Style
Remember when you were young and wanted to impress your lover with a tempting travel daydream? The romantic destinations you conjured surely included Paris, London and Venice. It’s a voyage you can complete amid the cold Connecticut winterscape by building a great date around the exhibit “Whistler in Paris, London, and Venice” at the Yale University Art Gallery in New Haven.
Wherever you’re arriving from, here’s an itinerary for a magical day, or an overnight:
Without stressing, plan to “touch down” in downtown New Haven by mid-morning, the perfect time to alight at the Belgian bakery Maison Mathis for a pre-exhibit latte and croissant, or The Green Teahouse for an authentic Chinese tea experience and, perhaps, an early lunch.
After feasting on the Whistler exhibit—the first Whistler show of its kind for the world-class art museum—it’s time for some self-indulgent shopping at the amazing array of clothing and specialty shops that are collectively branded as The Shops at Yale.
A post-shopping coffee or tea experience is always in order—try Atticus Bookstore Café for a unique experience or take a stroll to the incomparable Blue State Coffee on Wall Street.
As twilight falls, a brisk walking tour of the Yale campus (find the Beinecke Library and the Alexander Calder sculpture in the courtyard) is truly romantic—and it helps work up an appetite to experience what may be New Haven’s greatest strength, its world famous pizza places and fine dining restaurants. There are so very many we love, but for French head to Union League Café, for Spanish it’s Barcelona or Olea, for true Italian Basta Trattoria, Goodfellas, l’Orcio and the new Mario Batali-branded Tarry Lodge, and for pizza Pepe’s, Modern, Sally’s and the off-the-radar insider’s choice, Da Legna.
After such a satisfying day, who wants to drive home? Why not stay the night in sophisticated luxury at The Study at Yale and enjoy more of New Haven before heading home the next day.
READ MORE: Connecticut Magazine Online.
