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A romantic evening with your partner should be a relaxing and enjoyable bit of alone time, but that doesnโt mean the preparation process is quite as stress-free. If youโre the one who planned out the evening then youโre probably realizing you now have to cook the food, get the drinks, and set up the kitchen or dining room ready for this evening. If youโve no idea how to do any of those things well then donโt worry. Itโs the thought that counts most, and your heart is in the right place. Of course, itโs still important that you actually do a good job on a practical level, so here are some tips on setting up the most romantic dinner imaginable.
Getting the food right.
This requires the most careful preparation. Itโs okay to be ambitious with your main course, but you need to think about timing. Mastering how to cook a certain food is one thing, but a romantic evening needs to flow at a good pace. If you know that the main course is going to take a while in the oven then you might want to break up the evening with some appetizers, as suggested over at wikihow.com.
Choosing the drinks.
The word that youโve been waiting to see. Drinks always turn a great evening into a fantastic evening, so Iโm sure youโll have the bottles of Chardonnay lined up ready for the night ahead of you. Youโll want to choose something you and your partner both love to drink, of course. That goes without saying. However, itโs vitally important, above all else, that the drink goes well with the meal. If you take one thing from this guide then it should be this.
Flavors need to complement one another rather than clashing if you want to ensure the food really hits your partner in the way it should do; youโd be surprised by how much the wrong drink (even if itโs a delicious drink) can ruin a meal (even if itโs a delicious meal). You could check out this wine pairing chart – withmywine.com if you need a little help with understanding how to pair up a wine with certain kinds of food. Your taste palette is highly sensitive, and choosing the wrong wine, lager, or any other drink can ruin what was otherwise a beautiful meal.
Picking out an outfit.
The clothes you wear are also an important part of the meal even if youโre not eating out at a fancy restaurant. It may just be a romantic meal at home, but spending the evening with your partner is all about showing that youโve put in the effort. If your partner is a guy then you might want to help him out with picking a suit, as suggested over at mummyconstant.com, because you donโt want him to mess up his outfit and end up feeling underdressed in comparison to you in your beautiful dress. If the roles are reversed and youโre making a romantic meal for your lady then donโt worry because sheโll definitely put in the effort to wear something special.
Setting the scene.
Youโve planned out all the practical elements of the evening, and now itโs time to focus on the fun stuff. Create a romantic atmosphere before your partner arrives home (or before they come out of hiding from upstairs if youโve told them to wait for the surprise). As mentioned over at biggietips.com, even if you needed to let your partner know that you were planning a dinner for the pair of you that evening, itโs important that maintain some subtlety and an air of mystery around the evening. You want to maintain the โwowโ factor when your partner sees all the romantic flowers and lighting or hears the music choice.
Champagne cheers image by ShutterStock.
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