For single men preparing to go on dates, making sure you look good is just half the battle. Sure, you’ve ironed your best button-up shirt, you got a fresh haircut at the barber’s, and your pearly whites are looking extra pearly. But in order to impress your date, you need to have brains as well as beauty. She needs to be charmed by more than your looks; she will want to be with you because of your mind as well.
One key way to win her over? By using your love of food. Should things go well, you’ll share hundreds of mealtimes together so it’s important to lay the right foundations and show her what a fantastic foodie you are.
Perfect That One Special Dish
Cooking may seem like hard work, but according to the sage chef Martha Stewart, there are plenty of super simple date night recipes that even the worst cooks would excel at. For instance, her “Meaty Man” (steak with wine sauce and potato gratin) is a slightly fancier twist on steak and potatoes, meaning you’ll get to eat one of your favourite dishes but you get to look like a culinary whiz. An asparagus and lemon risotto is also simple to make but on the plate and on paper, it sounds incredibly fancy. Positively, if you’re that bad at cooking, this can work in your favour too. Because food is a conversation starter, being a mediocre cook could help you bond with your date or have her rolling with laughter at your disastrous dinner attempts.
Take Her to Quirky Restaurants
Another reason why women love a man who knows about food is that it can lead to new experiences. So, with that in mind, why not plan a date night at a quirky restaurant? Delight her taste buds with something she’s never eaten before. We’ll bet she’s never had an authentic American hamburger complete with a peanut butter topping, melty American cheese, a juicy meat patty and strips of crunchy bacon? It’s an imaginative combo and every time she eats a burger in future, she’ll think of you. You could also choose places that have outlandish (but not jarring) design or restaurants that are found in places you would never think to look.
Pick Out the Perfect Wine
If you’re still unable to find your way around a kitchen without burning the dinner, singing your eyebrows off, mucking up the seasonings (or all of the above), or if your date is better at food than you are, there’s still a way to make this work. Instead, you can just make it your focus to choose the right wine for dinner. Pair your meal with the correct choice of red or white wine, understanding how to impress your date by picking wines from the most renowned and respected areas and vineyards. Use the amount of salt, acidity, sugar, spice or fat in the dish to help you choose. There are guides to consult online (as well as cheat sheets) and the more you practise, the better you’ll get.
As the saying goes, food is the way to a person’s heart. Admittedly, that route is much harder to travel when you aren’t much of a cook yourself, but it is possible. Use the tips above, go forth and get romantic.
