Love it or hate it?

Yes, like it or not, Valentine's Day has swung round again and whist of course we at The Great Date Guide look forward to Feb 14th with much glee, we want a definitive answer from you all…

Do you love it or do you hate it?!

Does it provide a healthy reminder to spoil your loved one, or does it purely serve to make those single amongst us feel rubbish? Does it provide the perfect excuse to treat yourself to a Great Date Guide classic, or does the idea of being surrounded by slushy couples in a restaurant fill you with horror?

Well, whichever camp you're in, we say if you can't beat them, join them. Even if you're a thoroughbred 'anti-Valentine', surely an excuse to treat yourselves is no bad thing?

So, if you've left it to the last minute, check out our Valentines round up for some inspiration, or perhaps our guide to some fabulous last minute date ideas - you never know, you might even enjoy yourselves?!

(PS - if you need some emergency red roses like the ones above, click on this link and enter promotion code TGDGLOVE12 to get 10% off your order!)

Ditch the Fancy Dinner...

Miss Mary has asked her friends at TasterLab to give her their suggestions for a fun and frugal alternative to the typical Valentine's dinner... Take a look at what they have to say!

The idea of Valentine’s Day immediately conjures up images of candles, white tablecloths and a dozen red roses... Something about all of the hearts and red and pink stuff feels a little, well, clichéd and maybe just a bit boring, right? It’s doubtful that years later you’ll turn and look lovingly into your man/woman’s eyes and say, “Darling, remember that tender moment we shared over a plate of meatballs on Valentine’s Day?”  

While this ubiquitous Valentine’s celebration is the old standby and usually goes over pretty well - why not make this year an occasion you’ll never forget?

One sure fire way to make certain the time you spend with your significant other will be remembered forever is to try something new together - you know, mix it up a little. This is what TasterLab is all about - encouraging Londoners to get out there and do something different. 

Clearly attending a cocktail making class and whipping up some delicious creations together is a lot more memorable (unless you enjoy the cocktails a little too much!) than just being served a bottle of wine in a stuffy restaurant. 

Beyond the hilarity that could ensue from trying something together for the first time, it doesn’t get more exciting or thoughtful than surprising your partner with something completely unexpected like a romantic evening of tango or a private cooking class for two. 

So in honour of discovering something new and perhaps something new about each other in the process, below are some of TasterLab’s best experiential tasters to share with your other half in celebration of the most romantic day of the year.

And for those of you without a specific Valentine in mind this year, we also have arranged a special TasterLab event at Open Kitchen where you’ll get to wine, dine and learn a few things about cooking up an amazing meal all in a room with 19 other lovely singles (10 guys and 10 girls). And just maybe you’ll meet someone to share one of these amazing experiences with next year? Click here for more info.

1. Piazza Martini St Valentine’s Lovers’ Cooking Lesson for Two / £175 - 50% Off / Your Home

Don’t just eat a meal - learn how to create it and all the techniques involved so you can do Valentine’s dinner as many times as you like. Two experienced Italian chefs will come to your own kitchen and show you all the tricks to making a delicious meal - a starter of Vegetable Crème with Scallops, homemade Taglioteli with seafood Al cartoccio and a dessert of spicy mousse of black chocolate. A bottle of white wine is included. 

2. Tango with Rojo y Negro / £5 - 50% Off / Queensway & Farringdon

Tango is absolutely the most sensual and passionate of all the dance styles. While it might sound a little intimidating - this group beginner’s class means you won’t be the only couple stumbling around. And even if you discover that you aren’t the next world champion ballroom dance couple, it is really nice to have a laugh together, right? Plus, the classes take place in two excellent venues - one of which, the Union Tavern, doubles as a gastropub stocked with more than 80 wines. So if it takes three to tango (you, your partner and a glass of wine), the option definitely exists.

3. Two-Hour Group Cocktail Making Class / £10 - 80% Off / Central London

Why go out and spend a bunch of money on drinks when you can spend just a little and learn how to turn your own home into a lovely drink destination? Celebrate Valentine’s a day early (classes are on Mondays) with a cocktail making class with your significant other. One of London’s leading mixologists, Dan Thomson, will lead you and the rest of the group in learning everything you need to know to create everything from the classics to a delicious original creation of your own. 

4. Two-Hour Paddleboarding Session followed by a Two-Course Meal for Two / £69 - 48% Off / The Thames

Rather than the ubiquitous Valentine’s Day gifts of flowers or perfume, give your partner the gift of an adventurous experience with you on the Thames. Active 360 has put together a lovely couples’ package of a two hour paddleboarding lesson followed by a romantic meal for two at one of several delicious restaurants including traditional British, French and Italian options. This couples’ class can be redeemed any time before the 31st of October so feel free to wait until the weather is a little more favorable for outdoor activities. 

The Great Date Guide & Lovestruck

We're soooo excited about this one! 

The idea is this: Dating should be fun, interesting and exciting and quite frankly in London, it should be spectacular! Now you regular GDG followers will of course know all of this already, but how to spread the word to London's dating population? How to persuade the masses to ditch their boring dinner for two and use this glorious city for all it's worth?! 

Well, we think we've found the answer. We've teamed up with the fabulous Lovestruck, London's leading online dating service, and are going to be offering their members a monthly GDG date suggestion. What's more, each month we will be giving away said date to a lucky 'Lovestrucker' (or several) for free! Isn't that just amazing?!

This month's suggestion and prize is the truly original and inspirational Romantic London tour by smallcarBIGCITY. It's hard to describe just how cool this date really is, but if you can imagine smoothing your way around London's most romantic spots with Barry White in the background (no, not literally), champagne and chocolates, perhaps you'll get the idea at least. 

So if you're single, you love London and you like getting something for nothing, sign up to Lovestruck today - for free of course - and this fabulous date could be yours!

It's deal o'clock

It's January, we're heading for a double-dip recession and lets face it, money's tight. Well, if I've succeeded in depressing you with my very first sentence, let me lift your spirits with news of some tip top nightlife deals, courtesy of our pals at designmynight.com. Design my night are all about finding you a perfectly tailored night out for the right price and with the launch of their 'deals' section, you'll get all this with a fabulous discount too!

Take this week's special deal. Head for some serious deep South fare at Shaker & Company, a wonderful New Orleans inspired cocktail bar near Regent's Park.  Enjoy two delicious shaker cocktails, brought to you by some serious cocktail experts, in combination with a vast array of true American soul food, all for just £15. Yes my friends, that's a 50% discount... for nothing!

So if you're in need of a night out and you're after some info on London's best bars, pubs and nightlife, head directly to designmynight.com, and let them, quite literally, 'design your night'.

Free Cinema Tickets!

By now you should know that we love the Aubin Cinema in Shoreditch. Well, what's not to love? Intimate atmosphere, comfy velvet sofas, blankets, friendly staff, Cowshed products in the loos, bottles of wine at your seat... all finished off nicely with an inspired and eclectic programme of films from quirky art-house to action packed blockbuster.

Having read the above (and our Aubin Cinema review here) we can't think of any reason why you wouldn't want  2 free tickets!       

So, in order to help you beat the January blues, the lovely team at the Aubin Cinema have given us a pair of tickets to give away. All you have to do to be in with a chance of winning them is to answer this simple question:

Which actor or actress would be your ideal

movie date and why?

You can post your answer here on our blog, on our facebook or twitter page, or you can drop us an email.

However you decide to enter, make sure you do it before midnight on Tuesday 31st January 2012 as that is when the competition closes!

Good luck,

Miss Mary xxx

Balham dinner date...

So, a little punchier than our usual reviews... this one comes curtesy of the ever cynical Frank, of Dead in Balham fame, who took his long suffering girlfriend (SallyServesItUp) for dinner at Lamberts in Balham.

Here's what he has to say about it!

"On learning I live in Balham, everyone – taxi drivers, colleagues, the homeless – says that it’s a dump. Or they put on a cod American accent and talk about the “gateway to the south” (a completely non-hilarious radio sketch performed by Peter Sellers). But they don’t know, do they. They don’t know about Balham’s proximity to Nappy Valley, and its wide open tracts of common land, and its excellent transport links and its fine period housing stock. And – because of all of that – its selection of fine dining establishments, as demanded by the sharp-elbowed hipsters of deepest south London.

There’s Harrisons, and Dish Dash, Gazette and a host of excellent curry houses. And there’s McDonalds and a host of dirty chicken shops for those bereft of tastebuds. But the jewel in Balham’s firmament, the brightest star on the Northern Line and the best place to take a date in the SW12/17 postcodes is clearly Lamberts. A restaurant which is a fixture on the scene amongst local gastronauts, and is guaranteed to be busy – even to the extent of a second evening service – any time you fancy popping along. Lamberts is handily placed for the tube (on the off chance you want to escape Balham’s delightful environs), so there’s really no excuse. Sal and I popped along just before Christmas for a bit of a seasonal jolly. I had an expertly-mixed and suitably-dry gin martini (the ultimate test of any barman), and moved swiftly through the menu, sampling an excellent crab starter (black pudding for me), ox cheek and pork belly respectively, rounding off with creme brulee. Why not? We waddled home, sweating.

The dining room is big and bustling, but carefully lit to ensure success of all but the most furtive of dates; ask for a corner table to ensure complete anonymity. And at £30 for a three course dinner it’s extremely good value, especially as all the top-notch grub is seasonal, locally-sourced (where possible) and the sort of heritage variant, traditionally reared produce that the upwardly-mobile of Balham demand (to confirm, that’s a father in the City, a mother who plays at PR and a Polish nanny looking after two blonde under-fives).

If you’re in the area – or even if you live the other side of London - and want Chez Bruce style food and atmosphere – without the price tag – then this is the place to be."

Thanks Frank!

p.s. I'm presuming that you're downwardly-mobile?!?

It's January!

Happy New Year from all of us here at the Great Date Guide!

January always feels like a bit of a let down after Christmas and New Year so we thought we'd let you know about a few great things going on in London this month that are worth getting out of bed for...

On until the end of the month, La Soiree is one of our favourite winter nights out in London. Full of cheeky humour and jaw dropping acrobatics this is a January must!

Lots of London's ice rinks don't close until mid January so, if you didn't manage it before Christmas, get your skates on and book tickets! Click here for our guide to the best rinks...

If you fancy something a little bit different then maybe you should check out the London Mime Festival, taking place on the Southbank between the 11th and 29th of this month. A good excuse if you're lost for words on your date!

So, to beat the January blues, we suggest taking a look at the website for a full guide to what's on in London this month and, as usual, let us know if we've missed anything out!

Happy 2012.

Miss Mary x