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Whether you want to impress a new crush, share a special meal with your significant other or toast your 50th Valentine’s Day together, you may want some fresh ideas for romantic restaurants.
Let’s face it, many restaurants try to get noticed around Valentine’s Day, but not all of them will deliver on all fronts – great food, romantic atmosphere, gracious service and special touches that add to the memories you hope to build.
We asked our readers and our peers, and we scoured the region for some of the most romantic restaurants worth that heart-shaped reminder on your calendar.
Whether you plan to dine on the holiday itself, or just want some great options for your next special meal, here are some of the most romantic restaurants worth the trip. As always, and especially on the holiday, call ahead to avoid disappointment.
The Gables Historic Inn & Restaurant, Beach Haven, New Jersey
The restaurant at The Gables, said to be one of New Jersey’s most romantic, is closed in winter but makes an exception for Valentine’s Day weekend.
Tucked inside a Victorian-style inn built in the late 1800s, The Gables is elegant, intimate and warm. In the summer, the restaurant’s gardens bloom with hydrangea, magnolia, sunflowers and impatiens, which grow along stone pathways and hang in baskets on the large front porch.
Diners enjoy a three-course prix fix menu that changes daily, either in a cozy dining room with a fireplace, where wall-mounted mirrors reflecting candelight; on the porch or under a pergola in the restaurant’s courtyard. Dishes include lobster bisque, grilled Spanish octopus, roasted salmon tikka masala, and filet mignon with foie gras butter, with pecan pie cheesecake and orange posset for dessert.
If you visit when the weather is warm, pair dinner with a stroll on the beach for a perfect evening.
Go: 212 Centre St., Beach Haven; 609-492-3553, gableslbi.com
Le Cavalier, Wilmington, Delaware
Elegance defines this upscale restaurant inside the Hotel du Pont, the same hotel that was ranked the seventh most beautiful in a 2025 study by Level Frames.
Decorated with warm lighting, Spanish chandeliers and smoky wood panels, Le Cavalier serves a French-themed menu with tasty options from breakfast to dessert.
Le Cavalier (pronounced: “luh-kah-vuhl-yay”) is French for “the horseman” and the name is a tribute to the du Pont family’s equestrian roots, and the popularity of horse riding in the Brandywine River Valley.
Go: 42 W. 11th St., Wilmington; (302) 594-3154; lecavalierde.com
Andre’s Lakeside Dining, Sparta, New Jersey
Next on our list of top date spots is a cherished Sparta landmark that’s not only one of the most romantic restaurants in the state, but one of the best restaurants in the state overall. Called Andre’s Lakeside Dining, the beloved waterfront eatery is home to breathtaking views – unique to the meadow-reminiscent forest in which it’s tucked – and incredible fare.
Order the truffle cream-topped tagliatelle or a delicate crudo, for example, and be impressed by seasonally-inspired eats that are as delightful as the outdoor scenery against which they’re served. Spring for a dessert, and watch the sun set slowly over a frosty, February lake (don’t worry, the indoor dining room will keep you warm).
Cozy decor, convivial service and a chef whose humble nature ironically made him a local star; every aspect of the picturesque restaurant is exceptional.
Go: 112 Tomahawk Trail, Sparta; 973-726-6000, andreslakeside.com.
June BYOB, Collingswood, New Jersey
What’s more romantic than French cuisine?
This Philadelphia-born restaurant is owned by husband-and-wife team Richard and Christina Cusack. They had opened June BYOB in Philadelphia in August of 2019 and battled through the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic before closing in the fall of 2020 and relocating to Collingswood in August 2021.
French cuisine isn’t exactly plentiful in South Jersey, so when the pair opened June BYOB across the bridge in Collingswood in Camden County, it was welcomed with open arms.
The upscale French BYOB restaurant is named after Richard’s mother and serves his modern take on French classics.
Grilled octopus, confit leeks, duck confit, garlic pork sausage, lardons, foie gras, dates, fingerling potatoes, duck onion jus and Prawn Quenelle, prawn soufflé, scallops, confit tomato, butternut squash and prawn sauce are among the menu items.
Cusack’s culinary resume is impressive: In earlier years, he interned at Michelin star restaurants, including Le Pergolèse in Paris. He spent time in the kitchens of the former Le Bec-Fin, Parc and Le Cheri in Philadelphia, and at Daniel in New York City.
Go: 690 Haddon Ave., 856-240-7041; junebyob.com.
Harvest on Hudson, Hastings-on-Hudson, New York
Rustic elegance defines Harvest on Hudson in Hastings — and that’s exactly what makes this Italian American restaurant such an enduring date-night favorite. There’s something undeniably romantic about a place that more or less looks and feels the same as when you had your first date 25 years ago or celebrated your wedding a decade ago.
At 28-years-young, this waterfront eatery, designed to evoke a Tuscan farmhouse, offers something for everyone, with a timeless charm that continues to feel effortlessly magical.
With its prime Hudson River setting, the restaurant shines in every season – from fireside dining in winter to a vibrant garden and greenhouse in spring and summer, capped off by fall’s spectacular foliage. That same all-occasion appeal carries through to the menu, which ranges from a casual burger and beer (or brick-oven pizza) to an elegant five-course tasting paired with wine.
If that’s not seductive enough: in-season herbs and vegetables come straight from the restaurant’s own garden, plus there’s an outdoor fireplace that all but begs you to snuggle.
Go: 1 River S.t, Hastings-On-Hudson, 914-478-2800, harvesthudson.com
Dining and Cooking