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Posted at 11:30AM, 13 February 2009 by Emily Boyce - Sub-editor, bbcgoodfood.com

With the 14th falling on a Saturday this year, restaurants around the country will be hoping we forget the recession for 24 hours and succumb to the annual Valentine's swindle. There've been some fantastic deals on eating out since Christmas, but inevitably most of them expire, you guessed it, today. In place of great-value vouchers come set-price menus. I don't know about you, but feeling poor and ripped-off doesn't get me in the mood.

Not that this is the first year that money has come between me and romantic bliss. To my shame, I had to borrow cash off my mum to buy the ingredients for the first Valentine's meal I cooked for a boyfriend. Having slaved over my dry paella , I was so frazzled by the time we sat down to dinner that, when he didn't ask for seconds, I burst into tears.

On being handed the set-price menu, at £50 a head without wine, we were both visibly shaken

A few years later, I decided eating out on 14th was in fact a safer option. I booked the cafe offshoot of a well-regarded restaurant, hoping it would provide affordable but impressive food. Which it probably does, every other night of the year. Foolishly, we hadn't checked what the deal would be for the night, and on being handed the set-price menu, at £50 a head without wine, we were both visibly shaken. The one 'complimentary' glass of a lurid blue cava cocktail did nothing to calm our nerves. Nor did the proximity of the tables - by the end of the evening we were on intimate terms not just with each other, but the whole room.

So it's back to Valentine's-at-home for me and probably many others this year, and there are plenty of options out there for us. I'd hope my cooking skills have improved since my first attempts, so I might have a go at something from our Valentine's recipe collection . My step-sister is making her loved one an afternoon tea spread , with scones, cake, crustless sandwiches and all.

For the kitsch-loving lovers out there, forget flowers, it's a cookie bouquet that'll win their affections. You can even get (sort of) heart-shaped lamb steaks . Cook up some reggae-reggae romance with Levi Roots - as long as you and your partner both like garlic... Or if you fancy a night off cooking, many of the supermarkets are offering deals on restaurant-style meals at home - you can even cross the red rose off your list with M&S's package .

Will you be treating yourselves to a meal out tomorrow, or would you rather save pennies and stay at home?

Comments

Caroline

13 February 2009, 12:50PM
Caroline

I'm taking my husband for a surprise meal at Quo Vadis - Sam and Eddie Hart's newest restaurant. I daren't look at the damage in advance so shall cross my fingers and hope I don't need to finish the evening washing up in their kitchens!

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Aedara

13 February 2009, 3:36PM
Aedara

Having found that valentines meals out tends to mean fixed higher prices for worse food I've decided to make valentines dinner this year (to be fair my boyfriend normally does it but he's at work all day this year). UNfortunatly I've now gone and spent nearly the amount a meal out would cost on ingredients to cook with and have also remembered that I'm not actually that good a cook. But I'm crossing my fingers that this website won't let me down and if it does my man will eat it anyway.

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El Noi Angles

13 February 2009, 5:23PM
El Noi Angles

As I always tell my wife, romantic gestures are only romantic when they are spontaneous - not when the Greeting Card Cartel decide! I'll be doing filo prawns, ribeye steak with a creamy mushroom & gorgonzola sauce and cheese and biscuits - in between watching my team play footie on TV!

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Belit

14 February 2009, 1:12PM
Belit

My husband says Valentine's is the only day of the year on which he'll insist on going down the pub and watch footie with friends, so possibly he is El Noi Angles' unknown brother.... However, we try to have at-home dates at home after the children's bedtime at least every other week. Favorite meals then include crustaceans in some form or another, French patÃ© on freshly made bread with onion marmalade and pears, breast of duck with a salty-sweet condiment of some sort, and a great steak with green salad. Oh, and always a great bottle of wine!

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drusilla

16 February 2009, 12:25PM
drusilla

I did the current GF Valentine's menu - smoked salmon & prawns, mini beef wellingtons & Tia Maria and chocolate creams. Went down a treat! I don't always go in for the whole Valentine scam (didn't even give a card, let alone receive!), and especially agree with you all about the raise in prices for one night! We'll go for a meal when there are some good deals around...

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Suzanne

16 February 2009, 2:40PM
Suzanne

My husband and I don't do Valentine's Day, but we do normally go out for dinner on Saturdays, so last weekend our plans were a bit scuppered. No way was I going to be ripped off by a set-price menu when I know I can cook something just as good (dare I say better?) myself. So I made fillet steak with wild mushroom sauce, roast garlic mash and veg, then baked figs with honey and cinnamon. Very tasty, and would have cost us a fortune in a restaurant. Also, when you cook at home, you get to choose the music AND don't have to go back outside into the cold!

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sandra_b

17 February 2009, 12:08PM
sandra_b

i must admit we always eat in. the part that took the longest time was choosing a menu that wasn't too fussy but delicious. after aome preparation earlier that day, we spent the early evening at the cinema and came back to a romantic three course meal with the obligatory bubbly.

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Mrs Chutney

20 February 2009, 8:16AM
Mrs Chutney

Saturday was Market day & that meant, for once, being at the shops at 7.30 was a bonus. It meant first choice at M&S for the special Â£20.00 meal . I know it is a marketing ploy, but pate, steak and raspberry & white chocolate cheescake plus Cava was a great joy after a hard weeks work.

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Toni

13 March 2009, 4:29PM
Toni

I just about convinced my boyfriend to go to my favourite restaurant that has a lovely menu full UNIQUE dishes. Why on Valentines they decide to have a set menu with the same dishes as every other restaurant I dont know. The fact that the menu is unique brought us there its just a shame there was nothing unique or suprising on the menu! Apart from the price!

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Idle Tom

8 September 2009, 2:59AM
Idle Tom

I made my girlfriend some food, so much more romantic than buying some tacky card and a balloon or whatever. Used the <a href="http://www.voucher-code-discount.co.uk">food vouchers</a> to get some cheap salmon and herbs.

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