I had thought of boycotting Valentine’s Day altogether-- my spouse and I have no plans and I think that's the way to go. I don’t have to tell you that this is a junk holiday, right? I feel awful when a single friend gets a pinched up look on his face when you mention the dreaded V-day, and I feel even worse watching poor slobs running around Victoria’s Secret trying to arrange some semblance of romance. Oh, the pressure. (Check out Chef Russo’s tale of a Valentine’s date gone very wrong, below.)

Valentine’s Day is also one of the worst times to eat out. Kitchens are overworked, servers are harried, and everyone needs to make their table turns on time so the next couple can sit down and have their champagne and chocolate covered strawberries. Sigh.

But, but. There are some amazing chefs doing some interesting menus, and I’d be remiss if I didn’t tell you about them. And, I realize everyone isn’t as cynical as me. There are still some true lovers out there who will want to celebrate love, and who can argue with that?

Here are just a few options, and yes, you should make your reservations now if you want to get in.

Can you feel the love?

This, from Lenny Russo of Heartland:

"We will be serving the Valentine's menus on February 12, 13 & 14 (Friday through Sunday).  Reservations may not be made online and must be secured by a credit card.  There is a 48- hour cancellation policy that allows people to cancel up to two days in advance without penalty.  Otherwise, they are charged $75 per person.  In the past, we have waived that fee for those who have called to cancel but have missed the deadline as long as we are able to rebook the table.  Extenuating circumstances such as illness, an act of nature or a family emergency are taken into account before anyone is charged. That includes the poor guy who called me a few years ago on February 13th to tell me that he caught his wife cheating on him and was filing for divorce.  Of course, I canceled his reservation without penalty.  As most of you already know, in seven years we have only had to charge people three times.  That includes both NYE and VD when that policy is in effect. As I have often stated, it has proven to be a very effective way of making sure reservations are both secured and honored.

As per usual, we will be offering all of the items from the fixed price menus in the main dining room as a la carte selections in the wine bar. The intention remains to offer folks the option of enjoying those menu items without having to purchase or sit through a five course meal.  No reservations are accepted for the thirty seats in the bar so people should feel free to just walk in at their own convenience.  We open at 5:30 and we seat until 10:30 on both Friday and Saturday in the winebar.  On Sunday, the last seating in the bar is at 9:30.  The main dining room accepts reservations until 9:30 on all three nights.

We are currently about two thirds booked on Sunday and about halfway booked on Saturday.  Friday still has excellent availability in almost every time slot."

Solera is offering a special Valentine’s menu throughout the entire holiday weekend of Feb. 12, 13 and 14. Executive Chef JP Samuelson has created a special 9-course tapas tasting menu for $50, plus tax and gratuity. While the full restaurant menu is available on Friday and Saturday, the Valentine’s menu will be offered exclusively on Sunday.

At La Belle Vie, James Beard award-winning chef, Tim McKee, is creating an eight-course tasting menu that will be offered in the dining room all weekend long (Friday, Saturday and Sunday). It will be the only option available in the dining room Valentine’s “weekend”. The La Belle Vie lounge will offer an option of either a five-course OR the eight-course menu.  The five-course menu is $75 per person, and the eight-course is $95 per person, plus tax and gratuity.

Subo is doing an elaborate take on shared plates. Check out the menu here.

A few other spots where you’re pretty much guaranteed a fantastic meal: Grand Café, Bar La Grassa, 112 (good luck getting in there,) Sea Change, Saffron, Craftsman, Meritage, Ngon.

More later.