From homemade truffles to 3D printed roses this week is all about romance here at Brit HQ, and just about everywhere else in the world as well! So, when the folks at HowAboutWe asked if we’d take their couples service out for a spin, we were happy to oblige.
In case you’re unfamiliar, HowAboutWe is best known as a dating site for activity-based dating. You post a date idea, connect with someone you like, and hit the road! In January of last year, HowAboutWe introduced a membership service designed for couples, centered around the idea of going on wonderful dates together. Now they’re setting up thousands of date nights in cities all across the country. As a member, you get a new batch curated date experiences every day, so you can make sure your date night stays fresh as ever. It’s all about falling in love, and staying in love! :)
On one end, dates can be as simple as a free-with-membership pair of cocktails and dessert at a restaurant you’ve never tried in a brand new neighborhood. On the other side, they can be full-on experiences like spending the day sailing on the bay, learning how to make your own ceramics, and the like. It all depends on what type of date night you’re looking for. And guess what? We’ve got a promo code for you! Simply click this link and sign up for free, browse to find a date you like, and take $50 off your first date booking courtesy of Brit + Co. and HowAboutWe! (Note: This offer is valid for new members only, and expires on May 31, 2014.)
We decided to give the two ends of the couples date experience spectrum a try. Read on for a little behind the scenes date night action straight from our editorial staff! :)
HowAboutWe
Azucar Lounge offering a free pair of Mexican Chocolate cocktails along with freshly baked churros. Since the husb has a serious weakness for churros and we only had an hour or two to spare, this was the perfect pick.
We started things off with a smattering of savory bites, including QUESO, and a drink called the Egyptian Queen :) And they had a bunch of installations of these gorgeous illuminated tissue paper flowers hanging from the ceiling. Lots of inspiring DIY moments in this downtown lounge. The churros were delicious and the drinks strong as ever!
Next up, our editor Kate and her boyfriend Chris took a paella-making class at Venga Paella near Jack London Square in Oakland. The owner of the place instructed the class along with his cousin, having both grown up making paella at home. The date started off with tapas and sangria, and everyone in the class shared family food stories as an ice breaker. After that, people continued sipping on sangria and played a life-size Jenga set!
Straight from Kate: Then the paella making began, in a giant 20+ serving paella pan! We watched as he and his cousin built layers of flavor by adding one ingredient at a time, then reserving each perfectly cooked ingredient for later once the rice was added. Paella making was definitely a mix of art and science, using learned finesse and precise timing hand in hand to make one seriously delicious batch of seafood and chorizo paella. The session was relaxed, conversational, educational—passing around ingredients to smell, tasting the broth at different cook stages, recommending places to get ingredients, answering any questions about home cooking—then food was served! IT RULED!
All in all, I’d say Kate hit the date night jackpot. Learning a totally new skill and getting to chow down at the end of it is a pretty awesome Sunday night. And everyone in the class got a paella pan!
