1 of 2
Mini desserts
Seasons 52 offers a wide variety of mini indulgences in flavors like eggnog mousse with a fresh-made ginger snap, peanut butter crunch, key lime pie, southern-style pecan pie, blueberry and lemon curd, mocha macchiato and Belgian chocolate s’more. Photo by Jessa Pease.
2 of 2
Chef Nadia Ruiz
Date Night cooking instructor Chef Nadia Ruiz prepares appetizers for a Passport to Italy class at Sur La Table. Photo by Jessa Pease.
Valentine’s Day is one of the biggest date nights of the year, and it often sends couples searching for the perfect dimly lit steak house or Italian bistro.
Instead of a standard dinner menu, two Summit establishments, Seasons 52 and Sur la Table offer unique experiences for couples.
For a casually sophisticated meal
At Seasons 52, the night begins with a champagne toast and ends with a tower of mini indulgences, topped with a sparkling candle,.
“We are known as a special occasion destination, so we do a lot of birthdays and anniversary celebrations,” said Michael Gambino, the Seasons 52 Birmingham managing partner. “We’ve actually had people that got engaged at our restaurant, and then they celebrate their anniversary here.”
Gambino said Seasons 52’s ever-changing menu, which is printed weekly, focuses on what is in season, and every meal meets a 475-calorie maximum by using unique cooking techniques such as oak fire grilling.
“We are considered a casually sophisticated concept, so we aren’t stuffy like a steak house,” Gambino said. “We like to use a lot of earth tones so you will see a lot of river stone and earth tone colors.”
He said the blue tones in the wallpaper and the tile represent water, stonework and mahogany represent Earth and Seasons 52 features a fireplace at the front of the restaurant.
This Valentine’s Day, Seasons 52 will be taking reservations and will still feature its winter menu, filled with dark vegetables such as caramelized Brussels sprouts and proteins like venison chops. Wine pairings will also be available.
Seasons 52 has its own master sommelier who puts together a list of wines from all over the world. Guests are invited to sample the wines before choosing a favorite.
“He really highlights wines that you wouldn’t normally know about or order,” Gambino said. “[They are] things that he finds to be interesting and it really lets the guests branch out.”
To finish off the night, mini indulgence dessert shooters come in flavors such as eggnog mousse with a fresh-made ginger snap, peanut butter crunch, key lime pie, southern-style pecan pie, blueberry and lemon curd, mocha macchiato and Belgian chocolate s’more.
For an interactive experience
For most couples, jumping on a plane to Paris, Italy or Spain isn’t an option this Valentine’s Day, but they can divulge in the flavors of those countries at Sur la Table.
Through Sur la Table’s Date Night classes, couples can discover a variety of cooking styles as they prepare a multiple-course meal together. All the Date Nights are themed around countries or styles of cooking such as the Tour of Paris night, which features frisee salad, crispy salmon with french lentils and whole grain mustard crème fraîche, potato galette and lemon soufflé.
Chef Nadia Ruiz divides students into groups of two couples. She said the experience is usually interesting because the couples are doing something they normally wouldn’t.
“The most fun thing about doing the date nights is that you are interacting with the couple, so you see the dynamic in their house,” Ruiz said. “So you are able to tailor it to how that couple works and how they work together.”
Although the most common themes are Spanish, French and Italian for the classes, Sur la Table offers many more including seafood and Chinese nights. To celebrate Valentine’s Day, Sur la Table is offering a Romantic Dinner For 2 class on Feb. 13 at 6:30 p.m., and two Italian Romance classes on Feb. 14 at 5 p.m. and 8 p.m.
Romantic Dinner For 2 features a menu of spinach salad with warm sherry vinaigrette, porcini-crusted beef tenderloin with chocolate-port sauce, roasted fingerling potatoes and caramel pot de crème with cocoa nib cookies, while the Italian Romance features handmade fettuccine with fennel and garlic cream, pan seared diver scallops with orange gremolata, arugula salad and rose cream-filled profiteroles with dark chocolate drizzle.
“It’s not like going to a restaurant for your date night and sitting down, getting served and just talking about something for a couple hours,” Ruiz said. “It is something that is very interactive, and they are both engaging.”
Seasons 52
245 Summit Blvd.
968-5152
Sur la Table
115 Summit Blvd.
298-6382
More date-night dining at The Summit
- Fleming’s Steakhouse - 262-9463
- Genghis Grill - 977-3946
- Lime Fresh Mexican Grill - 969-8068
- Macaroni Grill - 298-7998
- P. F. Chang’s - 967-0040
- Primeaux Cheese & Vino - 623-5593
- The Cheesecake Factory - 262-1800
- Village Tavern - 970-1640
