Do I need to make a reservation? For that long-awaited date night, instead of going out and enduring long waits and pricey menus, enjoy a restaurant-quality romantic dinner for two in the comfort of your own home. With these romantic dinner ideas straight from the loving arms of our test kitchen, you won’t miss out on anything. These dinner recipes are worthy of any romantic occasion, from celebrating Valentine’s Day and anniversaries to a second date that you definitely won’t want to miss. Whip up a prime flank steak that’s even juicier than anything you’ll get at a steakhouse, or try a picture-perfect recipe for tender stuffed chicken. Celebrate a romantic dinner with a creamy and decadent chicken risotto, or indulge in a rich fettuccine with Cajun sauce.
Enjoy a romantic 35-course dinner for two in the comfort of your own dining room.
Caitlin Bensel, Food Stylist: Tory Cox
Our famous “Marry Me Chicken” has been turned into a hearty rice casserole, with the same flavors of sun-dried tomatoes, basil, oregano and whipped cream, but with the addition of soup sauce and wild rice for a saucerier, casserole-like flavor.
Greg Dupree, Prop Styling: Audrey Davis, Food Styling: Emily Neighbors Hall
For Valentine’s Day dinner or any holiday, go all out with a whole leg of lamb. Season it before cooking to create rich flavor and a crispy skin, then cook it slowly over low heat before turning up the heat to brown the outside.
Photo: Hector Sanchez
This is the best way to cook a thick, juicy, restaurant-style bone-in steak without the smoke. Heat a cast iron skillet over your grill. The surface area of the skillet will give you more flavor than grill grates, and you’ll get a nice sear and steak with a great steakhouse crust. For maximum flavor, spoon herbs and melted butter on top.
Victor Protacio, Food Styling: Richon Hannahs, Prop Styling: Audrey Davis
For a romantic dinner, have your own personal chef: your slow cooker. Licorice-flavored fennel, slightly sweet scallions, and vibrant lemon come together beautifully in this easy slow-cooker salmon dish. Sit back, relax, and pour yourself a glass of wine.
Victor Protacio, Food Stylist: Emily Neighbors-Hall, Prop Stylist: Christina Daly
These pot pies are perfect for date night or hungry guests because they’re easy to prepare in individual ramekins, or you can cook them in one pan for the whole family.The puff pastry is topped with a rich, meaty stew of beef, carrots, peas, and potatoes.
Greg Dupree, Food Styling: Richon Hannahs, Prop Styling: Christina Daly
Even chicken can be made worthy of a fancy, romantic dinner. This simple chicken dish revolutionizes the flavor of classic tomato sauce with the addition of a secret ingredient: capers. Serve over creamy grits or polenta and garnish.
Victor Protacio, Food Styling: Richon Hannahs, Prop Styling: Audrey Davis
Juicy, golden scallops sit on a bed of fluffy rice with a hint of scallion and parsley. Don’t be intimidated by the scallops; make sure you dry them thoroughly before grilling, so they develop a nice crust. Beautifully grilled scallops don’t need much fancy flair to create a five-star meal.
Victor Protacio, Food Stylist: Emily Neighbors-Hall, Prop Stylist: Christina Daly
Sometimes all it takes is a fancy twist on something classic to make for the perfect night in. Pepper jelly and lots of cheese take this French bread grilled cheese to the next level.
Luca Trovato
Indulgently simple: This shrimp and garlicky pasta dish is ready in 15 minutes. For restaurant-worthy presentation, serve immediately with a generous sprinkling of chopped parsley and lemon zest. This garlicky white wine butter sauce is perfect with a good white wine.
Victor Protacio, Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn, Prop Stylist: Kristin Keeley
The secret ingredient in this Mississippi-inspired dish is jarred pepperoncini, whose tart, spicy and slightly sweet flavors add the perfect tangy surprise to juicy pork chops.
Photographer: Antonis Achilleos, Prop Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer, Food Stylist: Mary Clayton Carl
Nothing tastes as Southern and yet as special as pork chops smothered in creamy mustard sauce.
Greg Dupree, Food Styling: Richon Hannahs, Prop Styling: Christina Daly
This easy weeknight dinner is sophisticated enough for a romantic evening. Pink, tender slices of flank steak are tossed in a puree of parsley, coriander, shallots, vinegar, and garlic. Serve with your favorite roasted potato recipe.
Photo: Becky Luigert Stayner
This winner chicken dinner is our new favorite roasted bread dinner that’s perfect for date night or any night in. Brown the chicken on the stove, add the potatoes and herb lemon mix, and roast in the oven. Serve with crusty French bread.
Ian Bagwell
These restaurant-worthy crab cakes will have you feeling like you’re at a seaside picnic. The secret to making great crab cakes is not to overmix the crab meat with the other ingredients. Stirring just until it’s well combined will give each bite a great texture and more enticing flavor.
Victor Protacio, Food Styling: Richon Hannahs, Prop Styling: Audrey Davis
Asparagus and peas lighten up this cheesy pasta, leaving room for dessert, while spring vegetables make the most of seasonal produce, reminiscent of pasta primavera, and lemon zest and dill make this dish as bright as a warm spring day.
Victor Protacio, Food Styling: Richon Hannahs, Prop Styling: Audrey Davis
Juicy shrimp and buttery, garlicky pasta are a combination even Cupid would approve of. Rather than boiling the pasta in water, it’s cooked in a delicious combination of sautéed shallots, white wine, butter, oil and vegetable broth.
Joy Howard
Though it sounds fancy, risotto is relatively easy to make. The addition of corn kernels adds a pop of color to the dish, and the juicy shrimp, seasoned generously with Cajun seasoning, pack a punch of flavor. If you’re making it during the summer harvest, try using fresh corn to sweeten the flavor.
Victor Protacio, Food Styling: Richon Hannahs, Prop Styling: Audrey Davis
Nothing is more classic than roasted chicken, and this roasted chicken is seasoned with roasted rosemary potatoes and orange slices. A vinegar, honey and orange dressing drizzled all over makes the meal even more delicious. Scatter a mix of green and black olives on the plate.
By Jennifer Davik, Styling by Rachel Barrow, Recipe by Darcy Lentz
Juicy chunks of lobster are a perfect match with melted gruyere and cheddar. Macaroni and cheese may not be fancy, but the lobster takes it to the next level. Saffron, sherry and chervil give this dish a more grown-up feel.
Photographer: Jennifer Causey Food Stylist: Rishon Hannahs Prop Stylist: Christina Daly
This is an elegant and easy chicken dinner that makes romantic dining a breeze. Fans of Chicken Marsala will love this rich, cheesy version. Sauté mushrooms in the remaining butter and oil from a skillet, then top lightly breaded chicken with the creamy, dreamy pan sauce spooned on top.
Photo: Jennifer Davik
Baked Chicken Roulade is a luxurious dish perfect for special occasions, yet easy to prepare: chicken breasts are stuffed with sautéed spinach, garlic and asparagus, pan-fried and finished in the oven, then topped with a fragrant and delicate butter sauce.
Jennifer Davis
This flavorful recipe combines chicken, asparagus, zucchini, herbs, and cheese in a flavorful risotto. Arborio rice is seasoned with a splash of broth to create a rich, creamy flavor. This delicious dish is topped with freshly grated Parmesan.
Victor Protacio, Prop Styling: Mary Clayton Carl Jones, Food Styling: Emily Neighbors Hall
In this recipe, the pork is tightly wrapped in bacon for smoky flavor and a crispy skin, seasoned simply with salt and pepper, and topped with thin slices of fresh vegetables tossed in a lemony vinaigrette for extra flavor.
Steven DeVries, Prop Styling: Missy Neville Crawford, Food Styling: Tory Cox
This colorful cacciatore looks beautiful served over pasta. The flavors of pork chops, mushrooms, red onions, bell peppers, carrots, and tomatoes meld together in 30 minutes in a cast iron skillet. Serve with a tossed green salad, warm crusty bread, and a bottle of red wine.
Victor Protacio, Food Styling: Ruth Blackburn, Prop Styling: Audrey Davis
The technique of steaming fish in parchment comes from a French cooking technique called en papillote, in which ingredients (usually fish) are wrapped in parchment and baked. It’s also a great way to prepare individual dinners for two. This recipe uses freshly grated ginger for a very fragrant meal when served with couscous or rice.
Antonis Achilleos, Prop Stylist: Lydia Purcell, Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn
This main dish salad features nutritious leafy greens like spinach, arugula and kale, seasonal fruits and vegetables, and cooked whole grains, all in one beautiful dish. This recipe uses sourdough to make delicious croutons, but you could also use other types of fresh bread, like Italian bread or baguette.
Unlike most lasagnas, this recipe looks very elegant on the table. The pasta should be cooked until al dente so that it doesn’t fall apart on the plate. You can use sautéed mushrooms or spinach instead of the canned artichokes in the recipe, but we like a generous helping of artichokes in our lasagna filling.
Photography: Victor Protasio, Food Styling: Torie Cox, Prop Styling: Kay E. Clarke
The secret to making restaurant-quality lamb is to choose roughly equal pieces of lamb shank, trimmed of excess fat and tendons along the bone. In this recipe, lamb shanks are braised in a red wine and tomato mixture in a slow cooker until tender. Serve with cheesy grits, drizzled with the sauce.
Antonis Achilleos
This meatless pot pie packs a lot of flavor and veggies into a small container. Use a mini cast iron skillet for best presentation. You’ll love the buttery, flaky pastry on top.
Greg Dupree
You don’t need to inform your romantic partner that this easy and quick wilted cabbage dish is ready on the stove in under 30 minutes. Cream cheese with a little pasta water makes for a smooth and creamy sauce. Crumbled bacon and thyme enrich the flavor of this satisfying meal.
Victor Protacio, Food Styling: Tory Cox, Prop Styling: Kay E. Clark
Poached salmon simmers in a slow cooker for 1-2 hours until it’s tender but not dry. Then, sear the salmon and Brussels sprouts with a sauce made with pineapple juice, soy sauce, and brown sugar. Your date will thank you for your efforts with every delicious, flavorful bite.
Caitlin Bensel, Food Stylist: Tory Cox
Perfect for date night, this dish features buttery tender chicken thighs in a sticky sweet, salty, garlicky sauce that also makes great leftovers, and it’s super easy to make, all in the slow cooker.
Victor Protacio, Prop Styling: Audrey Davis, Food Styling: Emily Neighbors Hall
If you’re looking to jazz up your grilled chicken dinner for a fun night, this curried chicken recipe is the perfect way to add a bright and cheerful dish to your lineup. Serve with grilled vegetables and rice.
By Caitlin Bensel, Food Styling: Emily Neighbors-Hall, Prop Styling: Audrey Davis
Cooking pasta noodles in the sauce allows them to absorb flavor and makes cleanup a breeze, and Cajun seasoning adds just the right amount of heat.
Caitlin Bensel, Food Stylist: Tory Cox
This engagement-party-worthy skillet dinner features chicken breasts sautéed in a sun-dried tomato and cream sauce, with white wine, balsamic vinegar, Parmesan cheese, and butter as main ingredients.
