Choosing dinner for a first date

First dates put us surprisingly out of our element for being so much about getting to know someone else. We clean our houses, change our sheets, shave, put perfume in all the right places, and we go out to dinner. Or maybe we cook. We think all these things in our heads about what the person will be like when he/she does this or the other thing. How will she react when I put my hand in hers? How will he feel about my tipping habits?

I'm going out to dinner for my first date tomorrow. I decided cooking would be a little stressful on top of all the butterflies I'm already feeling. But how to choose a place to eat? I've ruled out a couple options - nothing far from the house lest we get, ahem, distracted. Nothing that involves eating with our hands. Nothing too noisy to hear each other. And that pretty much leaves...almost every restaurant within walking distance of my house. So there shall be some fine-tuning. There shall be some discussion. There will be good food wherever we go.

I had a series of dinners about a year ago with my boyfriend where, entirely by accident, I ended up picking his food for him. It wasn't about taking away his choice. It was about the fact that I was taking him to great places where I knew the great dishes to have. I would recommend a few things, and then a few more things, and all of a sudden, "Oh nevermind. I'll just order and you'll love it." He always loved it, if I may say so. Let's hope this new date enjoys the food, or at least the company. :-)

Here's to first dates. May you have wine to loosen up the conversation and the garments and food to keep you nourished through the night.