Wether you’re a fresh-faced and love-struck young couple at the start of your fantastic shared journey or a sagging and wearied two-headed husk of hollowed out lies and inertia bound together in a silent emotional death spiral at the end of yours, Valentine’s Day is for LOVERS.
On Valentine’s Day this Monday, Shanghai’s finest and most beloved restaurants and bars are trotting out divine and inspired Valentine’s Day dinner deals catering to you and yours, with sparkling champagne and twinkling candle lights ferrying you into a night of bliss, romance, and euphoria that will never ever end and, of course, last forever just like your love.
SmartShanghai made a big old list of said deals right here. For your convenience.
But what if you’re flying solo this Valentine’s Day? What if you find yourself currently in a committed relationship with personal freedom? What if you're single!
What indeed!
A more astute and perceptive being than ourselves once said, “to love oneself is the beginning of a lifelong romance”. Quite right. Very true. And we can think of no better way of loving oneself than by treating oneself to a nice solo Valentine’s Day dinner for one from our favorite restaurant, Family Mart.
Here are the top 5 Family Mart dinners for one for Valentine’s Day.
***chef’s kiss***
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The European Vacation
French? Italian? We say, why not both! Send your tastebuds on a European Vacation with this double main spread that boasts the best traditional and authentic Continental flavors. On the left we have a rich and creamy, home-style Spaghetti Bolgnaise, warmer than a Tuscan sunset, and on the right is an escargot dish that came in a bag, and then when you open that a series of smaller bags, that evokes visions of a quaint Brittany bistrot. Ooo la la!
Entre deux cœurs qui s’aiment, nul besoin de paroles...
Drinks Pairing:
Only Moet & Chandon brand baby cham, chilled to room temperature.
Suggested Entertainment:
A playfully contemporary revisioining of Italian classic, Dante's Inferno.
John Containtine: HELLBLAZER.
(It's preeeetty awesome.)
Japanese Seafood Surprise
Konichiwa, lovers! Feast your senses on this delictable spread featuring the choicest offerings from Family Mart's seafood section, hand picked by their trained and professional front of house staff, who have carefully unloaded them in huge crates at 3am and thrown them lovingly into the back of the shelves.
You'll be saying huān yíng guāng lín to some sort of astronaut food snow crab, plastic tray mystery squid, and a playful selection of sushi doused in... well, everything Jiro could have ever dreamed of and more.
Drinks pairing:
A huge bottle of Suntory Whiskey that someone will be getting for free if they ever invite me to like a birthday party or house warming party or something like that in the near future.
Suggested Entertainment:
Probably the most romantic game in the Play Station catalogue: Resident Evil: Biohazard. (Gold Edition!)
This game is not at all the most scary thing I've ever experienced and I, of course, made it past the first five minutes. Really.
The "Sweet Home Alabama"
Wait a minute! Is it Valentine's Day or July 4th! Featuring on this classic ode to Americana we've got a respectable and most welcome smattering of mini hot dogs rounded out with a haute cuisine deconstructed corn dog that could have come out of any of the world's most forward thinking kitchens. Talk about Michelin stars and stripes!
Drinks Pairing:
Go on. Get the whole friggin' Heineken mini keg. GET IT DAMN YOU.
Entertainment Suggestion:
The collected works of Vincent Diesel, bootlegged and streamed on a laptop.
American icon. American genius.
The "Nordic Sensations"
Danish and Scando cuisine is having a moment right now, and it's a trend that Family Mart is, of course, at the forefront of. Showcased on our "Nordic Sensations" menu is melt-in-your-mouth bag salmon freshly harvested from the rack next to the Gatorade and a "chocolate sandwich" for desert. Very piquant.
Drinks Pairing:
Flavored vodka travelers. We only got two but we should have got more. That was our oversight. I wanna say... start with 7?
Entertainment Suggestion:
A lot of people know about the Wiccan love potions and rituals but I've also found their extensive line of curses quite useful as well.
The "Anti-Valentine's" AKA "Just Another Monday Night"
My single friends, it's easy to get worked up about this Valentine's Day nonsense but I humbly submit to you that you should just use the night to celebrate yourself and do your own Monday night thing like you would on any other night. For us, that means picking up a fresh bottle of "Chicken Cock" cinnamon whiskey from the Family Mart (yes it does exist!), curling up with a heartwarming and cheerful piece of Russian literature and letting the night unfold as it may...
Happy Valentine's Day, y'all!
Nailed it!
(Yes, that Chicken Cock whiskey is really a thing that exists!)
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