Glance at today's date.
Uh-oh. The heart skips a beat. It's here -- Valentine's Day. And here you are -- a stupid cupid with no reservations, no game plan. No way.
Sure, love conquers all, except forgetting to have something -- anything -- in the works for your heart's desire. Before showing up empty-handed only to suffer more slings and arrows than Cupid's quiver could ever hold, take heart. The Style staff has arranged a nontraditional, no-reservations-required bouquet of ideas.
Now that's amore!
DAVE & BUSTER'S
10900 Bass Pro Parkway, Little Rock, (501) 777-3800, daveandbusters.com
Loud. Sporty. Greasy. What could be romantic about that?
Everything!
Dave & Buster's, conveniently located near the his-and-hers Bass Pro Shops/Outlets of Little Rock shopping Shangri-La, is for the comfortable couple. They're content with the casual intimacy of splitting one of D&B's Shareable Apps like the "Mountain O' Nachos" (perhaps pass on the bucket of ribs and sliders with fries known as the "Caveman Combo" just this once), sipping on Cherry Limeade Glow Kones with light-up ice and ordering one cookie-brownie Brookie Sundae Tower, two spoons.
After dining in the amiably busy bar, the power couple will load up a Power Card and play games for two, like air hockey and a life-size Connect Four. Who needs a boring box of chocolates, when they can engage in a playfully competitive round of Candy Crush instead? He'll earn enough credits for her to take home a giant stuffed animal or, more realistically, a tiny shot glass. And he'll win her low-maintenance heart.
-- Jennifer Christman
ARKANSAS SKATIUM
1311 Bowman Road, Little Rock, (501) 227-4333, ArkansasSkatium.com
Warm a loved one's heart by planning one of the coolest Valentine's dates in central Arkansas. At 6 p.m. today, this long-established West Little Rock ice skating venue offers a sweet treat of a show, Valentine's on Ice, an annual exhibition by the venue's figure
skating students of all ages. Be sure to dress warmly and take a blanket to sit on for the performance, set to last about an hour. Admission to the show is $5 (children under 5 are free).
Sorry, there won't be any open rink action tonight. But those who would like to do some ice skating can do so from 1 to 3:30 p.m. today. Admission to skate is $13 per person; $10 if you have your own skates.
-- Linda S. Haymes
BARNES & NOBLE
11500 Financial Circle Parkway, Little Rock, (501) 954-7646. barnesandnoble.com
Even the most romantic restaurants spring for Valentine's Day just once a year. Only the bookstore has a permanent romance section.
Cozy up amid snug shelves that throb with the hottest trysts, including Jennifer Probst's Any Time, Any Place: "He flashed her a grin. White teeth blinded her." And Karen Marie Moning's Feversong: "Her hands are on me, everywhere."
Stroll hand-in-hand to the newsstand for Cosmopolitan magazine's latest tips on slap-and-tickle: "Guys share how they really feel about your feet."
(But drop that copy of Playboy, mister. They don't show bunnies in the buff anymore, so there's no reason to pick it up in the first place.)
Finish off the perfect evening in the cafe, with a steaming pair of hot chocolates on the table -- and a game of footsie under the table, the way men really like feet.
-- Ron Wolfe
LITTLE ROCK CLIMBING CENTER
12120 Col. Glenn Road, Little Rock, (501) 227-9500, littlerockclimbingcenter.com
Scale new heights with your sweetie with a trip to the Little Rock Climbing Center. They've got climbing walls so you can literally hang around with your valentine and get in a good workout. There is also a bouldering area, spaces for top-rope climbing and other stations for the experienced mountaineer or the novice.
Day passes are $15 for adults; full equipment rental, including shoes and a harness, is $8.
-- Sean Clancy
DEER WITH A DEAR
Two Rivers Park, 6900 Two Rivers Road, Little Rock, (501) 371-4770, pulaskicounty.net/two-rivers-park/
My idea is romantic and inexpensive, but it requires decent weather: at-dusk photo safari in the wildlife-watching pavilion in Two Rivers Park.
What you need is a small picnic and your smartphones. At dusk, you'll park in River Mountain Park near the Little Rock foot of Two Rivers Park Bridge, which is open 24 hours a day. Stroll hand in hand about 1 mile to the deer-watching pavilion in the park. Sit and wait for deer to show up. Take their photos. The park closes at sunset, but the bridge also stays open 24 hours so you can saunter back to your car.
-- Celia Storey
MAKE IT PERSONAL
It is difficult to think about how to impress a lover of long standing, one who knows your tricks and fallbacks and with whom you share a history. Reservations and flowers can feel obligatory, and obligation is the death of romance in so far as it suggests the transactional nature of the relationship. The last thing you want to do is something grudgingly or reflexively, to signal that the gesture is in response to a commercial imperative.
So understand what is important: All human beings seek intimate connection and there are ways to quietly affirm your good luck at having found favor. The everyday wine should suffice, as should the kitchen table and the regular china, which should be the best china anyway.
What is important is that you attend to your lover, that eyes meet and things are easy between you. Netflix and a blanket are fine, maybe a small dog or two. If you insist on practical tips, think about Al Green or Marvin Gaye or John Hiatt, Rosanne Cash or Nina Simone, maybe a malbec cose or cabernet franc or, if you're up to it, a bright glass of Irish whiskey -- but only if it matters to you, only if it has some currency in the private dialogue you have been conducting. In short, if you genuinely need any instruction beyond a prod to follow your own heart, I can't do nothing for you, son.
-- Philip Martin
A PINT OF LOCAL
What's so great about Arkansas craft breweries, besides the beer? Most of them have tasting rooms for sampling their wares -- if not full-fledged kitchens offering dishes such as a muffuletta pizza at Vino's, a barbecue pulled pork sandwich at Lost Forty Brewing, Thai-chili style wings at Diamond Bear Brewing Co. and beyond -- so they are perfect last-minute date spots for lovers of craft beer on Valentine's Day.
No hassle, no mess; just good beer, good food, good conversation.
The number of Arkansas-based craft breweries has exploded in recent years, too, with about 30 Natural State breweries operating -- and more being planned -- so there are plenty of options out there. And many of the breweries in Little Rock, North Little Rock and Northwest Arkansas are close enough together to hit a handful or more in an evening. Why not have a little brewery crawl on Valentine's Day?
-- Shea Stewart
CROSSING THE BRIDGE, CROSSING THEIR HEARTS
Junction Bridge, Riverfront Park, Little Rock River Market District; Kroger, 1900 N. Polk St., (501) 663-4748
Here's a nontraditional and exceedingly inexpensive do-it-yourself Valentine's date. Begin with a stop at the Kroger store in the Heights, which now has a pizza station with cooked-to-order pies. While waiting, visit the floral department and buy two romantic flowers.
Then head to Little Rock's Riverfront Park with your sweetie and stroll to the middle of the Junction Bridge, where you can stop, gaze deeply into each other's eyes and pluck the petals and let them waft into the breeze down to the Arkansas River below while you whisper "she/he loves me; she/he loves me not."
Take a selfie and post it on Facebook for all your friends to see. Then take the pizza to the Belvedere Pavilion for a romantic tete-a-tete.
One caution: Make sure beforehand the flowers have an odd number of petals so you can end up on she/he loves me.
-- Michael Storey
BAREFOOT STUDIO
3615 Old Cantrell Road, Little Rock, (501) 661-8005, barefoot studio.com
Leave your troubles at the door and get all blissed out with a yoga class. It's the buddy system on a mat.
Established in 1995, Barefoot is one of the oldest yoga studios in the city and offers a wide variety of yoga classes, perfect for beginners to advanced yogis. Nothing says "I love you" like holding hands while lying on your back in the "corpse pose," also known as savasana.
New members get their first week free, so if you try it and like it, you can try out different classes at different times of the day to see what suits you both. Yoga attire and other related garb and gear are offered in a small boutique area, so gift-giving is made easy on the spot.
-- Cyd King
ARKANSAS ARTS CENTER
MacArthur Park, 501 E. Ninth St., Little Rock, (501) 372-4000, arkansasartscenter.org
If you're 18 or older, the two of you can drop into Studio 8 and draw or paint a live model during Drop-In Figure Drawing and Painting, 6-9 p.m. today, part of a series of weekly sessions through March 7. The admission fee is $20 -- to be paid at the door, cash only -- but you're on your own, no formal instruction provided (the instructor is present only to coordinate the class and model). Visit the website, arkansasartscenter.org/adult-classes/drawing.
And if you're looking for a day date, scope out the Arts Center's current exhibitions, including "Ansel Adams: Early Works," (through April 16), landscape photos from the early years of Adams' career; "Herman Maril: The Strong Forms of Our Experience," (through April 16), paintings by the Mid-Atlantic modernist; "Photographs by William E. Davis," (through April 16), more than 700 photos by the Arkansas photographer; and items from the Arts Center permanent collection, including drawings, contemporary craft, paintings, sculpture, prints, photography and decorative arts.
Hours today are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is free.
-- Eric E. Harrison
ALTITUDE TRAMPOLINE PARK
15707 Chenal Parkway, Little Rock, (501) 353-1281, altitudetrampolineparklr.com
Romance makes the heart soar. What makes the heart (and the rest of the body) literally soar? Trampolines.
Yes, it's usually crawling with bouncy kids, but adults are allowed to jump, too. In fact, it's considered a form of exercise. So sweethearts can clasp hands, bounce around on the 125 trampolines, dive into the foam pit, and maybe sneak in a smooch or two in between.
It should be noted that today they have a Valentine's "drop the kids off" special, 6-9 p.m., for $20, so there might be more rug rats than usual during those hours.
Hours today are 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Admission is $16 for one hour, $21 for two hours, $26 for three hours.
-- Jennifer Nixon
ECUMENICAL BUDDHIST SOCIETY
1516 W. Third St., Little Rock, (501) 376-7056, ebslr.org
After a day at work, try a different kind of happy hour. The Ecumenical Buddhist Society offers a silent meditation from 6:30-7 p.m. today.
It provides a peaceful, relaxing atmosphere to sit quietly, breathe deeply and reflect on the nature of love in one of its many forms.
Freshly calm and serene, you and your valentine can re-enter the world a little less frantic and maybe even a little closer.
-- Ellis Widner
RIVERDALE 10 VIP CINEMA
Riverdale 10 VIP Cinema, 2600 Cantrell Road, Little Rock, (501) 296-9955, riverdale10.com
Cement your relationship with your sweetheart by being couch potatoes together. (Well, recliner potatoes, anyway!) Take advantage of this theater's side-by-side "electric VIP leather recliner seats." Wash down your Toasted Ravioli, Bavarian pretzel, Fresh Thin Crust Pizza, Buffalo Boneless Wings and/or Loblolly Creamery ice cream (you'll actually have a built-in table to sit it on) with Bud Light, Angry Orchard, merlot or moscato as you take in The LEGO Batman Movie or the new Keanu Reeves action thriller John Wick: Chapter 2 (if it's a first date, ahem, you might want to back off Fifty Shades Darker.) But try to stay awake, OK?
Tickets are $9-$11 for adults. Seats are reserved but need not be reserved in advance; reservations are suggested only for features expected to sell out.
-- Helaine R. Williams
HOME. SWEET. HOME.
Chef Shuttle Central Arkansas, 2100 Brookwood Drive, Little Rock, (501) 712-8700, chefshuttle.com
If stepping out tonight is not your idea of fun, there's still hope for romance -- homebody style. Dial up Chef Shuttle! This restaurant delivery service -- sadly only available in central and Northwest Arkansas -- is just about the best thing to happen to romantic recluses (or singles) since, well, ever.
Here's how it works: Go online to chefshuttle.com, set up an account and enter your address to see your dining options -- there should be dozens. Do this first; it's heartbreaking (been there) to get your heart set on a perfect spread from an out-of-range eatery. Place your order and select a delivery time. You'll pay online, too. Cost is $4.95 plus the regular restaurant prices -- plus the tip. On busy nights such as this, you'd be clever to choose the order-in-advance option and pick and pay earlier in the day.
Then, put on your matching flannel PJs, sit back, turn on a mushy movie and wait for the doorbell to ring. Don't forget to tip the delivery person like you mean it; he saved you from the crush of couples awaiting the next available two-top. Now that's sweet.
-- Kim Christ
Style on 02/14/2017