The most romantic restaurants in Texas

This on-trend eatery on Greenville Avenue has made a big impression on Dallas residents looking for a relaxed but refined neighborhood spot for a special-occasion dinner. The menu skews Mediterranean with a heavy emphasis on Italian, so you can find wood-fired fish and meat, housemade pastas, thematic appetizers like burrata & lobster and charred octopus with harissa and artichokes and a beautiful Italian-dominant wine list. 

Wine lovers and couples on date nights flock to St. Martin’s Wine Bistro in Old East Dallas thanks to its quaint old-school space, French-influenced menu and knowledgeable servers ready and willing to recommend the perfect bottle to complement your meal and evening. The restaurant also features a live pianist after 5pm every night, so you can enjoy your meal with a side serenade. 

For a Dallas dinner outing with a high level of grandeur, head to Mister Charles in Knox/Henderson. This Euro-focused restaurant with global flair pulls out all the stops: marble bar tops, elaborate wall hangings, intricately upholstered banquettes, chandeliers and floral arrangements, all present and accounted for. Appetizers like corn and truffle beignets and entrees like Wagyu short rib Wellington add to the luxe vibes of this space, and rich desserts like the chocolate gateau with caffe latte gelato make an ideal end to a romantic feast. 

Looking for a great steak in a mid-century modern dining room with vintage-inspired sophistication? That’s exactly what you’ll find at Tango Room, a classy Design District steakhouse with a world-class wine list. Settle into a red leather banquette and enjoy a 14-ounce rib eye slathered in truffle butter. You and your partner deserve it. 

An open kitchen can be an appealing choice for a date, as it gives you and your companion the opportunity to get in on the culinary action. Oporto Fooding House & Wine in Fourth Ward offers diners a glimpse at the behind-the-scenes magic, but it also provides a sleek yet inviting environment in which to indulge in inventive Portuguese-accented fare like bacalhau with egg, potato and linguica sausage, Portuguese squid fried rice and lamb and beef meatballs with mint and preserved lemon.

One of Houston’s most acclaimed steakhouses, Brenner’s on the Bayou, also gets major accolades for its garden surroundings and welcoming cabin-inspired interior design. For maximum romance, grab a table on the outdoor patio and look out at the stunning landscaping while enjoying a wonderfully over-the-top seafood tower and a juicy center-cut filet mignon. 

State of Grace refers to itself as a “fancy neighborhood restaurant,” so guests can find both local-haunt warmth and formal-dining polish here. The menu blends New American, French and Italian traditions in a sophisticated manner, and shareable items like the Grand Plateau seafood tower and the Bistecca alla Fiorentina for two are excellent choices for an indulgent night out. 

Contemporary Italian fare made with fresh produce from the nearby Houston Farmers Market and served in a clean and very grownup dining room? For Houston gourmands with a taste for the finer things in life, that’s an on-point recipe for a memorable date night, and that’s what you’ll find at Potente in Downtown Houston. Don’t skip the black truffle pasta (unless you want to go with the even posher white truffle upgrade instead)!

Soul-warming French food with no pretense or snobbery is the name of the game at Brasserie Mon Chou Chou in San Antonio’s Pearl District, and diners on dates appreciate this venue’s rich and deeply flavored dishes, carefully selected assortment of French wines and showstopping desserts that are both easy and fun to share. The Fondant au Chocolat Noir with an ultra-rich chocolate cake and gold leaf feels especially celebratory.

At the Hotel Havana on the Riverwalk, Ocho offers an ambitious and hugely appealing menu that merges Texan, Mexican and Cuban flavors. The jewel-toned color scheme and cushy velvet booths give the restaurant plenty of vibrant flair, and dishes like Calle Ocho with ribeye, chimichurri and tomato confit and Chile Relleno with poblano and guava match up flawlessly with Ocho’s beloved margaritas. 

Sometimes, a couple is more in the mood for a “snack date” than a “dinner date.” Cured knows exactly how this feels and is always prepared to cater to nibblers with high standards by serving exquisitely designed charcuterie boards loaded up with delicacies like chicken liver mousse, 90-day pork belly, local goat chevre and pickled pimento cheese. If you feel like moving on to something more substantial after your cheese-and-meats spread, Cured has you covered with options like boudin empanadas, steak frites and smoked chicken gumbo. 

An under-the-radar restaurant tucked away in a North San Antonio strip mall, Clementine may not seem like the most obvious destination for a romantic date, but insiders know that this modern American restaurant features some of the city’s most engaging and unique dishes. Daters who take food seriously and want to try the very best will love Clementine’s “Feed Me” option, through which you can turn control over to chef/owner John Russ and let him create a shareable menu that’s designed around seasonal ingredients and your personal preferences.