Dining out: Heart-shaped pizzas, Galentine’s Day and Lake County Flavor Fest
Pizza = love
For some, Valentine’s Day is synonymous with candlelit fine dining. Others would just prefer some pizza. Enter the heart-shaped pie; a great way to acknowledge Valentine’s Day without making too big a deal about it. There’s likely a place nearby where you can enjoy one.
Bella Napoli in Schaumburg is serving up a one-topping, 12-inch, heart-shaped woodfired pizza for $17.99 all month.
CPK offers heart-shaped pizzas Feb. 9-15 as part of its Sweet Deal for Two, which includes one starter, two entrées and one dessert from a prix fixe menu. It starts at $60 and is available for dine-in and takeout. Restaurants are located in Deer Park, Geneva, Oak Brook and Schaumburg.
Giordano’s heart-shaped deep-dish pies are available for dine-in, carryout and delivery Feb. 12-15. All classic medium deep-dish options are available as heart-shaped pizzas.
Lou Malnati’s 9-inch, heart-shaped, deep-dish pizzas are back and available through Feb. 28 in cheese, pepperoni and sausage. And, as a bonus, Lou’s is donating $1 for every heart-shaped pizza sold to local Make-A-Wish chapters, which help grant wishes for local children facing critical illnesses.
Moretti’s is offering a 12-inch, thin-crust, heart-shaped pizza with one topping for $17.99 throughout February. Locations are in Barrington, Bartlett, Elgin, Fox Lake, Hoffman Estates, Lake in the Hills, Mount Prospect, Rosemont and Schaumburg.
Thanks, Leslie Knope
Some holidays are made up by greeting card companies, some by sitcoms. While “Seinfeld’s” Festivus lives on as a great joke, Galentine’s Day, inspired by a 2010 episode of “Parks and Recreation,” has become a real-life thing. Research from OpenTable showed that Galentine’s Day dining is at an all-time high and has increased 34% year-over-year. Here’s what local restaurants are offering.
Fat Rosie’s is serving a three-course Galentine’s (and Valentine’s) fiesta starting at $60 for two. The prix-fixe menu includes a shareable starter, two entrées, a chile ancho chocolate brownie to finish, and two drinks to toast the night. They have suburban locations in Frankfort, Lincolnshire, Lincolnwood, Naperville, Oak Brook, Rosemont and Schaumburg.
The Hampton Social is offering its Sip, Shuck and Smash Experience for groups of four or more Feb. 9-13. For $49 per person, the group can enjoy bottomless carafes of H Rosé or Hampton skinny margaritas as well as unlimited oysters, Parmesan truffle fries and Wagyu smashburger tacos. The two-hour dining experience can be booked any time of day and all guests in the party must participate. Locations are in Burr Ridge, Skokie and South Barrington.
LAGO in Lake Zurich is putting the spotlight on Galentine’s from 4 p.m. to close Wednesday, Feb. 12, with a special edition of its weekly “Girl Dinner Thursday Experience,” which includes a Proper Caesar, truffle fries, rigatoni alla vodka and a classic martini for $30. Reservations are available at OpenTable.
Head to flavortown, err, county
Nearly 100 restaurants will participate in the third installment of Lake County’s Flavor Festival in February.
The monthlong campaign highlights Lake County restaurants, breweries, distilleries and wineries with exclusive dining offers, food and drink pairings, chef demonstrations, special cocktails, live entertainment and other promotions to attract new guests.
Head to visitlakecounty.org/flavor-festival-listings for a full list of participating businesses and their specials.
Visit Lake County is also hosting a Check-In Challenge, with an opportunity to be placed in prize drawings if you visit five or more locations.
• Email dining events to rwest@dailyherald.com.