Once upon a time – before becoming a parent – scheduled date nights were superfluous and life was frivolous, footloose and fancy free. If it feels like many moons ago since you last spent some quality alone time with your significant other, get your priorities back in check, book a babysitter and reserve a table at one of these favourite date spots!
Spent the day playing catch in the playground? Chances are you’re in need of a carb-loaded spread. Pencil in dinner at Herne Bay’s iconic Italian eatery Andiamo and prepare to wind down with a Negroni and feast on the likes of Spanner Crab linguine, charcuterie, burrata and seven-hour veal and pork Bolognese. Saluti.
Andiamo
Pravda Cafe and Grill
Not all superheroes wear capes – some are called parents. If life has been lacking the finer things of late, it’s time to enjoy a well-earned treat. Cloudy Bay clams, yellowtail kingfish, BBQ banana prawns, day-boat caught fish, freshly shucked oysters (hello, aphrodisiac) …enjoy seafood dishes fresh from the ocean at Euro. Wash it down with a glass of Perrier Jouët and toast to being the ultimate dream team!
Meat your match (pardon the pun) and eat like a king at the famed Jervois Steak House located in both Auckland and Queenstown. Tackle 800g of Taupo beef or the Cape Grim Tomahawk together, alongside a bottle of Central Otago pinot noir. If you’ve still got room the Macadamia Sticky Date Pudding is perfect for sharing.
Shed 5
The Culpeper
For the Wellingtonians, hit up Pravda Café & Grill (Jervois Steak House’s sibling) for an exceptional meat cut and other modern bistro fare like mouth-watering grilled pork scotch and Hawke’s Bay lamb cutlets. If on-the-go, grab a morning espresso (sans fluffy) or leisurely brunch. Feeling fancy? Wine and dine your date at Shed 5 on Queens Wharf and marvel at the building’s history while you feast on seafood from the daily fish market.
Spend an off-duty Saturday in the sunshine at The Culpeper on Princes Wharf. Harbour views and optimal people watching in a relaxed vibe, sip on a spiced mojito and chow down on lunch hour eats like The ‘CFC’ sandwich with Culpeper Fried Chicken, brioche bun and jalapenos. Available from 12pm – 3pm.
What’s your go-to date night spot?
16 May, 2026
We dont go out often but if we do we have gone to a lovely place around the corner from our housecalled Buster Crab. Its really lovely and we can have a drink or two and walk home!
Woah these made me salivate. We usually go to Crab Shack which is beside Shed 5 coz I dig my hands with mussels and crab but this makes me want to try Shed 5 on a more romantic date nights.
It is definitely a luxery to go out for dinner and a movie. We tend to do this during the day and as an added bonus works out a lot cheaper. We also purchased an entertainment ‘book’ for our phone as we only need to use it twice to save the cost of the book. Also lets us try new places in the area.
Wowee these places are definitely something special. They all look truly amazing for date nights. Well my date night is normally just a family tea with the children as we don’t normally have any alone time lately unfortunately. But when we do we have a meal out and a walk along the beach.
Sadly ,hubby and i dont do date nights… we dont have family here and so dont leave our kids with anyone.. so we stay home… late night when kids are in bed is our time to catch up with each other… these places look amazing… would love to go one day.. great looking menu and food
We don’t live in Auckland but when we are up for whatever reason, we always go out for a date night. It’s great to have a few insider options to explore next time we are up and kid free 🙂
As a busy Mum and Dad of two boys, we don’t often get to go out. When we do we usually end up going to watch a movie and sometimes a meal – often this is KFC on our own haha. The luxury of eating and watching a movie in peace is great haha