At the risk of alienating the deep end of the dating pool I’ve never met, sometimes dating doesn’t need to require a lot of thought. Preplanning activities, dinner and conversation necessitates an investment of time that we aren’t willing to make.
It’s not that Ms. Right-for-Saturday-night isn’t worth the effort, but the days leading up to Saturday are action-packed with more work than you’re getting paid for at your full-time job. You’d have time for forethought if you weren’t in bed by 8.
Don’t stress. Thankfully, there are places such as the Movie Tavern (18605 E. Hampden Ave., 303-680-9913, movietavern.com) that make a quality date night easier than, um, well, you can’t think of an appropriate reference anyway. The key here is ease, comfort and quality when it comes to places like the Movie Tavern. Once considered the Wal-Mart of dating (everything, all in one place!), restaurants-meet-cinemas-meet-bars are a wave of the dating future, which stress convenient instead of cheapo. If only your job were so accommodating.
Sit back and recline in the chairs there; they’re more comfortable than your office-issued iron maiden. Order a plate of nachos and a cold beer instead of the requisite stale popcorn and watered-down soda and you’ll see what I mean. The plush confines and first-run movies give you a first-rate claim when you say, with confidence, “It’s dinner and a movie, but much better.” That kind of clarity and insight propels you from “call on Thursday” material to “implied Friday date” strata. Well played.
And you’re ahead of the curve too. “Brewvie” houses are springing up all over the country and the metro area. Smart money is going toward places that take more than just your ticket stub, but also take your order. Landmark Theaters (5415 Landmark Place, Greenwood Village, 303-352-1992) is another example of a similarly styled marriage of chow and flicks. The films there are usually independent (read: possibly subtitled) or smaller-release cinema that you won’t find at your local megaplex. The risk-reward in places like the Landmark theaters are finding films that George Clooney made, but produced rather than starred. Your call.
When you get it right, there’s a moment of self-awareness halfway through the movie when you look over at your date and realize she’s blissfully unaware that you couldn’t make reservations six months in advance at a restaurant you couldn’t pronounce. Then you realize that for tonight, you’re the star. n