The most popular meals for date night at home

Whilst hosting a dinner for two in your kitchen may seem unromantic at first, there are actually some clever layout strategies that will help level up your living space. First things first you want to clear away any clutter you have lying around. Nothing kills the date night vibe like dirty dishes in the sink.

Lighting is such a small detail that can really make a huge overall impact on the whole feel of the room. If you don’t have a dimmer switch for your lights, turning the overhead lights off and making use of under-cabinet lighting can really add to the seductive atmosphere of the evening. Instead of harsh bright white lights, aim for more warm tones as these remind us of sunrise and sunset. If you do have coloured lighting aim for warm oranges and avoid blueish colours.

Candles are a classic home decor tool for creating ambience in any room. When using candles to transform the kitchen into a date-night hotspot, you can use different scents to invoke different feelings. If you want to cover up the smell of what you're cooking, citrus smells cut through any foodie smells leaving a fresh clean aroma. Alternatively, if you want to make your dinner date even hungrier, lime oil is known to make the mouth water, meaning your cooking efforts won’t go to waste.

Just because you’re eating in your kitchen doesn’t mean you can’t make the most of the special occasion. Dress up in something that makes you feel confident yet comfortable enough that you aren’t desperate to pop on your pyjamas after eating.

Make an effort to really dress up the table so it doesn't feel like you are sitting at your everyday dining table. Use a tablecloth, add some flowers or light some candlesticks to switch up the usual layout. If you have a particular favourite restaurant as a couple, you can recreate the table setting in your own home by adopting their decor. The most important thing is that you want to transform the space into a new environment so the evening feels special.

Ahead of the dinner, curate a playlist or find a pre-made playlist of your and your partner’s favourite songs. Make sure it is long enough to last your entire evening, at least a couple of hours. Plug it into a speaker and have it playing throughout your night.

Get as much of the food prep finished before your date night officially starts. This means you can really be invested in the evening and not leave your partner alone whilst chopping up a bunch of vegetables. If your recipe does include a lot of active cooking, why not get your date involved and make the meal together?

Make sure to turn your phones to silent or even off so that your evening is not disturbed by friends or family. When at home it is easy to get distracted by all the different things you need to do, like washing up, doing laundry or answering emails. Even though you are in your own kitchen it is important to focus all your energy on investing in this quality time with your partner. Don’t rush the evening and just take the time catching up, chatting and laughing like you would if you were in a restaurant.