This Valentine’s Day, SeaWorld San Diego is offering two enchanting dining experience options – a romantic, four-course dinner at Turtle Reef, as well as an exclusive Valentine’s-themed family option at Dine with Orcas for lunch or dinner.

 Turtle Reef Dinner for Two takes place Friday, Feb. 13, through Monday, Feb. 16, for $89.99 per person. The one-of-a-kind, after-hours four-course dinner at Turtle Reef features sea turtles gracefully swimming in the background with two evening seatings each night, and a refreshed menu. The evening includes live romantic guitar music, a complimentary glass of champagne, and Valentine’s Day-themed photo opportunities. The menu highlights include tomato bisque soup, strawberry feta salad, a choice of filet mignon or gnocchi in a vodka cream sauce, and decadent desserts.

 Dine with Orcas on  Friday, Feb. 13, and Sunday, Feb. 15 at  1 p.m. and  5 p.m. at  $64.99 per adult, $39.99 per child. The exclusive dining experience features a chef-crafted menu with a carving station, seafood, pasta, and a variety of desserts, while dining next to SeaWorld’s famous orcas.

Space is limited for both dining offerings, and reservations are required. Park admission is not included in the Valentine’s Day dining reservations. Reservations can be made online at SeaWorld.com/san-diego/dining/valentines-day/.

Valentine's Day

Dine with the Orcas (Courtesy SeaWorld)

The Fairmont Breakers Long Beach turns 100 this year and is a romantic oceanfront getaway with sweeping harbor views for a picturesque coastal staycation. For Valentine’s Day,  there will be a prix fixe menu at Nettuno featuring handmade pastas, wood-fired pizzas, and Italian classics.  There will be golden-hour cocktails at HALO, jazz at Alter Ego, and the La Dolce Galentine brunch with complimentary spritz. Nettuno also offers a La Dolce Galentine brunch on Sunday, Feb. 15  (reservations for four guests on OpenTable) with complimentary spritz and a handwritten note from Chef Giuseppe. Reservations for all Nettuno experiences are available via OpenTable

City Cruises Marina del Rey is offering a  three-hour Valentine’s Day Dinner Cruise offering chef-prepared plated entrees, craft cocktails, and harbor views from indoor and open-air decks with music from a live DJ.

Valentine’s Day Pasta Class & Italian Dinner at Impastiamo DTLA: Celebrate Valentine’s with a hands-on Italian pasta class in downtown Los Angeles, where couples make fresh maritari (married)  pasta together, then enjoy a shared dinner with wine and beer included. This 2.5-hour social experience combines cooking, connection, and celebration.

Valentine's Day

Cherry Smoked cocktail at Alter Ego (Courtesy Fairmont Breakers)

Mastro’s BH, Downtown, and Malibu will be offering a special Valentine’s Day Chocolate Cheesecake starting Sunday, Feb 1, and available for the entire month of February. The cheesecake is made up of premium cocoa, espresso, dark chocolate ganache, and an Oreo cookie crumb crust. They will also be featuring Austin Hope Cabernet Sauvignon all month for $35 by the glass and $140 by the bottle.

Valentine’s Day at Mastro’s is always a favorite for couples and galentines groups, so they will have extended hours for dinner on Feb. 13, 14, and 15; reservations via OpenTable are highly recommended. Special occasion signature dishes include a seafood tower of shrimp cocktail, lobster cocktail, crab legs, and crab claws, as well as the  32oz wagyu tomahawk and lobster mashed potatoes.

Valentine’s Day brunch is also available at Mastro’s Ocean Club Malibu with live music,  cocktails, and dishes like  Maine lobster eggs Benedict, New York strip steak and eggs, red King Crab omelet, and avocado toast with poached egg.

Valentine's Day

Chocolate cheesecake (Courtesy Mastro’s)

For a romantic mini getaway, Ojai Valley Inn offers two dining experiences just a short drive from Los Angeles. The Oak is serving a specially curated prix-fixe menu featuring seasonal, farm-forward dishes like ahi tuna carpaccio with blood orange and shiso oil, roasted bone marrow with cipollini onion jam, crispy skin black cod, and steak favorites such as bone-in filet mignon.

 Olivella will offer a luxurious four-course Italian-inspired menu with highlights like agrumi and burrata, prime beef tartare, black truffle risotto, Santa Barbara spiny lobster bucatini, and uovo ravioli, finishing with desserts like Neapolitan rum baba and torta nerina. Reservations are available at ojaivalleyinn.com.

Love in Century City:  The  Fairmont Century Plaza is offering two different Valentine’s experiences, both within the same romantic setting. The Bar is serving a French fries and Martinis pairing Friday, Feb. 13 through Sunday, Feb. 15, where guests can add fries to any martini for $3 or order from the full menu for a playful night out. 

The hotel’s  Lumière Brasserie will have a  three-course Valentine’s prix-fixe dinner on the same nights,  featuring French-inspired dishes like crispy potato pave with sweet bread aioli or red bib lettuce with Piave Vecchio and Champagne vinaigrette; beef Wellington with bordelaise sauce or baked sablefish with shiso butter and black garlic broth; and desserts including Valrhona Jivara milk chocolate cheesecake or Pour La Passion with passion fruit, meringue and roasted white chocolate. The prix-fixe is $105 per person. Reservations at fairmontcenturyplaza.com.

What’s Popping Up is a column in the L.A. Weekly that explores everything new in food and drink

Valentine's Day

Lumiere Patio (Courtesy The Fairmont Century Plaza)