Order a dessert cocktail on a date

The classic date 30 years ago was dinner and a movie. Now? It’s drinks and more drinks. Sure, there’s something to be said for not suffering through hours of eating and theater-hopping when you’re unsure how much you actually like your date (since, as we’ve mentioned before, the online dating a lot of us do is really blind dating). However, there’s still something intimate and sweet about dining together, especially when it comes to dessert. Splitting a sweet treat with the person you’re stuck with gives you a romantic feeling – it’s probably all that date adrenaline combined with the birthday party sugar high. So the next time you’re at a cocktail bar, order dessert.

Before you start trying to claim that good cocktail bars don’t serve dessert hear us out, we don’t mean actually asking the bartender to serve you a slice of cake. Rather, order a sweet cocktail that will satisfy you as much as a full blown Viennese dessert buffet. Don’t go for something saccharine, or, since you might be ordering off-menu, something obscure and labor-intensive. Instead, opt for something sweet, simple, and to the point.

Order dessert cocktails on a dateFor instance, a Grasshopper is a classic cocktail that involves only three ingredients: creme de menthe (a mint liqueur pronounced crehm-deh-mont), creme de cacao, and heavy cream. If the cocktail bar you’re sipping at doesn’t stock creme de menthe or creme de cacao, ask them to swap those out for any sweet liqueur – chances are there’s at least one.

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And if you’re lactose intolerant, go for an egg-based flip instead. Simply ask for a dark spirit to be shaken with an egg white, a few dashes of bitters, and a hint of simple syrup. If you prefer tarter desserts, you can always go for a classic like the daiquiri or a Tom Collins.

If you’re not the type that feels comfortable going off menu, don’t sweat it, scan the drink list for cocktails with liqueur, demerara, cordials, syrups, or dairy of any kind. Ice cream as an ingredient is usually also a dead giveaway for a sweet cocktail.