Globe Newswire 28-Jan-2026 9:05 AM

• New research reveals that nearly half of Canadians (49 per cent) are planning to dine out this Valentine's Day¹
• 51 per cent of Canadians believe Valentine's Day is becoming more about celebrating all relationships, rather than just romantic connections¹
• More than half (53%) of single Canadians would go to a restaurant for a first date on Valentine's Day¹

TORONTO, Jan. 28, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Love is in the air as OpenTable has unveiled its list of Canada's Top 100 Romantic Restaurants for 2026 ahead of Valentine's Day. The list is compiled from analyzing over 900,000 diner reviews, along with diner ratings, reservation demand and percentage of reviews with the tag "romantic" among other factors. ²



Nearly half (49 per cent) of Canadians plan to dine out at a restaurant this Valentine's Day¹, but securing the perfect table isn't always easy. Forty per cent of Valentine's Day diners say they find it difficult to find and book a restaurant for the occasion, spending an average of two hours and 14 minutes searching for the right spot. ¹



In addition to the Top 100 list serving as a helpful guide for discovering the top romantic restaurants in Canada, OpenTable is spotlighting cultural shifts in how Canadians are celebrating all kinds of love around the table, with trends that reflect changing traditions.

Not just a table for two. Group dining is on the rise for Valentine's Day (February 14), with the occasion in 2025 showing a 65 per cent year-over-year increase in parties of four, and a 88 per cent increase in parties of six. ³ Galentine's Day (February 13) showed traction too, with parties of four seeing a 41 per cent dining increase year-over-year and parties of six seeing a 40 per cent increase. ³ Reflecting this shift, 37 per cent of Canadians plan to celebrate Galentine's or Palentine's Day this year on February 13 or 14,, with 59 per cent planning to mark the occasion over a meal out. ¹

"Valentine's Day isn't just about romance anymore and Canadians are embracing the cultural shift, with 51% saying it's now about celebrating all kinds of relationships, not just romantic ones¹," says Matt Davis, Senior Director at OpenTable Canada. "Gen Z is really driving this change, with 59% planning a Galentine's or Palentine's Day celebration, 22% above the national average, and 65% of them looking to mark the celebrations by dining out.¹ No matter the love story Canadians are celebrating, our Top 100 Romantic Restaurants list has a table to match, from intimate spots to group and private dining spaces."

This year's Top 100 List highlights standout restaurants offering private dining rooms, perfect for celebrating with friends, including Le Crocodile in Vancouver, Sabor in Edmonton and DaNico in Toronto.

Worth the bite. Canadians are willing to spend a little extra to show their love, with 33 per cent expecting to spend more at restaurants for Valentine's Day this year compared to last year. ¹ Last year, friends also showed up for each other in a big way, with Galentine's Day (February 13) in 2025 seeing a 53 per cent year-over-year increase in dining at restaurants priced $51 and above. ³

Love calls for a reservation. In 2025, dining on Valentine's Day was up 46 per cent year-over-year, along with a 54 per cent increase in dining on Valentine's Day weekend (Fri. Feb 14 - Sun. Feb. 16). ³ That momentum appears to continue into this year, particularly among singles, with more than half (53%) of single Canadians surveyed saying they would go to a restaurant for a first date on the occasion, rising to 65 per cent among Gen Z. ¹



Date dos and don'ts. When it comes to date-night dining, Canadians shared their green and red flags when dining out on a date:

Top three green flags:

• Your date offers to cover the whole bill (67%)
• Your date goes out their way to compliment the restaurant service (65%)
• Your date leaves a generous tip (65%)
  
  
  
  

Top three red flags:

• Your date is rude to the restaurant staff (83%)
• Your date doesn't have table manners (81%)
• Your date complains about the restaurant (67%)
  
  
  
  

Discover OpenTable's Top 100 Romantic Restaurants list that diners will fall in love with

Whoever you choose to spend this Valentine's Day with, OpenTable's Top 100 Romantic Restaurants list has the top selection to choose from for a special meal out, including 47 in Ontario, 18 in British Columbia, 20 in Alberta, 11 in Quebec, three in Nova Scotia and one in New Brunswick. New additions to the list from last year include Luca in Calgary, Jazz Bistro in Toronto and The Royal Hotel in Prince Edward Country.

The OpenTable Top 100 Romantic Restaurants in Canada for 2026 list, according to diner reviews and dining metrics, is listed by region below, in alphabetical order. The complete list can be viewed here.

Alberta

Italian Farmhouse Restaurant & Bar, Bragg Creek

Amedeos, Calgary

Alvin's Jazz Club, Calgary

The Lake House, Calgary

Chairman's Steakhouse, Calgary

Bow Valley Ranche Restaurant, Calgary

Bolero, Calgary

Flores & Pine - Grill Room and Gatherings, Calgary

MODERN STEAK - Southport Rd, Calgary

River Café, Calgary

Luca, Calgary

Orchard, Calgary

Vintage Chophouse & Tavern, Calgary

MAJOR TOM, Calgary

La Ronde - Chateau Lacombe, Edmonton

Ruth's Chris Steak House, Edmonton

Brew and Bloom – South, Edmonton

Sabor Restaurant, Edmonton

ORO, Edmonton

Amedeos, Okotoks

Heartland Cafe, Okotoks



British Columbia

The Butchart Gardens - The Dining Room, Brentwood Bay

Old Vines Restaurant at Quails' Gate Winery, Kelowna

Home Block at CedarCreek Estate Winery, Kelowna

Gordon Ramsay Steak, Richmond

ATLAS steak + fish Langley, Vancouver

Top of Vancouver Revolving Restaurant, Vancouver

Le Crocodile, Vancouver

Boulevard Kitchen & Oyster Bar, Vancouver

Gotham Steakhouse and Bar, Vancouver

Hy's Steakhouse Vancouver, Vancouver

Acquafarina, Vancouver

Hawksworth Restaurant, Vancouver

PeakFine at Sparkling Hill, Vernon

Glo Restaurant + Lounge, Victoria

Tea at The Empress, Victoria

Finn's Seafood, Chops and Cocktails, Victoria

Beach House, West Vancouver

Rimrock Cafe, Whistler

New Brunswick

Italian by Night, Saint John

Nova Scotia

Crème, Halifax

Drift, Halifax

The Five Fishermen, Halifax

Ontario

Ancaster Mill, Ancaster  

DiMario's Trattoria, Burlington

Isabelle Restaurant + Lounge, Burlington

Cambridge Mill, Cambridge

Elora Mill, Elora

Via Allegro Ristorante, Etobicoke

Golf's Steak House & Seafood, Kitchener

Charcoal Steak House, Kitchener

Papi's, London

Watercolour, Markham

MISHREE Cocktails & Cuisine, Mississauga

Remingtons of Niagara, Niagara Falls

Prime Steakhouse Niagara Falls, Niagara Falls

Morton's Grille - Niagara Falls,

STK - Niagara Falls, Niagara Falls

Brasa Brazilian Steakhouse, Niagara Falls

The Winery Restaurant at Peller Estates, Niagara-on-the-Lake

Cannery Restaurant, Niagara-on-the-Lake

Trius Winery Restaurant, Niagara-on-the-Lake

Cucci Ristorante, Oakville

Greystones, Orangeville

Zoe's at Fairmont Chateau Laurier, Ottawa

Riviera, Ottawa

Crossroads Restaurant, Parry Sound

Stillwaters Plate and Pour, Paris

The Royal Hotel, Prince Edward

Valley Restaurant, St Catharines

Auberge du Pommier, Toronto

Jazz Bistro, Toronto

BlueBlood Steakhouse, Toronto

Old Mill Toronto, Toronto

And/ore, Toronto

Don Alfonso 1890, Toronto

DaNico, Toronto

Maison Selby, Toronto

Scaramouche Restaurant, Toronto

Canoe Restaurant and Bar, Toronto

REIGN, Toronto

La Plume, Toronto

Piano Piano Colborne, Toronto

Lake House Restaurant, Vineland

Sole Restaurant, Waterloo

Wildcraft, Waterloo

Bella Notte Ristorante, Whitby

Take Five Bistro, Windsor

Neros Steakhouse – Caesars, Windsor

The Keg Steakhouse + Bar, Windsor

Quebec

Arôme – Hilton Lac Leamy, Gatineau

Henri Brasserie Française, Montréal

Bonaparte, Montréal

Portus 360, Montréal

Le 9e - Restaurant Ile de France, Montréal

Gibbys - Old Montreal, Montréal

Maison Boulud, Montréal

Terrasse William Gray, Montréal

Bar George, Montréal

Le Champlain Restaurant - Fairmont Château Frontenac, Québec City

Bistro le SAM - Fairmont Château Frontenac, Québec City

About OpenTable

OpenTable, a global leader in restaurant tech and part of Booking Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG), helps more than 60,000 restaurants worldwide fill 1.9 billion seats a year. OpenTable's world-class technology empowers restaurants to focus on what matters most – their team, their guests, and their bottom line – while enabling diners to discover and book the perfect restaurant for every occasion.

Notes to Editors

1. Consumer Research Methodology: An online survey was conducted by Ripple Research among 1,506 Canadian consumers, with minimum quotas applied across major cities. Fieldwork was carried out between December 20, 2025, and January 2, 2026. All data was collected in accordance with MRS (Market Research Society) and ESOMAR guidelines, ensuring ethical standards and robust data quality. Canadians who dined out last year and expect to dine out this year = Valentine's Day diners.  
2. The Top 100 Romantic Restaurants Methodology: OpenTable's Top 100 Romantic Restaurants in Canada for 2026 list is generated from over 900,000 reviews from verified OpenTable diners and dining metrics from December 1, 2024 to November 30, 2025. Restaurants with a minimum threshold of diner reviews were considered and evaluated by a compilation of unique data points, including diner ratings, the percentage of five star reviews, the number of alerts set, the percentage of reservations made in advance, percentage of capacity and direct searches. Metrics were weighted to comprise an overall score. The qualified restaurants were then ranked by the percentage of reviews with the tag "romantic." The resulting list appears A-Z, not in ranked order.
3. OpenTable Data: OpenTable looked at the number of seated diners, including per party size and spend, from online reservations for all active restaurants on the OpenTable platform in Canada on Valentine's Day (February 14), Valentine's Day weekend (February 14 - 16) and Galentine's Day (February 13) in 2025, when noted, and compared it to the same date(s) in 2024. Price categories are determined by restaurants.
   
   
   
   

For further media information please contact:

Hannah Jones

416-509-0763