The best things to do on Valentine’s Day in NYC

If you're looking for a fun Valentine's Day activity for the whole family (or just you and your significant other if you're both really hungry), then try the Valentine Family Dinner Kit from Citarella! You'll get two heart-shaped pizzas topped with a chef-prepared sauce, hand-grated mozerella and pepperoni. While the pizza's cooking you can get handsy with some Valentine cookies and edible markers. Then, you'll have fresh fruit and delicious chocolate fondue for dessert.

Enjoy a movie and a meal at Parklife's Outdoor Cinema on Saturday, February 13. Moonstruck, starring Cher, will be playing and the menu includes tacos and cocktails. For Outdoor Cinema reservation requests, please email hey@parklifebk.com. There's onlya limited number of reservation requests, so we may not be able to accommodate all requests.

Nothing expresses how you feel like a massive Madagascar hissing cockroach. The Bronx Zoo is once again offering its Name-a-Roach program, where smitten folks can symbolically name a giant Madagascar hissing roach for their loved one (or after an ex if you're so inclined). For a $15 donation, your valentine will receive a printable certificate featuring the name chosen for the roach named in their honor. How romantic! 

Park Slope is getting in the mood with "A Love Greens" Valentine’s Market by Closiist, featuring sustainable, eco-friendly products including items like a smudging and clearing kit, chocolate roses infused with cardamom, fine solid cologne, tie bars and earrings made from recycled circuit boards, gift sets, organic rose and coconut milk vegan bath soaks, wall mounted stem vases, wooden eyewear, magnetic expressions in recycled bottle caps, mismatched alligator and flamingo earrings, fire hose bracelets, soap, and more. The market will be at Winemak'Her Bar (492 Fifth Avenue, Brooklyn) on Saturday and Sunday, January 16 and 17, from 11am to 9pm, and every weekend until Valentine's Day.

Get pictures with your boo (or your besties) in Astoria (3613 36th Ave.) during this mini photoshoot by Robert Middleton. Time slots are in 20 min increments from 1 to 6:40pm. You'll get three high-quality edited photos delivered to your email inbox (additional edits $15 per picture). You can email middletonrobert99@gmail.com to schedule a time.

Beat The Bomb in DUMBO is the perfect Valentine's Day outing for first dates, couples in long-term relationships or even groups of friends. It's an hour-long experience where teams of 2-6 players must conquer a series of games to earn time on their "clock" for the final challenge: a giant paint bomb! Hazmat suits and masks provide protection from both the paint bomb and Covid, but even if you do Beat The Bomb, many teams ask to get blasted anyway, for the fun and for the pics.