Balboa Surf Club

Balboa Surf Club has the right components for a date night, as long as you plan to eat mostly with your eyes. This River Oaks restaurant looks like a mid-century modern living room and is only missing a conversation pit. It's also dimly lit, so snuggle close to your date in plush booths covered in shades of emerald green that we’ve only seen in the land of Oz. But the seafood menu falls flat—the slightly soggy $40 crab cakes, swordfish doused in too much lemon, and unbalanced palomas leave you with a spot best for a glass of wine poured at the bar. But Balboa is a stunner. We’d still come back to share a bottle of champagne and a plate of coconut shrimp (the only thing that's good here) just to be somewhere this beautiful.

photo credit: Balboa Surf Club

photo credit: Balboa Surf Club

photo credit: Balboa Surf Club