Romantic places in Chicago (horse drawn carriage?)?

UPDATED:

It's cold, but I still see people riding around in the horse drawn carriage, so it must be okay when you're in that romantic mood. ;-)

ROMANTIC PLACES & EVENTS:

It's not clear exactly when you'll be in the city, so...

Here are two long lists of everything Valentine's Day at http://www.centerstagechicago.com/promos/vday/list... and http://chicago.metromix.com/events/roundup/valenti... .

Take the tour up Willis Tower (http://www.willistower.com/ ) on Wacker Drive. The tower has a new viewing area where you can step out and feel like you're walking on air.

If you have appropriate outerwear, Millennium Park is beautiful at night (http://www.millenniumpark.org/ ). You can go ice skating. On Feb. 12, FlirtyGirlFitness will be hosting an ice skating event at Millennium Park. See http://chicago.flirtygirlfitness.com/chicago_html/... for details.

Valentine's Day happens to be the start of the Lunar New Year, so Chinatown will be celebrating. You may want to join the fun. See http://www.chicagochinatown.org/cccorg/home.jsp . Bonus: It's one of the most inexpensive areas in Chicago.

Walking along the Lake Front will be bitterly cold, but it's still a cute thing to do. You could walk throughout Navy Pier (http://www.navypier.com/ ) and take a ride on the ferris wheel if it's active. Also, you can go on a Lake Michigan cruise instead of or in addition to walking. See http://www.spiritofchicago.com/ch/index.jsp .

Sheila Kelley S Factor Lap Dance Class (http://chicago.metromix.com/events/recreation_even... )... sounds pretty exciting to me and it's at the Wit Hotel in the Loop.

Cocktails and Clay at the Hyde Park Art Center (http://chicago.metromix.com/events/community_event... ). I have to say that the HPAC is awesome and the clay aspect sounds like some "Ghost" movie action might happen. It's probably more of a "fun" event than romantic though.

An interesting spot is the Green Mill in Uptown (http://chicago.metromix.com/music/big_band/the-gre... and http://www.greenmilljazz.com/ ). People like dress in period garb sometimes.

ROMANTIC RESTAURANTS:

You haven't provided any information on cuisine, so...

"BYOB Valentine's Day"

http://chicago.metromix.com/restaurants/article/by... and http://chicago.metromix.com/restaurants/roundup/ro...

For somewhat casual dining, I like the Grand Lux Cafe on Ontario & Michigan Ave. See http://www.grandluxcafe.com/ . It is near your hotel. It's got an opulent decor. It's got reasonably priced food and great drinks. Ask for plush window seats (a booth) next to the window so that you can look down on Michigan Ave. The acoustics can be loud though. It's a Lettuce Entertain You restaurant, a restaurant management company which owns top-quality places. Check out more of their restaurants here: http://www.leye.com/restaurants .

Another restaurant is Zest (http://www.icchicagohotel.com/dining/zest_restaura... ). I remember the decor being a bright white though, so that may not be romantic to you. Yet it's a quiet setting from where you can get a view of Michigan Avenue as well. It's the restaurant for the Hotel Intercontinental.

Opera - a Chinese restaurant - has a $28.95 three-course prix-fixe dinner (Sun, Tue). See http://www.opera-chicago.com/ and http://www.opentable.com/rest_profile.aspx?rid=790... .

The Signature Room (http://www.signatureroom.com/Home/ ) at the top of the Hancock Tower might be pretty cool. Trump International Hotel & Tower Chicago has Sixteen, a fine dining restaurant on the 16th floor, with views of the Chicago River. See http://www.trumpchicagohotel.com/Food_Wine/Food_Wi... .

The Parthenon for Greek food is tasty and classy - http://www.theparthenon.com/ .

The Melting Pot (a chain restaurant) has a free wine tasting from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays. Other than that, fondue is always sexy. See http://chicago.metromix.com/restaurants/dj/wine-ta... . Also, other restaurants that might appeal are Hot Chocolate (http://www.hotchocolatechicago.com/ ) and Geja's Cafe (http://www.gejascafe.com/ ) for fondue & Flamenco dancing.

Japonais Restaurant (http://www.japonaischicago.com/index2.html ) - The interior of this place is sensual. It sits along the Chicago River, and the lounge alone is something to check out. The food is cool (but pricey) too; particularly if you like to sizzle meat on a stone. If you're not hungry, just lounge around.

Nacional 27 is the place to eat, drink, and get your Latin dance on. See http://www.n27chicago.com/ . It's pricey, but worth it for a special night. I've enjoyed a lot of good times there for various weekend outings.

You can watch belly dancing, get your hookah on, and eat some tasty Middle Eastern food at Juliana Restaurant and Nightclub (http://www.wttw.com/main.taf?erube_fh=wttw&wttw.su... ).

Here are lists of romantic restaurants, where you can check for possibilities - http://centerstagechicago.com/lifestyle/articles/r... and http://www.thechicagotraveler.com/2008/09/ten-best... . Here's a slideshow with the same theme - http://chicago.metromix.com/restaurants/photogalle... . See the Metromix website at http://chicago.metromix.com/restaurants - on the left side of the page, you can choose options to see a list of places.

Chicago is a world-class city. You should have no problem planning out your trip, since the city has an incredible number of restaurants and attractions. Search these sites for more options: http://chicago.metromix.com/ , http://www.wttw.com/main.taf?p=1,5 , http://www.centerstagechicago.com/ , http://www.190north.com/ , http://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/Home , http://flavorpill.com/chicago , http://chicago.citysearch.com/ , and http://abclocal.go.com/wls/channel?section=resourc... .

I think that is a great idea! It is the thought that counts, even if it is cold!