Take a moment to exhale this weekend. We’ve curated plans for couples, friends and families so you don’t have to! This is all the information you need in a step-by-step guide to make your planning easier.
It’s a Date!
Friday, Feb. 15
Do This
Take romance cues from one of Boston’s most loved historical couples: John and Abigail Adams. “Unconditional Love: The Letters of John and Abigail Adams” is a special edition event at the Boston Tea Party Ships & Museum, and it’s only running for a few days. Actors will bring the Adams’ actual love letters to life by reading excerpts from the original documents and providing historical context for their 54-year romance. While you watch, enjoy a complimentary beer or glass of champagne and snack on fruit and cheese.
Boston Tea Party Ships & Museum
7 p.m.
$39 per person, $69 per couple
306 Congress St., Boston
$23 parking at Stillings Street Garage with validation, South Station T stop
Then What?
Walk five minutes down Congress Street to Drink, Fort Point’s most creative cocktail bar. Order off the menu or get a beverage handcrafted for you based on your favorite flavors and liquors. Drink and its upstairs restaurant Sportello are both part of chef Barbara Lynch’s local restaurant empire so you can put your name in for dinner, first.
Drink
4 p.m.–1 a.m.
Cocktails $11–$15
348 Congress St., Boston
Limited street parking, South Station T stop
Then What?
After a drink head upstairs for dinner at Sportello, a contemporary, upscale interpretation of a classic Italian diner. Order from an a la carte menu of antipasti, salad, pasta and entrees. Or, work with a three-course, prix-fixe menu. Here, classic comfort food gets an upgrade, like the strozzapreti pasta that comes with braised rabbit, picholine olives and rosemary.
Sportello
4:30 p.m.–11 p.m.
Appetizers $6–$9, Pasta $24–$29, Entrees $21–$39
348 Congress St., Boston
Limited street parking, South Station T stop
Friends Zone
Saturday, Feb. 16
Do This
Sometimes it’s a comfort to know you weren’t the only person who had it rough in high school. “Mortified,” playing at Oberon in Harvard Square, is a hilarious rediscovery of teen angst. Adults read old childhood artifacts, including journals, poems and artwork aloud in front of an audience in order to share life stories. Nothing is more relatable than hearing now-self-actualized people talk about their prank call disasters, days on the beauty pageant circuit, or awkward first dates. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry and you’ll be happy you’re no longer 16.
Oberon
7 p.m.
$15 per person and up
2 Arrow St., Cambridge
Limited street parking, Harvard T stop
Then What?
Walk five minutes to the newly opened Longfellow Bar, an extension of the popular Alden & Harlow restaurant. Sip on a craft cocktail like My Father’s House, made with rye whiskey, peppermint, cacao and the herb gentian. As at Alden & Harlow, the food at Longfellow is meant to be passed and shared, allowing diners to sample a number of different dishes in one sitting. Try smoked root vegetable and peanut molotes, buttermilk fried sweetbreads, or short-rib kitfo to spice up your night.
Longfellow Bar at Alden & Harlow
4 p.m.–2 a.m.
Cocktails $8–$14, Snacks $7–$14
40 Brattle St., Cambridge
Limited street parking, Harvard T stop
Family Fun
Sunday, Feb. 17
Take the kids to see “The Runaway Bunny,” a classic story by Margaret Wise Brown, newly adapted for the stage by Boston Children’s Theatre. The one-hour performance tells the heartwarming story of a mother bunny who continues to search for and find her child no matter how much the smaller bunny playfully hides. Complete with original music, stunning visual effects and a feel-good narrative, the show is a great way to introduce younger children to the theater.
Calderwood Pavilion at the BCA
2 p.m. and 4 p.m.
$20-$30 per ticket
539 Tremont St., Boston
Limited street parking, Back Bay T stop
Then What?
Walk five minutes down the street to Whaling in Oklahoma, an American-meets-Japanese brassiere that opened up in the former Tremont 647 space last fall. On Tim Maslow’s brunch menu, you’ll find biscuits with curry and fried chicken, a hambagu (hamburger steak) rice bowl, grilled monkfish and a classic fried egg sandwich. Picky eaters will love the fried honey toast with apple butter and sesame caramel — a crowd favorite.
Whaling in Oklahoma
11 a.m.–2 p.m.
Cocktails $12–$13, Entrees $9–$15
647 Tremont St., Boston
Limited street parking, Back Bay T stop