It's a Date: A Casual Friday in Central Denver

Dating in Denver may not be a dumpster fire, as some have suggested, but it's still easy to get burned if you don't have the right itinerary. We're here to help: In It's a Date, our new weekly feature, we'll help you plot out all the right moves for a day in the mountains or a night on the town, whether it's a blind date or a major anniversary celebration.

First up? A casual Friday in central Denver with an acquaintance that could develop into something more than friendly.

Angelo's Taverna
620 East First Avenue
Get the date off to a slurpy start with a visit to Angelo's Taverna, a Best of Denver Readers' Choice favorite, where happy hour begins at 3 p.m. and includes raw house oysters of the day for just $1.25 each. Supplement them with $3 sliders, but don't dally, because your next stop, while just a few blocks away, begins at 5:30 p.m.
DelecTABLE: The Fine Art of Dining
Denver Arts Student League, 200 Grant Street
The Month of Photography gets off to an early start at the opening reception for the seventh iteration of delecTABLE: The Fine Art of Dining, an exhibit of functional tabletop ceramics and its complementary exhibit, Food-tography (tickets are $15 each). Jon Bonath's "Bootie Call" is one of the featured pieces. "This straight photograph was staged with one of my best performing snails that I smuggled in from an escargot farm in France," he says. "The snail climbed up on its own and I teased it with a carrot to get it to stretch out of its shell and reach its tentacles toward the camera. The pear called out to me from a King Soopers vegetable bin."

2025 Oscar Nominated Short Films - Animation
The Mayan, 110 Broadway
Relationship still developing? Make tracks to the Mayan, where the 2025 Oscar Nominated Short Films in Animation show at 7:30 p.m. With any luck, you and your date will be inspired to leave before the final film and create a few scenes of your own.

Would you like us to plan an itinerary for your next date? Send a note with your price range and general interests to It's a Date at [email protected].