News & Observer Best for a Date

Best restaurant for a date? Three in North Carolina rank among the nation’s favorites

August 11, 2022

If you’re seeking a romantic night out, three North Carolina dining spots might have you covered.

Rey’s Restaurant in Raleigh joined Green Valley Grill and Print Works Bistro in Greensboro on a list of the nation’s top places to go for a date, according to results shared on Aug. 4. To come up with the findings, the restaurant reservation website OpenTable said it studied more than 13 million U.S. reviews that users left on its site from June 2021 to May 2022. It also considered each restaurant’s score, which is “made up of unique data points, such as overall diner rating, user klout, total number of reviews, and regional overall rating.”

OpenTable, which teamed with the dating application Bumble to create the list, also searched for the word “romantic” within the reviews that made it onto its radar, results show. Of the 100 restaurants that earned spots on the list, three were in North Carolina.

In Greensboro, two restaurants earned spots on the OpenTable list.

Green Valley Grill, which said it focuses on “Old World European and Mediterranean flavors,” earned online praise for food prepared on its namesake grill. Several diners reported loving the customer service and visiting the restaurant for special occasions. Nearby, Print Works Bistro has French-inspired dishes made with “locally sourced food,” according to its website. Some OpenTable users have raved about the restaurant’s ambiance and foods ranging from French onion soup to beignets with chocolate sauce. The two Greensboro eateries are part of the same restaurant group and are no strangers to receiving nationwide recognition.

In July, both were named among the country’s best spots for outdoor dining, McClatchy News reported.

This time around, OpenTable and Bumble didn’t only focus on top locations for a romantic date. The companies also considered the best places to meet with friends and business associates, results show.

The North Carolina spots making the lists:

The Bistro at Childress Vineyards in Lexington (friends)
Rey’s Restaurant in Raleigh (friends)
Green Valley Grill in Greensboro (friends)
Print Works Bistro in Greensboro (friends and business)
Ryan’s Restaurant in Winston-Salem (friends and business)
Steak 48 in Charlotte (business)

More Fresh Ink

OpenTable’s List: 100 Best Restaurants for a Date in America

News & Record: Two Greensboro Restaurants Make ‘Date Night’ and Outdoor Dining Lists

Triad Business Journal: These Triad Restaurants Rank Nationally for Dates, Meetups and Meetings

OpenTable Press release: Take it Offline: OpenTable and Bumble Reveal Top 100 Dining Guides for IRL Romantic, Platonic and Professional Meet-Ups