Date Night Ideas in Minneapolis

Setup.Start at any of the four lakes, Bde Maka Ska, Lake of the Isles, Cedar Lake or Lake Harriet, and follow the connected paved paths that ring each one. Separate bike and pedestrian trails run the whole loop, so you can walk, run or ride without sharing space with cars.

1. Pick a starting lake based on how far you want to go; Bde Maka Ska alone is a bit over three miles around.
2. Walk or bike clockwise, stopping wherever a bench or a swimming beach looks good.
3. Cross between lakes on the connecting paths that link Bde Maka Ska to Lake of the Isles and Lake Harriet to the others.
4. End at whichever lake has the better light that day and just sit by the water for a while.

Talk about:Which of these four lakes would you actually want to live next to, and why?

Setup.The Minneapolis Sculpture Garden sits just north of the Walker Art Center and west of Loring Park, open to the public and free every day.

1. Walk in from Loring Park and let the paths lead you between the roughly 40 installations.
2. Find the Spoonbridge and Cherry fountain, the garden's best known piece, and take the obvious photo.
3. Cut through to Loring Park afterward if you want more green space before ending the date.

Talk about:If you could commission one giant sculpture for this garden, what would it be?

Setup.The Minneapolis Institute of Art, known locally as Mia, has free general admission to its permanent collection.

1. Pick two or three galleries in advance instead of trying to see the whole building; it holds over 100,000 works.
2. Split up for ten minutes in a gallery you each picked, then compare which single piece the other person stopped at longest.
3. End in whichever wing has the fewest people and just sit for a while.

Talk about:Which single piece in this museum would you actually want hanging in your home?

Setup.The Stone Arch Bridge is a pedestrian and bike only crossing of the Mississippi at Saint Anthony Falls, in the Mill District. The Guthrie Theater's cantilevered public lobby, called the Endless Bridge, is open to visitors during building hours with no ticket required.

1. Meet on the Mill District side, near Mill City Museum in the old Washburn A Mill ruins.
2. Walk the Stone Arch Bridge across Saint Anthony Falls as the light goes gold.
3. Cross back and step into the Guthrie Theater's Endless Bridge for a second, higher view over Gold Medal Park and the river.
4. Finish along the river walk on either bank.

Talk about:This bridge carried trains for almost a hundred years before it carried people; what's one thing in your own life that changed use like that?

Setup.The Lake Harriet bandshell sits on the northwest shore and runs a concert calendar through the summer months, with a picnic area on the lawn and a preserved section of the old Como to Harriet streetcar line running nearby.

1. Bring your own food and stake out a spot on the lawn well before whatever is scheduled that evening.
2. If nothing is happening, walk the shoreline path instead, about two and three quarter miles around.
3. Catch a ride on the heritage streetcar between the bandshell and Bde Maka Ska if it is running.
4. Stay until the light over the water fades.

Talk about:What is a song you would want playing if this were the last date you two ever went on?

Setup.In some winters, Art Shanty Projects installs an artist built village of about 20 shanties on the frozen surface of Lake Harriet, open Saturdays and Sundays with performances, activities and food vendors on the ice.

1. Check whether the current winter has an Art Shanty Projects season before planning around it; it does not run every year.
2. Dress for standing on open ice for an hour or two, including good boots.
3. Wander between the shanties together and pick a favorite each to argue about afterward.
4. Warm up somewhere indoors near the lake once you are done.

Talk about:If the two of you had to design one shanty together, what would it be about?

Setup.A small/microbrewery. Most run flights for under $20.

1. Order the flight, not your usual style.
2. Score on smell, taste, finish.
3. Ask one staff member how they got into brewing.
4. Leave with one growler or bottle.

Setup.A wine region within driving distance. Designated driver or a tour shuttle. Light lunch booked at one cellar door.

1. Visit three vineyards. Buy one bottle from each.
2. Long lunch at the middle cellar door.
3. Walk between the buildings of the vineyard, slowly.
4. Drive home before sunset.

Setup.A pick-your-own orchard within an hour's drive. Autumn weekends.

1. Go early to skip the queue.
2. Pick more than you think, they keep.
3. Cider doughnut and hot apple cider before driving home.

Setup.A pub running weekly trivia. A team name. A pen.

1. Order food before the quiz starts.
2. Argue every contested answer.
3. Stay for the prize round even if you cannot win.

Setup.An antiquarian or used bookshop in a literary city. Cash for small purchases. A budget.

1. Each picks the section they would never otherwise visit.
2. Spend 30 minutes there. Pick one book.
3. Reveal at the till.
4. Read at a café for 30 minutes before walking on.

Setup.A disc-golf course (most parks have one). A starter set of three discs each.

1. Play teams of two for nine holes.
2. Switch hands for the back nine.
3. Picnic at the cart park afterwards.

Setup.Two late-night noodle places. Walking distance apart.

1. One small bowl at the first place.
2. Walk to the second. Order a different style.
3. Tip well, both are working unsociable hours.

Setup.A state, county, or regional fair. Comfortable shoes, sunscreen, cash for the booths.

1. Walk the agricultural building first.
2. One ride, two deep-fried foods.
3. Watch one of the live performances, cover band, pig race, anything.
4. Eat dinner from a different stall on the way out.

Setup.Buy half-day or evening tickets if available. Get there at 3pm.

1. Pick three rides you both want before queuing for any.
2. Eat early to skip the dinner queues.
3. Stay for the closing parade or fireworks.
4. Drive home tired, dessert at a 24-hour place.

Setup.Search "Aron 36 questions", pick the original list. Two seats facing each other. Phones away.

1. Take turns reading and answering. Both answer every question.
2. Set 1 (warm-up): about an hour, but do not skip.
3. Set 2 (deeper): expect a pause after question 13.
4. Set 3 (vulnerable): finish with the four-minute eye-contact bit at the end.

Setup.A country whose food is unfamiliar, Georgian, Ethiopian, Filipino, Peruvian, Burmese.

1. Pick one dish that defines the country. Read three different recipes.
2. Source ingredients the day before, substitute what you cannot find.
3. One person reads the recipe out loud, the other cooks.
4. After eating, look up the next two dishes you would try.

Talk about:If we had to live in this country for a year, what would we miss most from home?

Setup.A film-festival schedule. Block half a day.

1. Pick three films across the day.
2. Eat between films, not during.
3. Compare lists of best-of-fest at the end.