The food of love

Valentine's Day is approaching, and the pressure of finding the right way to celebrate with your sweetie can be intense. Restaurants have an assortment of themed menus and special treats to answer any V-Day wishes, from extravagant to simple. Feb. 14 falls on a Monday this year; if that's inconvenient or booked at your favorite spot, several restaurants are spreading out the festivities.

Meritage in the Boston Harbor Hotel plans to cover all bases for lovers' celebrations. Chef Daniel Bruce will match his five-course prix-fixe menu with rose champagnes and incorporate all the ingredients for romance, including oysters, caviar, and chocolate. Some of the dishes will be caviar and champagne-glazed oysters; pan-seared halibut in a lobster, shrimp, and pearled pasta essence; and a duet of dark chocolate and cherry almond tart. The menu, at $125 per person, will be offered nightly Feb. 8-19, and the restaurant, usually closed on Mondays, will be open Feb. 14. 617-439-3995.

At Lumiere in West Newton, the Valentine's menu will be served Feb. 12-14. Some of chef/co-owner Michael Leviton's special treats for the holiday will be braised duck risotto with butternut squash, Swiss chard, and sage oil; lobster soup with sherry crème fraîche; leg of lamb with braised lamb, artichoke, and carrot ragout; mango-passion fruit sorbet with peppered cashews and a mint and coconut sauce; and molten Valrhona chocolate cake with chocolate ice cream. The three-course prix-fixe menu, with several selections for each course, will be $55 per person. 617-244-9199.

If romance is entwined with music, it makes sense that the Fairmont Copley Plaza and the Boston Symphony Orchestra are joining to offer a pre-Valentine's Day celebration Feb. 12 of Spanish food and concert music. Called ''Flavors of Spain," the evening begins at the hotel with a tapas reception, followed by a three-course dinner with such dishes as grilled shrimp with a roasted vegetable stew; chicken paella; and Catalan-style crème brûlée. After dinner, guests will go to Symphony Hall for Spanish conductor Rafael Fruhbeck de Burgos's program of Strauss's tone poem, based on the story of ''Don Quixote," for orchestra with solo cello and viola. Then Spanish composer Manuel de Falla's puppet-theater drama, ''Master Peter's Puppet Show," will be presented. Tickets are $100 per person for the dinner and concert. 888-266-1200, www.bso.org/spanishdinner.

The sultry ambience of Tangierino in Charlestown could make for an appropriate setting for a Valentine's dinner Feb. 14. Some of the dishes planned are Moroccan-style duck with sweetened almond couscous; seven-vegetable couscous with raisins; and Moroccan pastries. Cost is $75 per person. 617-242-6009.

The Oak Room in the Fairmont Copley Plaza will also offer special menus and live music Feb. 11-14. Some dishes planned are diver scallops in a fresh lime and green pepper sauce; Chateaubriand for two; halibut grilled with caviar beurre blanc; and a glass of Moet & Chandon Champagne with dessert. The four-course menu will be $175 a couple, and an à la carte menu will also be available. 617-267-5300.

Rialto in Harvard Square will also stretch Valentine's Day from Feb. 11 to 14. Chef/co-owner Jody Adams will offer four special dishes for lovers, including Maine crab tart with red pepper salad, pink tobiko, and fried shrimp; truffled potato gnocchi with Parmesan cream; roasted lobster with braised red cabbage, horseradish, and beurre rouge; and seared Delmonico steak with mushroom-marrow fricasee, red beets, and red-wine sauce. Valentine's desserts include a chocolate-espresso fondue with devil's food cake. Prices are à la carte, with main courses ranging from $39-$42. 617-661-5050.

Azure in the Lenox Hotel starts off its Valentine festivities (Feb. 12-14) with cocktails such as a kamasutra, a blend of strawberries, raspberries, fruit juices, basil syrup, crème de cassis, vodka, and Champagne. Some of the dishes by chef Robert Fathman will be seared foie gras with salted cashews, preserved Rainier cherry compote, chocolate brioche, and zinfandel-chocolate sauce; oxtail tortellini, beef consommé, and shredded Brussels sprouts; oversized ribeye steak for two with gorgonzola-potato cakes and grilled asparagus; and almond-encrusted sand dabs, with capers and a lemon-and-white wine sauce. Desserts will include honey-pine nut tart with rosemary anglaise; dark chocolate cake with white chocolate espresso bark; and banana sorbet with vanilla-scented, seared pineapple. Cost of the three-course dinner is $60 per person. 617-933-4800.

At Spire in the Nine Zero Hotel downtown, chef Gabriel Frasca plans a special menu Feb. 14, offering a ''ménage a foie": foie gras prepared three ways, as well as other enticing dishes. Some of them will be cauliflower panna cotta with watercress and ossetra caviar; wild king salmon with marinated cucumbers, crème fraiche, and American sturgeon caviar; and sour cherry-glazed rack of lamb with tabbouleh, baby carrots, and sheeps-milk yogurt. Desserts will include passion fruit-Champagne soup with Meyer lemon ice cream and milk cake; chocolate and chestnut cake with spice caramel ice cream; and a Valentine's Day tasting for two with chocolate-covered strawberries, cinnamon beignets, crème caramels, and prune-armagna ice cream. The four-course dinner is $110 per person. 617-772-0202.

Taranta in the North End plans to offer its blend of Italian and South American ingredients Feb. 14 in such dishes as oysters on the half shell with prosecco, blood oranges, and spicy rocoto peppers; lobster and crab ravioli with lobster mascarpone herb sauce; pan-seared filet mignon over caramelized cabbage, pancetta, and Brussels sprouts, with a Venezuelan chocolate sauce. Desserts will be shortbread with dulce de leche and lucuma ice cream, or chocolate soufflé cake. Cost is $70 per person. 617-720-0052.

Also on Feb. 14, Sidney's Grille in Cambridge will feature chef Stefano Zimei's truffled potato gnocchi with braised beef shortribs; lavender-honey grilled chicken with fingerling potatoes; grilled swordfish with chorizo-whipped potatoes; and a chocolate tasting for two with pot de crème, bittersweet chocolate mousse, and chocolate sorbet, among other dishes. The three-course meal, offered Feb. 14, is $35 per person and includes a glass of Champagne. 617-494-0011.

Brasserie Jo in the Colonnade Hotel plans a four-course menu including an appetizer of lobster and root vegetables; a salad course; entrees of Chateaubriand of beef with bearnaise sauce, or baked salmon with sauce al'Americaine; and a chocolate trio plate for dessert. The menu will be served Feb. 11-14. Cost is $99 per couple and includes two glasses of Champagne. An à la carte menu will also be available. 617-425-3240.

Rustic Kitchen in Porter Square in Cambridge will offer a four-course meal Feb. 14 with such dishes as roasted beet salad; littleneck-clam risotto with Meyer lemon; balsamic glazed quail with pomegranate, fennel, and blood orange; grilled bistecca for two with roast potatoes and bagna cauda; and tiramisu with mascarpone, espresso, and marsala. Cost is $70 per person, $30 extra for wine pairings. 617-354-7766.

If you're a lover of oysters -- supposedly the ultimate in aphrodisiacs -- or perhaps flying solo and not planning a Valentine's a deux, Boston University's Seminars in the Culinary Arts and Jasper White's Summer Shack in Boston are offering a night of tasting and learning Feb. 14. Participants will learn how to assemble a raw bar of East and West Coast oysters, littlenecks, shrimp, and other shellfish. Other dishes will be served, and beer, wine, tax, and gratuities are included in the $70-per-person cost. 617-353-9852. www.bu.edu/lifelong/seminars.