“Basically, we tell people if you can’t get laid after this dinner, you are totally hopeless.”
Robert Weinberg, co-owner of City Food Tours, really knows how to throw the gauntlet down for Valentine’s Day.
Weinberg, along with City Food Tours co-owner and life partner Eric Matzke, are shifting from their usual food excursions in the city to gear up for their annual Valentine’s Aphrodisiac Dinner. The entertaining two-hour event offers a three-course meal punctuated by torrid tales and the sexy science behind aphrodisiacs, as well as cooking demonstrations filled with handy tips to heat things up in participants’ own kitchens.
The couple’s goal is to put everybody else’s candlelit dinner offerings to shame.
“My husband Eric and I have been together 17 years in April and our worst nightmare is to have to spend three hours, just the two of us at a table, talking about nothing but work and cats,” Weinberg said, noting that their dinner deviates far off that course. “The biggest part of what we do is entertainment. So the entire evening we are entertaining the guests. Of course we leave time for them to socialize amongst each other; the tables seat between six and eight people so it’s a very social event. This is not your typical dinner for two. This is the opposite. We play interactive games. We give out risqué prizes. It’s on the PG-13 side, maybe tickling rated R. We’re tour guides for a living so we are constantly teaching, entertaining and taking care of people; basically we’re professional geishas. It’s like dinner theater but it’s not really theater, it’s more like dinner comedy. It’s special to us, and one of our longest-running holiday events.”
This year’s Aphrodisiac Dinner is being held at Green Eggs Café and is expected to be a hit with couples of all identities.
“Eric and I, being openly gay, we keep it friendly for everyone,” Weinberg said. “We usually have a fair number of gay and lesbian couples. And that is very comforting to see. This is the very first time we’re bringing it to the Gayborhood. We’ve been in Northern Liberties, Old City and Rittenhouse. The restaurant changes every few years to keep it fresh.”
The couples also run the gamut in terms of length of time together.
“It’s perfect not only for people who are just starting to date but also people who have been together for a long time who would love a distraction and love something fun to do,” Weinberg said.
When it comes to the menu, Weinberg said classic aphrodisiacs never go out of style.
“A lot of these foods have been aphrodisiacs since the times of the Greek and Romans,” he said. “A lot of them have a very, very long history. The preparation may change but it’s not like you’re discovering an aphrodisiac.”
Besides the entertainment aspects of the meal, Weinberg and Matzke are out to wow diners with exceptional service, which they say is hard to come by in the crunch of couples out for romantic Valentine’s Day dinners.
“The restaurant staff is taking care of the guests, but also we bring four extra staff,” Weinberg said. “In all other restaurants, other than during Restaurant Week, you are guaranteed the worst service of your life on Valentine’s Day because it is the busiest night in the restaurant business. But we double the staff that is normally there and we bend over backwards taking care of everybody. I’m the one fawning and pandering and taking care of everyone and Eric is the one who is going through history and the fun facts and the games.”
When asked if it’s hard for the two of them to give up their own Valentine’s Day for the cause, the couple said they’d rather be doing this than anything else.
“We do work together and own the company together,” Weinberg said. “We spent about 23-and-a-half hours of every day, seven days a week, together. So we don’t have any personal or professional boundaries.”
“It’s really nice to see people and the way they interact with each other at the dinner,” Matzke added. “That’s what does it for me. They are happy to be together but they are also meeting new people. They’re a lot happier that way.
“It’s the best job in the world to get if you can get it,” Weinberg added about their business. “All we do is make people happy. This is just an extension of that. So we are happy to give up our night together to share it with everybody else.”
The eighth annual Valentine’s Aphrodisiac Dinner Event will be held at 5 and 8 p.m. Feb. 14 at Green Eggs Café, 212 S. 13th St. This event sells out every year and seating is limited. Advance tickets are required and can be purchased at www.cityfoodtours.com.