DIY Valentine: Food Passport
Today, for those of you still need a super sweet—albeit last minute—Valentine’s gift, I wanted to share a gift I made for my boyfriend this past Christmas: the Food Passport! It’s an idea that will work great for any holiday or birthday.
Duane and I have this bad habit of going to the same few restaurants and bars over and over again. A few months will go by when I realize we’ve gone out every week, and hadn’t tried anything new. Well, the Food Passport was my way of encouraging us to explore new places and make our date nights a little more adventurous. And it has totally worked. 
Inside a small Moleskine notebook, I wrote down the names and addresses of 50 restaurants around town that we had never been to, or had only been once or twice. I left two spots blank for, you know, wildcards. It basically equals out to one new restaurant a week, which is totally doable for us. 
In the back pocket of the book, I stashed several stickers to mark the boxes as we go to each restaurant. The stickers are also a rating system:
green = awesome. definitely will return.
yellow = meh. it was alright.
pink = never again. bleh. 
It’s been so much fun already. Our passport has eliminated all that “you choose” “no you choose” banter that leads us to the same old places. When we want to go out, we just open the book and pick at random. We have made great headway so far and it’s totally livened up the nights we go out to eat. Plus there’s just something about crossing things of lists, small victories, short goals. It’s so satisfying.
My favorite part about the Food Passport is that it’s a gift that lasts the whole year. It makes things fun for a year instead of just one night. Duane loved it and probably so will anyone else who likes food, which I think is probably everyone.
Next year, I plan on making a Drink Passport, to encourage us to try different drinks when we go out to bars instead of getting “the usual.” That’ll be fun, maybe a bit pricey but hey, you only live once.
Hope this helps your search for the perfect gift.
And by the way, there’s only a handful of people entered in our giveaway so enter now. Your chances are spectacular! Comments close at midnight tonight!
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inGENIUS!!! I really love it, the options are endless. I’m really loving the look of your too. Thanks for sharing!
you’re very welcome, kate!
you forgot how to spell your boyfriend’s name. that’s genius.
i want to make one for james, but he’d assume it means i’m paying for everything.
also, i don’t think those are your fingers. did you steal someone’s thumb?
yeah, i made it very clear that this was a dual investment. very clear.
that’s totally my thumb! what’s not-my-thumb about it?
I LOVE that idea!
thanks!
Today is my lucky day because I found your blog! Oh happy day! what joy and funness!
I am just a crafty wanna be math teacher (don’t let that scare you)from Northern California (sebastopol) a very indie town.
You are both are so inspiring, that I am hanging up and getting to work!
Warm Regards,
Amy
I LOOOOOOVE this idea! So cute and personalized – I think my bf is going to get one as a “just because” gift because I’m not waiting for another big holiday!
)
thanks! let us know if he likes it!
This is such a cool idea. I’d love to do something similar like this but use it as a ploy to get my kids to try new foods… stamps and stickers in exchange for broccoli and tofu.
Thanks for sharing!
LOVE THIS!! But where on Earth did you find the little book/journal? Thanks!
it’s a mini moleskine book. they have them online and in bookstores!
LOVE IT! This would make a great date night gift, or with the addition of some cash a really unique wedding gift!
I just stumbled upon your blog & this post via Pinterest today, and I’m totally in love with this idea. My boyfriend and I are constantly going back and forth trying to pick a restaurant and usually end up going to the same five places. This is an excellent way to spice things up! Thanks
Seems like you could do something similar for kids to try to get them to try new foods
I LOVE this idea!!!! I think I will include some places we used to go when we were dating.
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