Want to get asked out for a second date? Have your first one here. Cru Cafe and Wine Bar rolls out the romantic vibes with lush velvet armchairs, dainty chandeliers, crackling fireplaces and the most flattering lighting—dim and flecked with candles—you could ask for.

Grab a seat at the U-shaped wooden bar or head into one of two seating areas. A lounge in back, stuffed with upholstered sofas and armchairs, modern paintings and a fireplace, feels like a luxury living room; another area hosts wood tables in more of an upscale coffee-house setting.

Quench your thirst, or ease awkward conversation, with one of the 400-plus bottles of wine, which are served by the glass, half-bottle, flight or bottle. The full bar also pours Ketel One martinis, saketinis, ports and grappa. Drink prices range from the average-for-the-Gold-Coast $9 martinis to the wildly extravagant $600 French wine Chateau D'yquem.

The lounge's uber-gourmet fare starts with appetizers like pomme frites with wasabi-caviar dip or the Tuna Trio, featuring seared sesame tuna, tuna tartare and sashimi tuna. Sandwiches like the lobster- and beef-tenderloin filled Cru Club are also available; entrees include pork with pumpernickel bread pudding and pepper-thyme apples for an average $20 per plate.

Centerstage Reviewer: Jennifer Berg