If you’ve waited until the 11th hour to think about a romantic Valentine’s Day evening, fear not. Just enough time remains to pull off something special, perhaps to even make a statement. These five dates could prove to a significant other - or to yourself - that you …

… are inspired by sensitive music:

Enlarge this image

LOUIE FAVORITE/lfavorite@ajc.com

At Cacao on N. Highland Avenue, Elegant dark chocolates will be the building blocks for a self-made gift that’s like a Valentine’s equivalent to the mix tape.

• Email this
• Print this
• Most popular

MORE ON VALENTINE'S DAY
• Valentine's Day restaurants, events and gifts
• Find a romantic restaurant
• Romantic events

Members of several local bands, including Snowden and Dropsonic, will gather at the EARL to cover the wistfully romantic music of Tim and Jeff Buckley, the father and son singer-songwriters who barely knew one another in life but who both died tragically at young ages, cementing a double legacy as young, tortured, talented and soulful. Pop into one of the area’s many coffee shops (a scene the younger Buckley rose to fame in) to complete the experience.

9 p.m. Feb. 14, $8. 468 Flat Shoals Ave., East Atlanta. www.badearl.com

… know where the party is:

Valentine’s Day could easily be the signature cocktail’s favorite holiday. And bar events, unlike dinner, generally don’t require reservations. Try Eclipse di Luna, 764 Miami Circle, Atlanta, for a South Beach-inspired soiree with DJ Mike Smith and percussionist DeShaun Williams performing while the bar slings strawberry and ginger mojitos, chocolate kiss and berry love martinis and a special Red Bull drink. Admission is free, and the party goes until 2:30 a.m. Or head over to Ten Pin Alley, 261 19th St., Atlanta, for the Live Your Life singles party with DJs and drink specials, including the $6 Cupid’s Arrow cocktail. Doors open at 9 p.m. $10 cover. Alternatively, the dim lights, disco ball and retro decor at Johnny’s Hideaway, 3771 Roswell Road N.E., Atlanta, create a lounge experience lacking in an uptown vibe. Sip whiskey sours at the plushy red bar and drink in an old-school kind of romance.

… have a (right) brain:

Art and romance collide at the High’s Valentine’s Day bash, and the museum is welcoming last-minute reservations as well as Feb. 14 walk-ups. A well-rounded evening among the seven permanent collections and three current exhibitions — including “The First Emperor: China’s Terracotta Army” and “Louvre Atlanta” — features salsa dance lessons with Mezcolanza Dance Company to live Latin jazz, love and romance-themed gallery tours, a reading of Chinese love poems, along with pampering chair massages and paraffin hand dips. Hors d’oeuvres, a dinner entree, desserts and cocktails will be sold all night. 6-10 p.m. Feb. 14. High Museum of Art, 1280 Peachtree St., Atlanta. $25 per person; $40 per couple; members admitted free; dates of members with dual or family status admitted free. 404-733-5000, www.high.org.

… can pull off a restaurant-quality meal at home (no cooking required):

Call Friday by 5 p.m. to bring home a five-course (and five-star) meal for two ($125) right off the menu of Bacchanalia. The mise en place includes lobster bisque, choice of wood-grilled tenderloin of prime beef or Scottish salmon, roasted fingerling potatoes, a heart-shaped Camembert with baguette, chocolate and hazelnut trifle and rose macaroons. Pick up this top-tier takeout at Star Provisions, where bottles of wine, champagne and last-minute gifts also are available. Instructions are included, but one need only reheat, executive chef/owner Anne Quatrano assures. Call 404-365-0410 to reserve. 1198 Howell Mill Road, Atlanta. www.starprovisions.com.

And without any reservations, Whole Foods is once again shaking off its high-price rep in favor of to-go Valentine’s deals on the fly, including two dozen roses wrapped and bowed for $19.99, plus dinner for two for $14.99, including a choice of one of three entrees, with a side dish and a heart-shaped chocolate cake for dessert. Throw a bottle or two of Scranto Moscato in the cart ($9.99 each) to complete the experience or grab a festive and eco-friendly box and pull together eight 12-ounce bottles of the brews of your choice for the Sweetheart Beer Sampler for $12.99. At all area Whole Foods and Harry’s.

… can think outside the box (of candy):

Produce an unusual gift to woo a flame or take the family out for a different kind of Valentine’s Day activity at Cacao, 312 C N. Highland Ave., Atlanta. Elegant dark chocolates will be the building blocks for a self-made gift that’s like a Valentine’s equivalent to the mix tape. Call ahead, 404-221-2626, or e-mail caline@cacaoatlanta.com to secure a spot from 5 to 7 p.m. today or between noon and 2 p.m. Saturday for this make-your-own-chocolate workshop led by owner and master chocolatier Kristen Hard or general manager Lauren Gosnell. The 30-minute session will be inside the 3,000-square-foot chocolate laboratory generally closed to the public. The workshop is $20 (plus the price per pound of the chocolate).