Thank you, Zagat! Just in time for Valentine's Day, the renowned restaurant-guidebook company has just released The Essential Dating and Dumping Guide for various cities. In other words, your free, downloadable Cliff Notes to the best restaurants in the U.S. if you want to love 'em ... or leave 'em. (Anyone, that is.)

From must-try pick-up lines to which restaurants hire the hottest wait staff, Zagat guides us through the tricky world of love and loss, dishes best served with a stone-cold expert in your back pocket. What also pleases the palate, besides how real Z gets ("Hotel Dining, Room Optional," hint hint), are scribbled margin notes like your BFF has already gone through the book for you.

Do mind the icons. The plump, juicy hearts at the tops of the pages denote ahhh ... l'amour. And those broken hearts show you the best spots at which to give your "Dear John" speech.

You're in luck, you Casanovas of Chicago, L.A. and New York: Zagat is about to rock your romantic world.

Below, choice excerpts:

Los Angeles
Love him: Cecconi's
Not only can you celebrity-spot till Oscar comes home, but "Sunday supper is great for double dates." The real estate doesn't get hotter than Roberston and Melrose in WeHo (West Hollywood, to the uninitiated), and if your dates don't leave you for Brad Pitt and Daniel Craig, you'll know the love is real.

Leave him: Sur: Yes, TV-aholics, this is one of "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills"' favorite haunts. The servers are attentive and hot, a lethal combo, so it's a great place to go when you want your head to turn. And if there's even one fennel shaving in your salad, heads will roll.

Leave him: Barney's Beanery
Back in WeHo, you can break up with your date karaoke-style! Then watch your only chance at happiness turn onto Route 66 and ride off into the sunset. Did we mention the memorabilia?


Chicago
Love him: Webster's Wine Bar
This "ideal second-date spot" celebrates your ability to get to second base! So don't blow it by missing out on cherry and tobacco notes in the Malbec. The cozy ambiance gives an intimate feel, but don't get so comfortable that you share foot fungus woes. Let's keep some of the mystery alive ...

Leave him: Red Light
Even Roxanne might need to throw down a couple here. Zagat points to "special promotions for serial heart-breakers". Don't encourage them! And PS it's not that kind of district, so no need to cash a Benjamin into singles.

Leave him: Mixteco Grill
This is your new BFF's "new favorite breakup joint"! Ostensibly because it's delicious, loud, basic BYOB and crowded. And, this place is so on the DL, there's no url. Sheesh. It's in Lakeview...


New York
Love him: Aquagrill
Look no farther than the section marked Raw Bars (aka, aphrodisiac central). Happily "house-made chocolates may have the same effect." You'll know when those naughty neurons start to fire. That's your cue to shout, "Check, please!"

Leave him: Brooklyn's Bell House
Filed under, "Out-of-the-Way Locales" because there's "no sense tainting your local favorite." LMAO! Your Zagat BFF has also penned "ideal breakup joint" in the margin. Jilting jackpot! Only problem is finding the subway to take you home, alone.

Leave him: Lucky Jacks
Seems they've thought of everything. There's even a section called "Multiple Entrances/ Exits" in this genius little guide. In other words, leave him wanting at the front door while you sneak out the side. A marginal notation? "Play pool before you duck out, if you're lucky."



Stephanie Block is an award-winning writer, editor, blogger, tweetress and all-around social media maven. She can toast and gamble in many languages and makes a career out of traveling and telling. Her global shopping secrets have been featured in Marie Claire magazine, and she's edited and contributed to books on travel and progressive politics. She was also almost eaten by a leopard in Tanzania. When she isn't sipping champagne on far-flung coasts or leaping away from those leopards in Tanzania, Stephanie is proud to serve on the board of directors for SparkSF.org, JFNA's National Young Leadership Cabinet and the Advisory Board of Netroots Nation. Her favourite colour (if we are being Euro about it) is pink.