Date night in Clapham

The best date night in Clapham starts at Maai on Abbeville Road, at a table by the patio doors, and ends with an old fashioned on the south side of the Common. Clapham is made for dates: everything is close, nothing needs a cab, and there is always somewhere to go next. Here is how to plan one, from first drink to last.

Dinner: Maai by Nikita, 33-35 Abbeville Road

Abbeville Road is the right side of Clapham for a date, quieter than the High Street and prettier too. At Maai, the dining room is modelled on the family home, with the kitchen in view through the pass, and Time Out's tip is to sit by the patio doors on a summer evening. Start at the bar with the buttered popcorn old fashioned or the lime pickle margarita, share the chaat tartlet and the sea bream with kalamansi ponzu, and finish with the banana pudding, which is made for two. Maai is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays, so this is a Wednesday to Sunday plan. Book online.

Dinner: Sorella, 148 Clapham Manor Street

Robin Gill's Italian, round the corner from the Old Town, is the easy choice when you are still getting to know someone. Take the decisions off the table with one of the two chef's menus, at £55 or £65 a head, and spend the evening talking instead of reading. Book ahead for Fridays and Saturdays.

Dinner: Crispin at Studio Voltaire, 1A Nelsons Row

A restaurant inside an art gallery, just off the High Street, gives you something to talk about from the moment you walk in. Chef Michael Miles cooks seasonal British produce, cocktails are £11.50 to £12, and large plates run £15 to £28, so two can eat well without a shock at the end. Dinner runs Wednesday to Saturday from 5pm until 11pm. Booking is advised.

The big occasion: Trinity, 4 The Polygon

For an anniversary, a proposal or a date you really need to land, book Trinity. Four courses from its Michelin-starred kitchen are £155 at dinner, served from 6pm, and the Clapham honey souffle is the ending. Dress up a little. If the full dinner feels like too much for an early date, Trinity Upstairs, the casual room above, does sharing and small plates from the same kitchen, and it makes a more relaxed evening.

First drink: WC, Clapham Common South Side

The best first-date bar in Clapham is underground, in a former public toilet by the tube. The original vintage wall tiles and mosaic floor are still there, now with candlelight, velvet curtains and booths. Order a glass of wine and a charcuterie board. It opens at 5pm every day and stays open until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays, and you can book a table, which takes the stress out of a first date.

First drink: Rind, 27 Abbeville Road

If dinner is on Abbeville Road, start a few doors from Maai at Rind, a wine bar built around cheese and charcuterie. Share a cheese, the burrata with aged balsamic, honey and almonds, and a bottle. It is open from 4pm Wednesday to Friday and from noon on Saturday.

Small plates: Barsito, 57 Venn Street

A tiny tapas bar with hams hanging from the ceiling and seats at the counter. It is close quarters, which is rather the point. Order the cheese platter with its little breadsticks and a glass of something Spanish. It is two minutes from the tube.

Nightcap: Doghouse Distillery, 10 Clapham Common South Side

A distillery's own bar, with an upstairs room among 40 whisky barrels and a low-lit basement speakeasy. The menu is built around old fashioneds, from cherry maple to salted caramel, and every cocktail is £9 to £12. It is open until 2am on Fridays and Saturdays.

Nightcap: Venn Street Records, 78 Venn Street

If the date wants to keep going, Venn Street Records has live acts and DJs most nights and two-for-one cocktails from 5pm to 8pm. Louder, later, and good for dancing.

Getting around

Everything here is within a short walk of Clapham Common tube. Abbeville Road sits on the far side of the Common from the tube, so the walk across the grass on a light evening is part of the date, and a good excuse to keep talking. Clapham Manor Street and Nelsons Row are a few minutes from the High Street.

Three date plans

• The first date: a glass at WC, then tapas at Barsito. Short, easy, two minutes apart.
• The Abbeville Road evening: cheese and wine at Rind, dinner at Maai, a walk back across the Common.
• The big night: dinner at Trinity on the Polygon, then an old fashioned at Doghouse on the south side.