You Can’t “Drink Yourself A Jacket”
But here are 8 great tips for eating outside in 37 degrees
I am probably way behind the times, but I just heard the expression, “drink yourself a jacket” about a month ago. It was explained to me by my friend’s college senior, who loves to use this saying to illustrate how one gets warmer with a few drinks in them.
Since my husband and I will still not eat indoors, we wanted to test the theory by eating dinner outside this weekend. For those of you who reside in the American northeast, you know that the past few days have been some of the chilliest we have had so far this season.
I was excited for my night out, but, sadly, after some Googling, I learned that you cannot, in fact, “drink yourself a jacket.”
While you may think having a cocktail or two is making you warm, this is just a perception generated by heat-sensitive neurons that detect a rise in your skin temperature from an increase in blood flow in the vessels close to the skin’s surface. The truth is alcohol actually lowers your body temperature because blood rushes to the skin’s surface, causing your core temperature to drop.
Even without this weapon in our arsenal, we still decided to give it a go and have dinner out both weekend nights. Each night we bundled up with winter coats, hats, and gloves, and headed out to restaurants that had heaters.
Quite surprisingly, we had two completely opposing experiences. And there was one huge factor that made each night so different.
Below, I am going to share words of wisdom that we learned the hard way so that anyone daring enough to brave the cold temperatures can successfully enjoy a night out.
- Pick A Restaurant With A Good Heater
All heaters are NOT created equal and so this is the single most important thing you need to do!
On Friday night, we had a miserable experience. We quickly learned that although the heaters at this particular restaurant were esthetically pleasing, the lamps barely gave off any warmth. We were pretty much freezing the entire time and could not enjoy one bite. We ate as quickly as possible and came home dejected. We had such high hopes for the heaters and they let us down. A long winter is coming and we were confident that frequenting restaurants with heaters would help us squeeze out a few more weeks of dining al fresco.
After this fiasco, my husband threw in the towel and told me to forget about our Saturday night dinner, but I refused to accept defeat. I was on a mission to figure out a feasible way to eat outside in comfort. Surely, we had made some mistakes. I spoke to some friends to inquire where they have recently dined outside and what measures they used to keep themselves warm, checked out some Facebook pages (there is even one solely dedicated to local dining with heaters!), and called a few different restaurants to see what heating options they offered.
After pouring through all the information, I specifically chose a local restaurant and convinced my reluctant husband to give dinner outside one more try.
The reason I selected the restaurant I did was because of the type of heaters they had. One of the most important things I learned is that all heaters are not the same. Some are much better than others. Case in point — the heater at the restaurant we dined at Friday night looked something like this:
The consensus is that these types of heaters are not very useful and I have to agree. They have a tube surrounding the actual flame that prevents heat from escaping. In my opinion, that is counter-productive. Perhaps it is ok for 60-degree temperatures, but definitely not cutting it when the thermometer is hovering around the freezing mark.
A much better option would be to pick a restaurant that has heaters that look like this:
Which is exactly what I did. And, what a difference it made! Cranked up to high, this baby really puts off some serious heat. There was just one located near our table and within 15 minutes we actually had to take our coats off because we were so hot. We were able to enjoy a leisurely meal, which lasted almost 2 hours, and only towards the very end did the propane start to wane, making us feel a little chilly.
I cannot emphasize enough how important the right heater is in making for a pleasant experience.
2. Sit Near A Wall
Call the restaurant ahead of time, and if they do have the good heaters, also ask them if it is possible to sit by a wall. In some places that is not possible, but in restaurants in strip malls, they may have seating right outside the entrance. It seems trivial but having that one side blocked off from the cold makes a significant difference.
3. Dress In Layers
Dressing in layers not only keeps warmth in but is also practical, as you may feel the need to remove some layers if the heater is very powerful. Personally, I wore a light tank top under a turtle neck sweater and then put on a long winter coat. When I removed my coat, I still had the benefit of two layers of clothing.
4. Bring A Hat, Scarf, And Gloves
As you would expect, it is a little difficult to eat with gloves on. I recommend purchasing a pair of soft, cotton, fingerless gloves. I already had a pair and they were unobtrusive, allowed me to maneuver my silverware, and kept my hands warm. My husband was not so lucky.
5. Double Socks
Both my husband and I found that each night we could not feel our feet by the end of dinner. No heater can fix this problem. A good solution is to double up your socks and wear a warm pair of boots. If you have toe warmers that are used for skiing, that would be even better protection from the elements.
6. Bring A Blanket
Another tactic to fend off the cold is to bring a small blanket to toss over your legs. Even though the heater warms your upper body, the table prevents the warm air from reaching your legs. Also, many restaurants have metal chairs outside which are very cold to sit on. So if you find yourself in that situation, you can place the blanket on the seat and wrap the sides of the blanket around your legs.
7. Order Soup
Unlike drinking alcohol, a bowl of warm soup can actually do a good job of raising your body temperature. In fact, studies show that just eating a meal makes you warmer. So, as the night progresses and your belly gets full, you are less likely to feel the cold.
8. Order Tea Or Coffee
By the time you get to dessert, your propane heater may be on its last legs. Based on the premise above, now would be a good time to order yourself a nice hot beverage to get you through the last few minutes of your meal.
So, what pearls of wisdom should you take away from my weekend experiment?
First of all, instead of “drink yourself a jacket,” the expression should be changed to “eat yourself a jacket.”
Secondly, necessity is the mother of invention and you can use my experience to speed up your learning curve. Don’t let the weather keep you in. With some planning, good research, and the proper gear, you can still enjoy the simple pleasure of an evening out…at least for a little while longer.
