Recount Your Worst Date for a Chance at a $50 Alto Gift Certificate

Despite what Hallmark would like us to believe, Valentine’s Day is the perfect setup for an awful date. The heart-shaped lining, of course, is the story you get to share with friends.

Our new Valentine’s Day contest pays tribute to the bad date: a confluence of high expectations, mismatched personalities and, sometimes, just plain old bad manners. Share your own worst date, and we’ll pick one entry at random to win a $50 gift certificate to Alto. (We dare you to beat our personal favorite: the woman who dated a writer, and later discovered that he had rehashed the details of their miserable first date in a national magazine article. Ouch.)

We’ll publish all the entries on the site, so please let us know if we should use initials only.

While you’re entering the contest, be sure to check out the rest of the guide for events, gift ideas and specials at local restaurants.

And congratulations to Sarah Nagle, who won dinner on us in last week’s contest, which asked for your favorite local spot for celebrating Valentine’s Day.

Typically, Nagle says, she’d be at Kelly’s, but this Valentine’s Day won’t be as memorable. She’ll sitting in a classroom taking an exam.