Despite a noticeable decline in Valentine’s enthusiasm at most offices in 2012 and people vowing to spend less on the holiday, Kenyan couples definitely still proved that romance was still worth spending on – well, at least once a year.

“In 2012, Valentine’s Day generated about Sh 2.3 billion in restaurant revenue, nearly doubling the daily average of Sh 1.2 billion,” explains Tahir Karmali, General Manager of Eat Out Kenya.

With over two hundred restaurant listings, Eat Out Kenya is Kenya’s leading hospitality directory.

“The gross estimation is only from the reservations on our database. Incredibly, that works out to approximately Sh 10,000 per couple on food alone, not including any drinks.” he adds.

If you showed up to popular restaurants like Moonflower, Pango and Seven without a reservation, you may have been laughed at by the hostesses. Fully booked more than a week in advance, each of these restaurants proved to be the restaurants of choice for many Kenyans to spend their romantic evening.

Who said Kenyans were unromantic?