For a proposal with plenty of drama, consider the rooftop restaurant at Palazzo Manfredi, in Rome
The pressure to deliver a creative marriage proposal has a lot of potential grooms—and brides—scrambling for over-the-top ways to pop the question. We’ve seen it all, from airplane banners to sports arena score boards to crossword puzzles. But if you’re looking for a truly outrageous way to pop the question, it’s hard to beat a flash mob of opera singers in a restaurant overlooking Rome’s Coliseum.
At Palazzo Manfredi, a funky-elegant boutique hotel (and a member of Relais & Chateaux) in the heart of the city, a new engagement package starts with two nights in a room with a view of the Coliseum, and tosses in such goodies as champagne, a couple’s massage, and a vespa tour of the town. The highlight is dinner at the Michelin-starred rooftop Aroma restaurant, during which general manager Bruno Papaleo leads a procession to your table and reveals the ring, served on a silver platter. For most couples, that would be drama enough. But if you want to take it to another level entirely, you can add the “Opera Flash Mob” option. While you are admiring your diamond and texting your family with the news, a quartet of musicians launches into a romantic melody and three opera singers “disguised” as fellow diners put down their cutlery and rise from their seats to serenade the two of you. With the floodlit Coliseum in the background, it’s got to be one of the world’s most YouTube-worthy occasions.
Given the public nature of the set-up, it helps if the proposer is fairly certain to receive a positive response from the proposee. And it also helps if funds are on the healthy side; the engagement package costs about $1,784, and the operatic add-on is $1,672. But it’s a small price to pay for an evening that’s one for the history books.
If you’re interested, email reservations@palazzomanfredi.it.
