Romantic Dining Just a Screen Away

There’s finally a solution for sweethearts who are apart on Valentine’s Day: teledining.

Offered at the Beverly Hilton and other select Hilton hotels, the high-tech process lets two people in different cities feel as if they are dining at the same table.

Each “teledining suite” contains a table and a 94-inch screen that displays a televised image of your partner. The setup gives the illusion that you are at the same table and is enhanced through similar menu options, china and glassware. Conversation takes place in “real time,” so there’s no awkward pause while waiting for your companion to speak.

“It’s a new way of communicating without actually having to get on a plane for a meeting or a date,” said Jeanne Datz, director of communications for Hilton Hotels Corp. “You can do everything but shake hands and pass the salt.”

Select Hilton hotels have been offering videoconferencing since 1995, but this is the first time the corporation has promoted it for leisure uses.

“People have been asking why Hilton is encouraging this, since we are in the business of renting rooms to travelers. But we look at it as a chance to be a technology leader in the hospitality field,” she said.

There are no immediate plans to equip telesuites with beds.

For reservations, call (800) 995-9400; first come, first served. Telesuites are $299 per person per hour.