hotel bar meet vs normal restaurant... is the location pre loading expectations?

always debated this with the missus. she reckons meeting at a hotel bar already puts everyone in "the mood" and basically signals were down for it that night, whereas meeting at a normal restaurant feels like a proper date where you can actually decide if you wanna proceed or not. ive always preferred hotel bars cos the option is right there if it goes well but shes got a point that it adds pressure to perform. anyone else have strong opinions on this? we are meeting a couple in glasgow next month and shes pushing for a tapas place 20min from the hotel rather than the hotel bar itself...