5 Tips for Hosting a Dinner Party

Wondering how to host a dinner party? You’ve surely come to the right place. At The Ultimate Party Super Store, we know a thing or two about hosting successful dinner parties and dinner party decorations. Let’s take a look at 5 quick tips for hosting dinner parties.

Prepare

While it’s unnecessary to get super stressed out about hosting a dinner party, it’s also great to prepare ahead. You don’t want to get caught trying to figure out what you’re going to serve and if you have enough ingredients the night before your event. For a small to moderate size dinner party, start preparing at least two to three weeks in advance. For a larger scale party, begin to prepare at least four to six weeks in advance–especially if you’re renting a venue.

To effectively prepare for your dinner party, you should take the following steps:

• Understand how many guests you’re realistically able to prepare for.
• Think about a menu and ensure you have all of the ingredients you need readily available.
• Learn about any food allergies or special diets that your guests may have.
• Think about a theme and dinner party decorations.
• Send out invitations with a required RSVP and do a final head count.
• Ensure your garbage bin is 100% empty before your dinner party starts. Keep in mind that the usual food scraps of your family will be doubled or even tripled when hosting a dinner party.

Make Your Kitchen Stress-Free

On the night before and day of your dinner party, you want to make sure your kitchen is impeccable. Not only will this save you the trouble of hastily shooing guests out of the kitchen but it will also keep things more organized. You’ll have quick access to everything you need, which will allow you to quickly prepare your dishes ahead of time. If your home is limited on storage, having a clean kitchen can also help you to store and layout your dinner party decorations before the big day.

If you can prepare dishes the night before, do it. Desserts, cold salads, and other refrigerated dishes should be made in advance to save you any trouble. Clean pots, knives, cutting boards, and everything in between as soon as possible to keep everything neat and tidy.

Set the Table

If you’re thinking about how to host a dinner party, think about how you can make your party unique to you, your house, and your family. Keep tableware fun, classy, and functional. You can use a traditional set up as inspiration, but don’t be afraid to add pops of color for a personalized flair. Tableware at a dinner party also doubles down as essential dinner party decoration items.

Have a Timeline

Yes, dinner parties are mostly about the food but that’s not all there is to it. When your friends and family come out to a dinner party, they’re looking to be entertained. Have a timeline for your dinner party to ensure your guests are laughing and enjoying themselves from the moment they enter your home.

While serving appetizers, you can also serve a light wine to encourage a light and cheery atmosphere. After dinner and dessert are served, whip out your card and board games and enjoy a night of fun with your guests.

Enjoy!

After preparing a delicious meal and making a great effort with your dinner party decorations, it’s time to sit back and relax. Don’t spend the entire night of your dinner party being wound to tight and definitely don’t apply too much pressure to yourself. If your guests are enjoying the night, you should be, too!