Between work, travel, taking care of your health, and making time for self-care, it’s amazing how quickly time can fly by without seeing your close friends.
That’s why I’m a huge fan of intimate, fun dinner parties!
A dinner party is a fantastic way to get everyone together under one roof.
Spending the evening catching up and checking in with the ones closest to me over a lovely meal, truly leaves my heart happy and my stomach full.
Those of us that regularly spend time with our friends and family are less stressed out, less worried, and less tense.
Spending time with friends can leave you feeling inspired and more importantly, leave you feeling seen and heard.
While it’s easy to see the advantages of throwing a dinner party, it might not be your kind of thing.
The thought of planning a big meal and entertaining your friends in your home might give you some anxiety.
The good news is, a formal, stuffy, several-course meal isn’t the only option when it comes to getting your people to enjoy dinner together!
There are quite a few entertaining alternatives.
Check out my 4 Fun Dinner Party Ideas below:
1. For First-Timers: Try A Potluck Dinner
A potluck dinner is a great way to get everyone involved and a lovely chance to spend time with the people that you love more informally.
While you might host the dinner, a potluck dinner takes the brunt of the work off of your back.
There’ll be no stress over meal planning and coming up with the perfect menu.
Instead, people will turn up to your house with gorgeous pies, safe in Amish pie baskets, and casseroles steaming away in their dishes.
Talk with your friends to decide who is going to provide what course, who’s bringing the drinks, and who’s providing the appetizers.
I’m personally a huge fan of having themed potluck dinners!
The host picks the theme and then everyone brings in dishes, desserts, and drinks to match.
We’ve done an Italian potluck, a Jamaican potluck, and a Thai food potluck.
The last potluck I hosted, was during the Succession Season 3 finale.
We all dressed like one of The Roys, drank plenty of champagne and VOSS water, and ate duck ( one of my friends made it- I’m not that good in the kitchen).
It was such a blast!
2. Have a Progressive Dinner
If you are friends with neighbors in your apartment building, or your friends all live quite close together, then a progressive dinner party can be a fun twist on a typical at-home dinner party.
Instead of everyone turning up to one house with a prepared meal, you host the party in different homes.
You and your friends move from house to house for each course.
Each person will do their share of hosting, as well as cooking and tidying, and they’ll each get the chance to show off their homes and apartments.
A progressive dinner can be a lot of fun, and an excellent way to get to know your neighbors better.
3. A Rooftop or Garden Party
In warmer weather, a rooftop party or garden party is a much more relaxed and informal way to share food and good times with your friends.
You can still ask people to bring food and drinks with them, but just being outside, creates a way more chill atmosphere than a traditional dinner.
When my friends come over for a rooftop hang, we’ll have food and drinks and bring different card games to kick back and play with.
4. Get Your Favorite Food Delivered In
Of course, eating together doesn’t mean that anyone has to cook.
If you want to spend time with a few friends, with no stress or pressure, invite them around but make it clear that you’ll be ordering in.
They’ll know that it’s informal and will arrive relaxed and ready to chill out.
No one will have to worry about cooking, and there’ll be minimal cleaning up.
This might not work as well for a large party, but just for a few close friends, it can be a perfect way to get together.
One of life’s greatest pleasures is sharing a great meal with the ones you love!
Whether you opt for one of these fun dinner party ideas or choose to go a different route, just be sure you have a good time!
