Why Are You Doing It?
When you think about it, the best celebrations are the ones with real heart behind them, so before you start booking tables or writing menus, it’s a good idea to think about why you’re celebrating in the first place. Is it something personal and emotional? Is it more social and light-hearted? That’s the kind of thing you need to ask yourself because then everything else will fall into place a lot more easily.
Knowing the tone of the celebration helps you make the right decisions about what to do and where to go, and until you’ve got that first piece of the puzzle in place, everything else is going to be much harder to work out.
Get The Guest List Right
This part might take a bit of juggling, especially if you’re inviting people from different parts of your life, and what you’ll ideally end up with is a group that gets on well, mixes easily, and won’t leave anyone feeling left out or that they shouldn’t really be there. That’s not always an easy thing to do, which is why you’ve got to think very carefully about the guest list - remember, you don’t have to invite everyone, and sometimes it’s the smaller dinners that feel a lot more special anyway.
It’s okay to be selective with your guest list - you’re not planning a networking event where you’ve got to have as many people as possible in one place, you’re just trying to create a special moment. The best celebration dinners are the ones that feel natural and where there’s a good flow of laughter and conversation, which is why who you invite is just so important.
Choose A Venue That Feels Right
Where you eat is definitely going to set the tone, and it doesn’t always have to be a five-star restaurant. Actually, some of the best celebration dinners happen in places that mean something to you because it’s where something important happened or where you met someone for the first time, and so on.
Of course, there’s a time and a place for treating yourself as well, and a night out where you don’t have to worry about cooking or cleaning up is essentially pure joy and it’s those moments where you do something special and different that really stand out.
Think About Timing
Dinner might be the main event, but what happens around it matters too - are you heading straight from work? Is there time for a drink beforehand? Would brunch actually work better? Sometimes a Saturday night dinner is precisely the right choice, but don’t be afraid to think differently - a long, lazy lunch with wine and no pressure to dress up can be just as special and just as enjoyable.
Give your guests a bit of breathing space and let them know what to expect, especially if you’re going all out - and never forget to build in a bit of flexibility because celebrations that have too many rules and are really rigid are just uncomfortable (plus there’s more chance something will go wrong which can ruin the mood).
Food That Feels Like A Treat
You don’t need twelve courses or a private chef to make dinner feel like a celebration - what really matters is that it feels like a treat, whatever that means to you and your guests. Maybe it’s comfort food done perfectly, maybe it’s some exciting new flavours that everyone wants to try, or it could be something seen as a bit of a luxury, like lobster tails, for example.
If you’re cooking at home, don’t be afraid to get some help because you don’t have to do it all by yourself unless you really want to (which can also be fun, of course). What might be great is a mix of homemade favourites and a few things picked up from somewhere brilliant, and that can be a great combo you and your guests will enjoy and remember for a long time to come. And of course, the less time you spend in the kitchen, the more time you can be with your guests, so that’s a bonus.
Don’t Forget The Little Touches
People are going to remember how they felt, not just what they are, so it’s definitely worth spending a bit of time on creating the right atmosphere. You could include personalised place cards, for example, or give a surprise toast, or create a playlist that means something special. Even just having some candles on the table can help turn a simple dinner into a real celebration, and it’s these small things you’ve really got to think about.
These things aren’t about spending a lot of money, and instead they’re about being thoughtful because these small, personal touches tend to stick in people’s minds for the longest time, which is exactly what you want when you’re arranging any kind of celebration dinner.
Let The Conversation Flow
A great dinner party lives and dies by its conversation, and you really want to avoid awkward silences and let things just go their own way and meander the way great conversation tends to do. That’s why the guest list is so important, and why it helps to think about the seating plan so the shyer people aren’t all at one end of the table!
Of course, you don’t need to play host all night, and in fact, the best hosts are the ones that just get things rolling and then let it unfold, so it’s a good idea to give people the space to chat, catch up, and have a good time.
This is a contributed post.
Photo: cottonbro studio via Pexels
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