Foodie Friday : Dinner Parties

Dinner Table Setting by Niina C

The little dip in temperatures the last week or two has me daydreaming of autumn days and--I'm going to hate myself in a few months for saying this--long winter evenings. As someone who withers in the heat of summer,  I can become somewhat anti-social if too many get-togethers and social activities take place outdoors under the hot sun.

So when the temperature starts to drop, I immediately start thinking about the wonderful and cozy dinner parties I could throw for a good group of friends. Food is hands down my favorite way to get people together. I've been brainstorming ideas like crazy, and thought I'd share some of the dinner party concepts I've come up with. I hope to rally some friends together for at least a few of these over the fall and winter months. The designer in me is also super excited to drum up some sweet invitations to accompany these gatherings!

Note: As an obvious food-lover, I've geared my suggestions towards those who like to cook-- No buckets of supermarket potato salad allowed here! I make no apologies for that, but hopefully there are a few options for those who might not be as culinary inclined.

Also useful: This post from The Kitchn has some great thoughts on potluck dinners. Definitely read the comments for various opinions on dinner party etiquette. Apparently, potlucks are controversial to some who feel it's tacky to ask guests to bring dishes to a party you're throwing. These people need to learn that sharing is caring, sheesh. Not to mention cost-effective for everyone.

Anyways.

Dinner Party Ideas

- Iron Chef: Pick a secret ingredient, and reveal it to guests in your dinner invitation  or shortly before the party date. Assign people to different courses, with the only requirement being that you have to incorporate the secret ingredient into the dish or beverage. Vote for your favorite use at the end of the evening. (Ingredient suggestions: oranges; basil; a type of liquor; chocolate; etc.)
- Breakfast for Dinner: Pretty self explanatory :)
- Childhood Revisited: Have guests bring their favorite dish from their youth, but with a grown-up twist. Think lobster mac-n-cheese, sangria "fruit punch," etc. Fancy-pants up those old favorites.
- Small Plate Sampler: Set up a spread of small eats, nibbles and finger foods-- the kinds of thing you can eat with one hand and carry a wine glass in the other.
- Pizza Party: Make your own pizzas from a spread of possible toppings. This works great for outdoor parties if you grill the pizza, or opt for oven baked pizzas in cooler weather. Taco, chili, sandwiches or burger parties are other good "assemble it yourself" entrees.
- Globetrotter: For the adventurous crowd, ask each person to bring a dish from a certain region of the world. Feature various dishes from one specific country, or have a United Nations-type of party with cuisines from all over the world.
- Rainbow Brite: Assign dinner guests to create a dish of a specific color. This can make for quite the impressive table spread if you arrange the items on your buffet table according to the color spectrum.
- Newbies: Ask everyone to make something that they've never made before.
- Cook-Off: Pick a dish that people think they make the best, and put them head to head (think: chili, soup, pizza, etc.) Just don't have everyone bring a pot of chili if you only have 10 guests coming over. It's better to have 2-3 people battle it out, and let other people just eat or bring some kind of side dish-- or at least be prepared to provide tuperware for guests to take leftovers home.
- Secret Chef: Play a game of "who made what" and guess the chef behind all the dishes at the potluck.
- Copycat: Have each guest bring a dish their version of a dish that they love from a restaurant. Lots of copycat recipes can be found online, but guests can also feel free to take their own creative stab at recreating a beloved restaurant dish.
- Cooking Class: If you and/or some of your friends are particularly adept in the kitchen, turn your party into an educational experience and teach a cooking lesson.
- Dinner and a Movie: Pair your next movie viewing party with a corresponding dinner. Think Southern food with "Fried Green Tomatoes" or crepes and cafe au laits with "Amelie."
- After Dinner Desserts: Think about hosting a dessert-only party, which is especially good for those of us on a budget. It can be as simple as a top-your-own ice cream spread, a full-on dessert buffet, or a dessert-version of any one of the above suggestions.

Have you ever hosted a unique dinner party? Are there any party themes you could think to add to my list?