With the holiday season upon us, it’s also that time of year where people tend to entertain a lot more than usual. Not only do you tend to host more often, but even the size of the crowd can get bigger during the holiday season, which means plenty of pre-planning where your dinner party is concerned.
While there is nothing wrong with the traditional dishes, and décor, you may be in the mood to spice things up a little this year. Maybe you want to host a dinner party that sets the bar for all others and is a memorable night for all. If that’s the case we’ve got you covered with five of the best dinner party ideas that are sure to impress your friends.
Host a Cuisine Theme Night
If you want to make things really memorable, host a themed cuisine evening. This can actually turn into an on-going event that you host throughout the year, choosing a different cuisine and culture to highlight at each party.
There are plenty of cuisines that are relatively easy to find recipes and ingredients for such as Italian, Greek, and Spanish, or you can step outside your comfort zone and try entirely new recipes and new cuisines. Why not go wild and create a full theme night by decorating your rooms to ensure you have the right ambiance.
The Ultimate Costume Party
Along the same lines as a cuisine theme night, you can also host the ultimate costume party. Just make sure that whatever the costume or chosen attire is, you communicate this well in advance to your guests. They need time to gather special clothing and accessories for the theme.
Highlight the Wine
If you and your friends are the types who enjoy a fabulous bottle of wine, why not make wine the focal point of the party. You can even include a little wine-tasting into the party if you like. The key to highlighting the wine is to make sure you do your research where wine pairings are concerned. There are certain wines that work better with some dishes rather than others, so you’ll need to do some pre-planning. Start by creating your menu, and then work from there.
If you are having a hard time with the pairings you can always visit your local wine shop and take your menu with you. They will be able to offer guidance with the pairings.
Create a Tapas Style Meal
Sometimes it can be really difficult to narrow your menu down to just a couple of dishes, so why not create a tapas-style meal instead? Tapas is incredibly popular in Spain and just means a snack or appetiser-sized portion of any type of warm or cold dish. It gives your guests a chance to sample a variety of different foods without feeling too full or overwhelmed since the portions are small.
Go Big on the Dessert Offerings
Then there are the desserts, something that doesn’t always get the attention they deserve. Here’s the thing, a few carefully selected desserts can really cap off the entire evening. If you want to really impress your guests, then go big on desserts and create your own dessert buffet.
Each of these dinner party ideas for Christmas is sure to impress your friends and have you named as the best host of the bunch.
