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There's a lot that goes into running a successful restaurant, and the same goes for hosting a dinner party at home. It can seem like a daunting task but you only need to nail a few things.
Along with the obvious – serving good food – it's also important that everyone enjoys themselves, so it's a good idea to invite people you like and who get along with each other.
But what else does it take to set the mood for a dinner party so that everyone remembers it fondly for years to come?
FOR A DINNER PARTY MENU
Rose spaghetti with bacon and broccoli
No one should go thirsty
Adam Liaw, the host of SBS Food's The Cook Up, believes drinks are of utmost importance at a dinner party, and need to be served immediately.
"I always try to remind myself [to] make sure I've got something for people to drink when they get there," Liaw says.
O Tama Carey's nectarine and Aperol spritz Source: Benito Martin
"I'm a spritz guy because when we have dinner parties, it's always [with] other families with kids. We tend to start quite early. So, around that five o'clock mark. So, to me [a] spritz is good so the kids can play before we eat and that kind of thing."
SPRITZ RECIPE
Nectarine and Aperol spritz
Set the table
And what's a spritz without a beautiful glass to contain it? Don't have a wide range of cocktail glasses? No worries. In Cara Devine's cocktail book, Strong, Sweet and Bitter: Your Guide to All Things Cocktails, Bartending and Booze from Behind the Bar, she writes: "the only true glassware essential (at least for a home bar) is whatever glassware you like drinking from.
She doesn't think there's much point having many glass styles if you'll only drink out of one or two.
"I'll drink a regular highball out of a fluted goblet because it makes me happy to use that beautiful glass rather than a boring one."
Also pay attention to what's on your table. Adorn it with a nice tablecloth or linen napkins and placemats.
A dinner party is more than about the food. Source: PxHere
Warren Mendes, chef and contributing food editor at delicious. Australia food magazine, suggests putting your good crockery to good use. He whips out cutlery that was handcrafted in Portugal for his dinner guests over his everyday cutlery. "These ones can't go in the dishwasher, so I don't like to use them very often."
Ambience is everything
You don't want to emulate a late-night fast food joint in your own home, so it's best to avoid bright overhead lighting. Use lamps and candles where you can to create a relaxed space.
TREAT YOUR GUESTS
Saltimbocca with grilled radicchio
Set the tone with a nice playlist. Restaurants sometimes hire professional playlist curators to fit the mood of their venues, so why not put together your own to match the theme? Just try and avoid anything too garish and don't pump up the volume so loud that you can't hear each other. Pre-made jazz or dinner party playlists from streaming apps are an easy win.
