Bri Nitsberg | Managing Photo Editor

As college students, most of us have had our fair share of dorm or basement parties. At some point, though, I began to feel like I’d outgrown those functions. Instead of deafeningly loud music, I wanted something soft playing in the background. I yearned to trade the red Solo cups for real wine glasses and a full meal. I wanted to wear nice shoes, not something reserved for questionably sticky floors.

To me, dinner parties are the epitome of Adult. After hosting a couple of dinner parties last year, these get-togethers have quickly become some of my favorite college memories and are the perfect opportunity to get a group together, celebrate, and get to know each other better. If your end goal is to become the “hosting friend” this semester, here’s an easy, five-step guide for a flawless dinner party.

Step 1: Pick a theme

What takes a dinner party from good to great is a theme. You can certainly host a dinner party without one, but the entire experience will feel much more cohesive with a theme. You can do as much or as little as you want with your chosen theme, but having one is the perfect added touch. It’s also a great conversation starter to break the ice if you have guests who may not know each other.

Themes can be anything, ranging from a color, a season, a holiday, or even something random. When choosing a theme, the two most important things to consider are decor and food. Your theme should be something that bodes well for the dinner menu, dorm/apartment decorations, and a dress code if you really want to go crazy. 

The easiest themes are whatever holiday is closest to the time of the dinner party, because it will be super easy to find decorations and holiday-based ingredients in any store. If you want to be a bit more creative, here are some of my favorite non-seasonal theme ideas:

• Tea party
• 1920s gala
• Charcuterie board night
• Make-your-own pizza party
• Breakfast for dinner
• Garden party
• Murder mystery
• Wild West

Step 2: Choose your guest list

Once you’ve got your theme, the next step is to start thinking about your guest list. For friend groups, this could be as simple as sending a text in the group chat. However, some of the best dinner parties are the ones with friends from different circles. 

Although WashU can sometimes feel like everyone knows everyone, dinner parties are a great way to discover new people. If you are co-hosting the dinner party with roommates, this is a perfect opportunity for each roommate to invite friends from different circles.

If you really want to have an eclectic group of guests, another fun idea is to invite a small group of people and tell each person to bring a plus-one that the others don’t already know. This way, you pick half the guests, and everyone gets to meet new people. 

As you choose your guest list, keep in mind the space where you will be hosting. Think about how many chairs you have and how many people you can realistically fit around your table. While you want enough people to make sure the conversation is flowing, too many will leave your guests feeling cramped and uncomfortable. 

Step 3: Send out invites

If you want your event to feel elevated, invitations are the perfect way to do this. You can choose physical or digital invitations. If you are going the paper invite route, Canva is a great tool to design something cute that you can print out. Remember to include the date, time, location, theme, dress code, and anything else relevant to your party. Assuming your guests are all WashU students, you can hand-deliver the invitations to everyone.

If you want to save yourself a step, digital invitations are also a great alternative. You can use a website like Partiful or Evite to keep things organized. You’ll have a dashboard with all of the party logistics, a way to message all guests at once, and a guest list for people to see (which we know we are all checking). 

Step 4: Plan the menu and decor

Now is the time to get creative. You may have started to think about your menu and decorations when choosing your theme, but now you want to dive into the details. Some themes will naturally bode well for specific menu items or decor, while others might require you to think outside of the box and be a little bit more creative and whimsical. 

For the menu, decide how many courses and dishes you want to make. Also, remember that we are all college students, and no one cares if you buy pre-made or partially pre-made items to make your life easier.

Decorations can be tricky. Sometimes you will have a very specific idea of what you want, and sometimes you just need to go to a store and see what you can find. You can definitely decorate really well on a tight budget. For example, paper chains, streamers, and personalized placecards are cheap and easy ways to show off your theme. Thrift stores are a great way to get on-theme decor without spending a ton of money. 

While planning, remember to keep lists of all of your ideas so when it comes time to shop, you aren’t wandering aimlessly. Having a shopping list for decorations and food will also help you stay on budget for your event.

Step 5: Host your event

It’s finally time to put all of your planning and ideas together! When the day of your event comes around, make sure to stay calm and stay organized. Preparing as much as possible in advance is the best way to keep things running smoothly. Give yourself more time than you think you’ll need to get everything ready so you aren’t still decorating when guests start arriving. And don’t be afraid to put your guests to work; any good friend would be happy to help set up decorations or put the final touches on the food. 

And once they do, let yourself have fun! The best part about hosting a dinner party is being able to spend time laughing and bonding with friends. You’ve put time and energy into creating a beautiful event, and you deserve to enjoy it.