Hosting an Upscale Outdoor Dinner Party with Class & Style

Welcoming guests to your home is one of life’s true pleasures. People love the idea of inviting people to their home at any season. Throwing an upscale outdoor party has so many advantages. It’s a marvelous way to show off a new home or bring attention to a newly renovated house. 

It’s also a fabulous way to way to salute the arrival of a new baby, hold a wedding shower or simply appreciate a delightful new season. If you are thinking about throwing an upscale, outdoor party, there are a few things you’ll want to keep in mind. 

It’s those little touches and careful, thoughtful consideration for the needs of your guests that can make any party a memorable one for you and everyone there to celebrate with you. Creating a great menu, providing enough seating in a covered, warm area and rustic touches that bring in natural beauty are essential.

The Menu

A good menu can set the stage. Think about what your guests love to eat. An outdoor kitchen is the perfect way to provide food. The outdoor kitchen should be in one corner of the space where you access it with ease. You’ll want a series of items that your guests can sample as the party continues. 

Consider what they’re going to eat as they arrive. Set up a series of hors d’oeuvres that people can eat without utensils. Good choices include varied bruschetta and small glasses of soup that people can sip as they talk to other guests. A hearty main course can ward off the chill during the winter or offer something cooling during the warmer months. Good choices include roast beef and grilled salmon with a sauce.

A Place to Sit

Many places to sit are important for an upscale outdoor dinner party. You should make sure that every guest has a place to sit that covered in case in excess humidity or a sudden downpour. A gaily decorated pergola is charming and inviting. 

Place cushions along one end if you can so people can sit down. You can also bring out a few folding chairs so people can set up a party and speak to others at the dinner. This is a good place to keep a bar for drinks that people can use as desired. 

Put a cooler in one part of the space. Tell guests what drinks are available and make sure you have enough cups, ice and other items like fruit slices to create the drinks to their personal satisfaction. You can also put up a temporary structure such as a canopy across one part of your outdoor space. 

Make sure it’s easy for people to get in and out. This is a good way to use all areas of your deck. Make sure they know if there are any stairs so they don’t trip when holding food or a drink in hand.

Rustic Touches

Take advantage of the natural setting and make it come to life for your guests with lots of thoughtful touches. You’ll want to invite people to explore and enjoy it as much as you do. To that end, show off all the details to delight the eyes. 

Think about seasonal decor to make it even more appealing. For example, you might have a garden full of wildflowers. Now is the time to pick them and show off the loveliness of the area’s native greenery. Take flowers and create a series of bouquets. 

Place a few large flower bowls to serve as a focal point in your outdoor space. Smaller buckets and vases can be used to show the way around the property and harmonize with the rest of the colors you’ve chosen for your backyard. 

Hang yards of fairy lights across the spaces such as the handrails to the deck and any staircases. This gives the area a magical feel and provides additional, much needed lighting at the same time.

Keeping Warm

Your dinner party will likely last well into the night. It can get pretty cold at this time even in the summer. You want to keep those spaces warm and cozy. A series of heaters can be set up at strategic locations across the outdoor spaces. Put one at each corner. This will make guests feel at home and comfortable even when night falls. 

Think about investing in a fire pit dining table. Fire pits are a great way to encourage people to enjoy time outdoors even when it’s colder. They’re easy to keep clean and a great way to use up any extra green material on your property such as fallen tree branches. Bring out sticks along with marshmallows, melted chocolate and graham crackers so people can create their own s’mores.