Posted on March 10th, 2023

Dinner Parties can be an amazing evening with friends, in the comfort of your own home, allowing for connections not easily attained in a restaurant and no conversations later on how to handle the bill. Why has this divine evening been so easily replaced by a night on the town? A few things have scared people away from hosting a dinner party, such as the amount of work to get your home ready to have guests, the prep work it takes to get a diner for 10-15 ready and the idea of handling the clean-up.

But have no fear, Madamopoulos is here with some tips and tricks to have you up and hosting in no time.

1. Home Decor. First things first, take pride in your house or Apartment. Chances are you have some pretty unique things in your home that you enjoy, showcase them! there is nothing a friend or guest likes more than coming to your house and seeing that it isn’t an ikea showroom.

1. Cheap lights, big results. Want to make a dramatic impact on the lighting in your home? Buy some simple uplight’s from Home depot, about $10 a pop and pick up some gel from a local lighting supply company or online, again about $10 a sheet. Cut the gels and place over the uplights to add an instant boost to the way your house is lit. Another tip, amber and pink lighting make everyone look better. This one time investment, can have results for years to come.

2. Cook with your guests. Don’t worry about having everything cooked ahead of time. Have a cocktail with your friends while you finish up dishes with them. One of my tricks is to have everyone bring over a semi-prepared dish and then have them explain to everyone what’s in it and how to make it as they finish cooking it. This keeps prep and costs down while also sharing recipes with your friends.

3. Have plenty of wine. The key to a good dinner party really is the wine. Try having a few, also try and have a port to serve with dessert or switch things up a bit by serving Pisco.

4. Don’t set an end time. As much as you think this is necessary, don’t. Putting an end time on your dinner party isnt necessary, your guests will not stay all night and when the time is right they will leave.

5. Clean up tomorrow. Don’t worry about cleaning up that night, it wont hurt to let the mess sit over night, and after a great party the last thing you want to do is clean all night. Take the time to relax instead and then in the morning it wont seem like such a hassle.