Easy Dinner Party Themes That You And Your Guests Will Adore

Be Our Guest

For a Beauty and the Beast inspired dinner party, go all out on the decorations. There is the famous dinner scene in the animated film so having film memorabilia or items that closely match would be best to fit the theme. Try using a gold tablecloth and putting a red rose underneath an upside down vase. Because the movie takes place in France include a variety of French dinner options and you could even serve cupcakes in a teacup!

Edgar Allen Poe

An Edgar Allen Poe themed dinner party would be so much fun to have near Halloween! Include printed pages of his books and stories as decorations. Include tree branches spray painted black, fake ravens, and black birdcages to bring out gothic character at the party. Serve a red velvet cake for dessert with black icing! Spooky and delicious!

Harry Potter Party

A Harry Potter themed dinner party would be a great one to have any time of the year! Make your own Great Hall, try using a long table or several shorter tables pushed together. Print out signs or other memorabilia from the film, old books, owls, broomsticks, and other Harry Potter-esque decorations.

Game of Thrones

Pick your favorite house from the show or even a few to represent at the dinner party. For example, for a Targaryen theme, you could make your very own dragon eggs. Boil eggs and then roll them on a hard surface to crack them. Then re-boil for slightly longer in water dyed with gel food coloring to make a beautiful kaleidoscope pattern on your egg. Fantastic!

Murder Mystery

Try having a murder mystery-themed dinner party! Prepare detailed characters descriptions for each guest and distribute them as they arrive to the party. Make the dinner a potluck and have every guest bring one of their favorite dishes. What an easy and fun way to have an amazing time!

TV Show Dinner Party

Pick your favorite TV show and make a dinner party around it. For example, if your favorite show is Friends use the font from the show and print out name cards and menus. Serve New York themed foods like bagels and of course have a coffee bar to match the characters’ favorite hang out!

Vegan Dinner Party

Give your body a break from the beef and consider having a vegan dinner party. Vegan food can be just as filling as a meat-heavy diet. Make vegan versions of your favorite dinner items for this party; for example, try making a shepherd’s pie and substitute the ground meat with lentils and mushrooms. Protein-packed and tasty, too. What a great opportunity to try new foods!

Fiesta Taco Bar

Try having a Mexican fiesta themed taco bar dinner party. Set up a table with a help-yourself-style presentation. You can include several kinds of tortillas: corn, flour, or crispy fried. Set the table with different kinds of fillings, ground turkey, beef, chicken, and perhaps a vegan option. Also include a variety of toppings like lettuce, tomato, various cheeses, and any other vegetables you desire.

Italian Night

Imagine an Italian themed dinner party. For this one, it’s great to go all out on decorative features. Include traditional Italian restaurant style table cloths and line up a bruschetta bar as a help yourself style appetizer. Serve a classic sit-down Italian meal such as spaghetti and meatballs or chicken alfredo, and a dessert such as a tiramisu. Mangia!

St. Patrick’s Day

Try out the luck of the Irish with a St. Patrick’s Day themed dinner party. Set the table with traditional Irish green to set the mood. Of course serving Guinness beer for guests to start, or for those who don’t like beer, other cocktails with green hues. Start dinner with a salad and traditional Irish soda bread. And of course for the main course an Irish stew with beef, potatoes, and carrots. Delicious!

Mediterranean

A Mediterranean themed dinner party can go many different routes all culminating in one beautiful party. Try using a white table cloth with royal blue accents to bring out a Greek vibe. Serve everything family style with such dishes as a mezze platter with pita bread for an appetizer, lamb kebabs and an orzo pasta salad for the main course, and instead of dessert finish with a cheese platter and white wine!

Japanese

For a Japanese themed dinner party, try using a red table cloth. Enhance the decorations with lighted paper lanterns across the table and include chopsticks as a utensil option. There are a large variety of foods you could serve including different hand-rolled sushi rolls, or you could even turn it into a party where everyone learns to roll their own sushi!

Havana Nights

For a Cuban themed party include a variety of party favors like straw fedoras and cigars, or bubblegum cigars if you aren’t into the whole smoking thing. This party would also do great outside with lots of green plants around. Try serving a refreshing mojito as a drink and tapas with such options as plantain chips, tostones, beef empanadas, or Cuban sandwiches.

Chili Tasting

Have a chili tasting dinner party with your own chili bar! Have several different chili options such as turkey chili, traditional chili, and extra spicy chili. Also, include lots of different topping for your guests such as cheese, chives, sour cream, tortilla chips, Fritos, different kinds of peppers, different kinds of onions, avocados. Be as creative as you like!

Mary Poppins

For a Mary Poppins themed dinner party the decorations should include umbrellas or parasols and her famous black hat. Include lots of sweets to ensure your guests are reminded of that spoonful of sugar. Try serving cake pops, cupcakes, and spoons dipped in candy. This dinner party would be great for the Disney lover or even for a child’s birthday! Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!

Lady and the Tramp

For a Lady and the Tramp themed party you must have a classic Italian dinner. Use red checkered tablecloths, cloth napkins, and candlelight. For food, spaghetti and meatballs is a no brainer. Red wine and a dessert, such as tiramisu, would also be fantastic accompaniments. This would be a great dinner to have for friends on Valentine’s Day!

Ode to Beyoncé Theme

For this dinner party theme, it’s a must to have all things Queen Bey. To start, of course, you must have her music playing. Print out copies of her album covers and use them as decorations around the room on a black background. Make recipes with pun-worthy titles alluding to Beyoncé’s song titles like “Drunk in Rub” with a whiskey-brined chicken with a spiced sugar rub. To drink, of course, you must serve lemonade!

Little Mermaid Party

Have an under the sea themed dinner party. Use blue and green tablecloths, napkins, and plastic cutlery to remind your guests of the ocean. Have ocean-themed snacks like mermaid and seashell cupcakes. Serve ocean-themed drinks, such as blue punch with a carbonated beverage of your choice. Decorate your tables with sand and seashells.

Disney Party

Choose your favorite Disney movie; there is almost always a food, dinner, or eating scene from all Disney movies that you can recreate. You can recreate the scene from scratch or simply print out photos from the movie as decoration for your party. Include foods from the film or simply serve food and give the dish a name that correlates from the film. You could even ask your guests to dress up in costume to really commit to the theme!

Backyard BBQ

Try having an old-fashioned backyard BBQ for your guests. Include a variety of meats like brisket, ribs, chicken, vegetables, and even a vegan meat option to ensure you have something for everyone. Set up a picnic table in your backyard or you could even go to a local park if you don’t have a yard or it isn’t big enough. Decorate with fresh flowers and fun colors. Beautiful!

Crawfish Boil

Give your guests a taste of the South with a crawfish boil! You’ll need large amounts of potatoes, corn on the cob, and crawfish. Peak crawfish season is March and April, so hosting a crawfish boil would be best during this time. Season everything with garlic and Old Bay seasoning. Serve by dumping the whole pot on a table lined with plastic or newspaper and dig in!

Mardi Gras

Throw a Mardi Gras party for a taste of New Orleans! Mardi Gras is a time of indulgence so you should go all out with the food. Serve appetizers like red beans and rice, citrus marinated shrimp, chicken and sausage gumbo, Cajun corn, and muffulettas. Decorate with green, purple and gold and make sure to have some Mardi Gras beads on hand for your guests!

Southwestern Style

A Southwestern themed dinner party can simple and fun to put together. Use colors like turquoise, mauve, and golden yellow to accent your party. Decorate your table using small cacti as placeholders for your guests. Try serving peanuts in a pail to have something for your guests to snack on. You could even make cactus cupcakes!

Casino Night

Throw a casino night dinner for your friends. For this party, you might need to rent some equipment like a roulette wheel or any other games you desire. Serve food buffet style and have someone play bartender for your guests. You may want to choose to serve food that are not too messy or easy to hold so your guests can eat and move around to play games as well!

Autumn Dinner

Throw a fall themed dinner party and bring out the warmth of the season. Autumn is known for its beautiful warm colors, pick a color palette and stick to it. You can also use pine cones and various squash to decorate your dinner. Serve a dish that also enhances the theme like seasonal vegetables with chicken. Delicious!

Spring Dinner

The season of spring is all about new life. Throw a dinner party that can go along with this theme. Use a vivid green as your main color and enhance with other bright shades to make it pop. Have some fresh flowers, such as tulips, on hand to decorate your tables. Serve a dish like a pasta primavera which is hearty and beautiful with all of the springtime seasonal vegetables.

Summer Dinner

Try having your summer dinner party outdoors to take advantage of the weather. Include bright summer colors and fresh flowers. You should definitely make sure you serve refreshing drinks because it’s likely the weather will be hot. Also, serve a fresh summer salad make with tomato and cucumber and tie in both the lovely colors and freshness of the food.

Winter Dinner

Throw a beautiful winter party to celebrate the cold season. Decorate with snowflakes and fake snow, especially if you live in an area that doesn’t get snow. Serve a winter sangria with pomegranate and blood orange. Or you could try having a hot chocolate bar, serve it buffet style so your guests can have hot chocolate and then have a variety of toppings to choose from.

Wine and Cheese

Try having an elegant wine and cheese party. This is a great way to host a mixer as there is plenty of time for talking without a huge sit-down dinner. Perhaps go the earthy route with sprigs of herbs and using rough wood platters to serve various cheese and even a few meats. Have several wine options as different wines compliment different cheeses.

Breakfast for Dinner

Everyone loves breakfast for dinner every once in a while! Offer a family style serving option so everyone can try a bit of everything. Make sure you have large helpings of pancakes, eggs cooked different ways, bacon, ham, muffins, and there is really no limit when it comes to breakfast food.

Hawaiian Luau

Have a backyard Hawaiian luau as a summer party. Of course, you will need to provide everyone with leis or you can even make your own by stringing flowers on a needle and thread. Buy some tiki lamps to add to the theme. If you want to be authentic you can try roasting an entire pig or you could simplify it and just serve a pork-related dish.

Pizza Bar

Who doesn’t love pizza? For this party, you could either have different variety pizzas to choose from or you can have a make your own party. You can have personal sized pizza crusts, with a large variety of toppings to choose from. Everyone can make their own and they don’t take long to cook. Make sure you have some appetizers and drinks to serve while your guests wait for their pizza to cook. Super fun!

Retro Dinner Party

Think about having a retro dinner party. To have one of these you’ll want to consult some old cookbooks and see what they used to serve. Serve such retro dishes as cheese balls, shrimp cocktail, and meatballs. Try offering a beverage such as a retro drink like a classic martini or a Manhattan.

Thanksgiving Leftover Party

Everyone always has tons of leftovers after eating their traditional family meal. Try hosting a dinner party to finish using up all this food. Try making a slider with Hawaiian roll buns, turkey, and cranberry sauce. Another dish option would be to make a thanksgiving breakfast, adding green beans, turkey, eggs, and stuffing and bake.

Pirate Party

An extremely fun party theme that would also be fitting around Halloween would be a pirate party. Have a bottle of rum on hand to make a rum-based tropical drink. Keep the rum out to make a pirate stew flavored with rum and brown sugar. Ask your guests to dress in costume or provide eye patches to bring out everyone’s inner pirate.

Camping Party

Try having a fun camping themed dinner party. Set up your backyard with a picnic table and a campfire. Try serving food off a grill and have your guests sit around outside to look at the stars. Of course, you have to end the night with everyone gathered around the campfire eating smores.

Woodland Party

Try having a beautiful woodland themed party. Decorate with a moss table runner and pine cones. Serve dishes on wood platters decorated with flowers or baby breath. Print out different woodland animals to decorate the party. Make cupcakes decorated to look like mushrooms or other greenery. This would be a super cute idea for a kid’s party as well!

Picnic Party

When’s the last time you had a picnic? Invite your friends over to have a lovely picnic outside. Use picnic tables or you could even forgo this and use blankets right on the grass. Have a buffet style spread or sandwiches, vegetables, and other finger foods to feed your guests. And of course, make sure to have some refreshing drinks like lemonade and tea to quench their thirst.

Masquerade Ball

Another awesome theme is a masquerade ball dinner party. For this theme, you could choose to have your guests wear formal attire. Ask your guests to bring masquerade masks or you could provide them as a party favor. Have someone play bartender to serve your guests and offer hors d’oeuvres. You could also provide a sit-down dinner to make sure your guests leave full and happy.

Nascar

If you and your friends enjoy watching car races, why not try a Nascar themed party? Purchase a racetrack table runner or make your own with black paper with white stripes down the center. Print out checkered pit stop pennants to designate different areas of your party like drinks, snacks, and party favors.