Dinner parties are the new “it” event. Here’s how to host one without breaking the bank.
Hungry but want to keep the party at home? Good news: 2024 has been dubbed “the year of the dinner party,” allowing hosts with the most to create a private ambiance feat. home-cooked—or catered—dishes and QT with family and friends sans the stress of navigating the hoopla of heading out for a meal (read: booking a rez, finding parking and changing out of your PJs).
Digging further into the trend, as the cost of eating out increases and the desire to imbibe decreases (hey, sober revolution!), many millennials and Gen Zers are opting to take hospitality into their own hands while simultaneously keeping costs low—and sharing on their social feeds, natch.
Clearly, the movement is sweeping society, with Evite data showing searches for “dinner parties” have boosted by 148% compared to last year. See also: local startup small biz Canary honing in on providing the resources for said stylish abode events—from originally decorated tablescapes and curated themes to an array of glassware and table rentals, Spotify playlists and place mats.
For the lowdown on how to throw down via your own foodie night in, we tapped event planning extraordinaire Catrina Vienrich of Vine Rich Events. Here, her tips and tricks to host a showstopping at-home supper soiree—without breaking the bank. Cheers to a house (dinner) party!
Shake It Up • For an elevated experience sans the upward of $20/cocktail price tag, stir up a fun welcome alcoholic or nonalcoholic bev with ingredients already in your pantry (mod cocktail database Make Me a Cocktail always has great ideas!). Or grab a cheap bottle of wine and mix with fruit on-hand and your fave juice for an easy and budget-friendly sangria.
Hey, Buds • Get guests in the dinner-party mood without shelling out Benjamins on pricey buds via a bouquet (or two!) of flowers for the table from the farmers market or grocery store.
On Theme • Pick a vibe—then go ham flexing those Pinterest skills to create your own decorative tablescape, invitations, dress code and ambiance. Pro tip: Cut costs further by repurposing what you already have or visiting a local craft store or thrift shop.
What’s Cooking • If you opt for full-fledged dishes over snacks and starters, prep your meal(s) ahead of time rather than calling in a caterer—and keep the dishes in a warming drawer if needed while you wait for your guests to arrive. Taste of Home has a smattering of tasty—and affordable!—recipes that promise to smack.
Familiar Fare • Instead of snagging fancy ingredients and products from the store, keep it simple and stick to your strengths. Think of emulating A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving—it doesn’t always matter what you’re eating… just who you’re with!
Keep It Sweet • Don’t forget dessert! Truly the inexpensive cherry on top of an appetizing evening, the most important part of the meal stays price effective with ops like a DIY ice cream bar or batch of brownies. Or for summer vibes, stay stacked with s’mores prepped in the oven or out on the bonfire
“She’s funny and has great taste in milk,” says the fan-fave NC State basketball legend of one of NC’s 38,000 dairy cows that played the role of supporting actor in his video shoot. After all, chocolate milk is a “great recovery drink for sports and a great way to fuel a championship run.” For more moo-ving content, turn to p. 21 for packed intel on the Wolfpack men’s and women’s legendary run. … Got milk?
Saddle up at one of these local Kentucky Derby parties.
Off to the races! It’s the 150th year running of “the greatest two minutes in sports,” taking place Saturday, May 4. Get ready to giddy up to an array of Derby-themed extravaganzas and watch parties around town—just be sure to dress to impress (hey, big hats and bow ties!) and pony up on your winning (🤞) stallion. Here, where to horse around.
AVA Rooftop Bar And they’re off…! Keep things swanky via classic Kentucky hot brown sammies, mint juleps and cornhole tourneys—NTM a cash prize for best Derby day duds. Ain’t no party like a rooftop day party! avarooftopbar.com
Dram & Draught May the horseplay begin! Derby bets and mint julep drinks are the name of the game at Dram’s yearly watch party, starting across all seven locales at 3pm (so, plenty of time to get your pregame on!). Plus, be sure to put your best hat forward for the hat and outfit comp. @dramanddraught
Tap Yard Gallop into the garden party of your dreams in your best themed ’fit and pony up (!) for the ultimate soiree showcasing mint juleps, good libations and a lineup of activities to ring in the biggest horse-racing event of the year. See ya at the Yard. @tapyardraleigh
The Willard Sip pretty and get on your high horse as you stream the races while sipping a duo of specialty cocktails (think a strawberry mint juleps and a paper plane Tom Collins feat. Aperol) against the Raleigh skyline. How ’Grammable—er, dapper! thewillardraleigh.com
JB Duke Hotel On Derby day, we brunch! Take the drive to Bull City for JB Duke Hotel’s eighth annual Derby- and Mothers’ Day-inspired brunch feat. delish fare, a build-your-own mimosa station and an array of speakers. @jbdukehotel
Duel Pack Final Four showings usher in a peak athletic moment—and an economic boon for NC.
Wolfpack Nation made this March Madness one for the books while proving hoop dreams can come true (hey, “new epicenter of college bball”!) via our men’s and women’s basketball teams dancing down the road to the Final Four.
And Raleigh went wild—NTM ACC nation and, well, the whole nation. Fandom was at a fever pitch and all eyes were on our fair city as our Pack men played through a wildly unprecedented nine-game win streak at the mercy of a game buzzer beater against UVA that sent State to the ACC Championship—and, ultimately, its first Final Four appearance since 1983. Exemplifying the “survive and advance” motif at its finest, the miracle ~march~ defied the odds—given a pre-tourney 0.9% chance of making the Final Four and a 0.1% chance of securing the championship.
And, then, well—“Why not both?” Legends in their own right, the Wolfpack women drew millions of viewers and fanfare as they alley-ooped their first Final Four appearance since 1998—the ultimate assist in giving female sports the moment it’s always deserved (see Jason Sudeikis sporting a “Everyone Watches Women’s Sports” shirt at the women’s championship).
While our duo of ballin’ teams took the L after their faceoffs against Purdue and South Carolina, respectively, we’d be remiss not to consider the wild ride a win in itself. Beyond all the sports-related hype (DJ as America’s Sweetheart?!), NC State wasn’t just part of the conversation—it was the conversation. And, naturally, our region’s local economy took a dub, with fans flocking to rep and revel at a lineup of watchworthy hot spots (s/o to the Hillsborough Street block party feat. a big screen and packed street), the red Belltower, the Free Expression Tunnel mural—and funneling funds to local retailers touting celebratory merch.
Get to know the man, the myth, the NC State basketball legend. We got exclusive intel from DJ Burns himself after his magical March Madness run. Introducing our legen-dairy cover star (s/o to his cow friend). Here, the moo-ving content…
Go-to Howling Cow order? Strawberry or Wolf Tracks
Fave spot on campus? The Free Expression Tunnel or Dail Basketball Center
Hot take on the Final Four hype? It’s been an absolute blessing—and it’s cool to be recognized for all our hard work.
Fave part of March Madness? Mike’s game winner against Virginia by far!
Basketball star inspo? LeBron James—he’s my favorite basketball player of all time!
The tea (rex): Dueling Dinosaurs now stomping into action
What’s the opposite of a dino-snore? A visit to the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences for its highly anticipated (read: 67 million years in the making) exhibit, Dueling Dinosaurs—featuring The SECU DinoLab, a paramount fixture of the new exhibit and the sole paleontology lab across the globe regularly open for the public to visit.
“The Dueling Dinosaurs fossils are a scientific frontier,” says Head of Paleontology Lindsay Zanno. “The preservation is phenomenal, and we plan to use every technological innovation available to reveal new information on the biology of the world’s favorite dinosaurs: the tyrannosaurus and triceratops.”
Essentially, the fun (and learning!) will be anything but extinct via a front-row experience digging into the nitty-gritty of a couple prehistoric pals. Get ready to get your Ross Geller on—and turn the page for more May calendar selects. duelingdinosaurs.org
