Adult Birthday: Dinner Out with Friends

By Yelena Jenkins

Dig in with Friends and Family

Going out to a restaurant may seem like the easiest way to host a birthday dinner, but don't forget to make it special. With a few simple touches you can transform an everyday experience into something unforgettable and very personal. Here's how:

.... After your restaurant excursion, you may want to ask the party back to your place for drinks. Otherwise, bid them farewell in confidence knowing that you've created a special restaurant evening for the guest of honor.

Tips

Close all

Pick a Great Restaurant: The Type of Food

Choose a restaurant for dinner based on the birthday person's taste. To ensure you encompass all their favorite things, consider:

Indian? Italian? Mexican? French? Make sure you pick a restaurant that serves the guest of honor's favorite food.

Pick a Great Restaurant: Ambiance

Choose a restaurant for dinner based on the birthday person's taste. To ensure you encompass all their favorite things, consider:

Based on the type of event you have in mind, make sure to consider the atmosphere of the restaurant you book.

Ask yourself if you're looking for something that's:

lively and upbeat with music and lots of chatter

quiet, relaxing and intimate

new and hard to get into

an old favorite

Pick a Great Restaurant: Booking the Reservation

Choose a restaurant for dinner based on the birthday person's taste. To ensure you encompass all their favorite things, consider:

Make sure to book the reservation at least 4 to 6 weeks in advance, particularly for groups of 6 or more. This will ensure that you get to celebrate at your restaurant of choice and that the staff will have plenty of time to help you organize and prepare for the big occassion.

For greater ease, you can make your reservation online at OpenTable.com!

Make it Personal: Privacy and Personalization

The biggest drawback to having a party at a restaurant is the difficulty in making it a personal experience.

Here are a few great ways to personalize a birthday dinner at a restaurant:

See if the restaurant has a banquet room or a large table to the side that will provide some degree of separation from the rest of the venue.

Coordinate with the manager to make sure the restaurant will allow you to add personal touches like placecards to the table.

Decorations

Close all

Make it Personal: Photoscape

The biggest drawback to having a party at a restaurant is the difficulty in making it a personal experience.

Here are a few great ways to personalize a birthday dinner at a restaurant:

Create a black and white photoscape on the table. Include pictures of the birthday guy or girl at various times throughout his or her life.

Print the photos out in black and white and frame them or place them in an elevated table number holder so everyone can get a good view.

Extra points if you can get pictures which also incorporate your guests.

elevated table number holder

Make it Personal: Menus and Placecards

Here are a few great ways to personalize a birthday dinner at a restaurant:

For added intimacy, create:

Individual menus

Place cards for the guests

A seating plan ahead of time.

Be sure to place close family and friends nearest to the birthday person at the head of the table.

Make It Personal: Floral Arrangements

The biggest drawback to having a party at a restaurant is the difficulty in making it a personal experience.

Here are a few great ways to personalize a birthday dinner at a restaurant:

Find out what the guest of honor's favorite flowers are, and buy them in bulk to place in a few low vases across the long table.

If he or she doesn't have a favorite type of flower, simply choose flowers in their favorite color.

Rating (0) |Comments (0)