Eating out in an expensive restaurant is sometimes fun, but often also deadly annoying. If you know in advance that you will have to sit next to one uninteresting person all evening, who says nothing or who speaks continuously, you can dread that four-course obligation for hours. How do you survive such a boring dinner, where you have to sit down for the sake of your career or family relations and have a bit of a diplomatic conversation?
Sitting at a long table for three hours
From time to time we are invited to an exclusive dinner with other guests. In connection with a family party, or because of a more official matter such as a business dinner, anniversary of a prominent person, etc. That is usually a nice prospect, but often such a 4-course dinner is quite a sitting. The delicious dishes do not outweigh the utter boredom. What can you do to make such an obligation more palatable so that the invitees do not keep checking their watches to see if it is almost over yet?
Wrong table arrangement
If you organize a dinner party, you can only do this at 1 large table in one situation, and that is the case if a maximum of about 10 people participate in that dinner and a round or oval table is available. Because only then can all guests see and communicate with each other. You are then not dependent on that one person to the left and/or right next to you for the conversation. If there are more people involved, it is better not to sit at large tables, nor at several small tables, because after 3 hours of dining you will eventually stop talking to your regular table mates. Unless it is a very sexy table lady that you have entirely to yourself.
If you have the misfortune of having to sit next to or opposite a person all evening who either talks all the time or says nothing, you can break the boredom as follows: By going to the toilet more often, you have to smoke for a while, peek at your cell phone every now and then, or consume a lot of alcoholic beverages, which also has a good narcotic effect. However, if it is a more official dinner with business associates or your employer, you have no choice but to look as cheerful as possible and possibly discuss topics related to work and the industry. Because you obviously don’t want to risk your job. Maybe have a quick cup-a-soup in between to get new energy.
Good layout
If you have to organize a dinner for many people yourself, and you don’t want the guests to have a very unpleasant evening and constantly have to check their watches to see if the final coffee has arrived, take the following aspects into account:
- Don’t let your guests sit at tables, but arrange a buffet, forcing people to leave their seats to fill their plates. That has many advantages. First of all, it’s fun just standing in line and bragging rights. That breaks enormously and you chat with everyone around you. Another advantage is that all guests can get what they like and in the quantities they want. When the guests sit down again, they can always sit with whoever they want and when they go to get something the second time, they can take a seat at another table and converse with other people. You can also place a few standing tables to make it even more casual.
- If possible, arrange some music in the form of a disc jockey or small combo. Some people love to dance and others enjoy watching it. Make sure you agree on the volume in advance because nothing is more annoying than having to talk loudly. At the end of the evening the reins can often be loosened a bit. If you have a dinner party for the sports club or the choir, etc., you might want to do something with a singing microphone, because with a little nice accompaniment from a keyboard you will always have people singing and pulling the others along in their enthusiasm.
- As an organizer or host, you might want to say a few words or ask someone else to give a short speech. After such a talk by one speaker, there is often material for discussion for the others.
A successful dinner
The evening flies by in this way and all the guests talk for a long time about that nice dinner you treated them to.
read more
- If you don’t know what to say at a hairdresser, party or date
- Successful, safe barbecue in the park requires preparation