Ten tableware items for successful dinner parties

It’s dinner party season, and whether the table’s set for a seldom-seen friendship group’s catch-up, a seasonal family get-together or just a weekend lunch, a well-dressed table sets the scene for mealtime majesty, making special occasions feel relaxed, and relaxed occasions feel special. Here are the essential products successful dinner parties can’t do without.

The comfort one feels with drink in hand means glassware is thrust towards guests as soon as they’re in the door, and therefore controls a first impression. Molo’s Float glassware range has beauty with its classically geometric form, stability with a lower centre of gravity than traditional stemware and functionality with a wide aeration area and separated glass surfaces – reducing warming and condensation.

Coat off and drink served, the partnering hand then turns to search for the nearest snack bowl. In a post-pandemic world, however, the thought of hundreds of dirty, salty fingers poking around makes them less appealing. The ceramic WeBowls from Wehlers have unique and characterful colour and patterning, making them easy to individually allocate and identify, while their geometric base and pitched openings point the contents invitingly towards uncertain guests.

Placemats and coasters are set in a difficult position. Asked to complement the table but covered up by the main event, they are dinner’s warm-up act, if you will. The Tov.Ame leather mats from MD – OXILLA frame dinnerware with a rainbow of colour options, with specifiers able to match a range of seasonal themes. Bordered by a woven cotton and copper fabric, they also provide a gripping home for contrasting flatware.

Essential tableware so often assumed not necessary, until it is, trivets provide protection for hot serving ovenware. When used irregularly, however, they easily find the back of the cupboard and are quickly forgotten. At 6mm thick, valerie_objects’ geometric trivets can hang on the wall – applied as modern art – when out of use. And the colourful powder-coated steel gives stability to sizzling pans, while protecting vulnerable surfaces underneath.

For inexperienced hosts, the thought of not only selecting, but also opening and pouring wine in front of guests can be daunting. Alessi’s Noè collection includes embarrassment-free wine and champagne bottle openers, a wine collar for catching tablecloth-staining drips and a bottle stopper so guests aren’t encouraged to drink more than is good for them, ensuring memorably successful dinner parties remain memorable.

Everyone has different preferences and taste receptors, yet space is tight at sit-down gatherings, so a neat and tidy cruet stand like Rubik from bosa offers diners the opportunity to address the issue. Two pots with necks and spouts for clean pouring are combined with two small shakers for basic seasoning and two more for additional complementary flavours, together on a helpful tray.

Decorative centrepieces attract diners to the table and focus their attention to the pleasures thereon. The U candle holders from Tina Frey Designs differ in number, size and height to serve tables of varied size, shape and number. By itself, one makes a simple or quirky addition to a romantic meal. But when applied in groups, imaginative narratives of seabed coral, cacti on a tablecloth desert or the interrupted body of a sea serpent emerge.

When it comes to dinnerware, functionality and efficiency are also big factors. Weird and wonderful shapes and materials look impressive on the table, but can be unsuited to actual mealtimes and storage in-between. Fürstenberg’s My China! Emperor’s Garden collection uses bold colour and iconic artwork to suit everyday meals as well as various special occasions. The slim, nesting forms tuck neatly away when out of use, too.

The trend of flat dinnerware causes stains and spills on cloth and carpet, but when used as serveware to display appetisers, the sleek open plain presents gastronomic creations like sculptures on a plinth. In the Tabula range, bathroom ceramicists antoniolupi presents its own scientifically engineered ultra-hygienic material, Flumood. With no seams or ridges, the flat dishware stays clean, dries well and stacks with expertise.

From flat dishware to stand-out flatware, finding character in a sea of thin, silver shapes is not so easy. By changing the colour of the finish, however, cutlery can provide an intriguing yet simple accent on a tabletop. valerie_objects’ Koichi and Maarten Baas cutlery collections are both available in brushed PVD black, copper and brass, but the stainless steel collections are still hardwearing and dishwasher safe.

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