How to Seat Guests at a Dinner Party

Be the Host with the Most with These Meal Seating Strategies

Jul 22, 2008

With a crowd of people, there's always someone who wants to talk, someone who wants to listen and those who have an awkward past. Here's how to seat them all.

A dinner party has the potential to be a fabulous time, where everyone talks and gets along and enjoys the meal and remembers your hospitality. It also has the potential to be a little rotten, like when your conservative and liberal friends get into it over George W. Bush's presidency and no one wants to eat their dessert. Here are some strategies to make sure you're seating people wisely to ensure great conversation flow.

Consider personalities

Try drawing out a table map and cut out squares with each person's name. That way, you can move them around and consider different scenarios. If you've got a shy friend, don't put them between the two most talkative people at the party; they'll just be talked over the whole time. If your most conservative and most liberal friends are directly across the table from one another and prone to debate, separate them so it's hard for them to keep it up. On the other hand, if you've got two friends who both love English literature, seat them together so they'll have something compelling in common to discuss.

Let them get to know each other

Some people think it's essential to always seat husbands and wives next to each other, but that's not the case. Instead, try spreading people out so everyone's near someone they don't know. This way, they have a chance to engage the new person on their own terms. Make sure, of course, that they're introduced before sitting down at the table to avoid awkward over-the-table introductions.

Remember the drama

If you know that a friend has an issue with someone else at the party, or a past tiff, kindly move them away from the person they're having an issue with. Do this also if you see a potential rub – like friends who love opposing sports teams and one just beat the other. Overall, your goal is to make the conversation flow between all the guests, whether in one conversation or several splintered ones.

Assign them

Make sure its clear where people are to sit or else all your planning has gone to waste. Once someone sits, you don't want to tell them they're in the wrong seat. Make some cute placecards with names on them, and instruct guests as they enter the dining room to look for their place. Guests appreciate this order, especially if it's a more formal dinner party, and they'll usually appreciate spending time getting to know new friends around your table.

The copyright of the article How to Seat Guests at a Dinner Party in Entertaining is owned by Sara Gray. Permission to republish How to Seat Guests at a Dinner Party in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.