Entertaining
Al Fresco Dining: How to Host the Perfect Outdoor Dinner Party
Dining outdoors — beneath a sky turning from blue to amber to violet as the evening progresses — is one of the great pleasures of summer entertaining. It requires a different kind of preparation, a different kind of table, and a specific understanding of what the outdoors asks of the host.
Al fresco dining — from the Italian 'in the fresh air' — has been a practice of the European leisure class since the Renaissance: frescoes at Pompeii depict outdoor banquets, and the tradition of the garden supper runs from the courts of Versailles to the terraces of contemporary Amalfi Coast restaurants. In contemporary home entertaining, the outdoor dinner party represents the apex of summer hospitality — an opportunity to use the garden, terrace, or rooftop as a room in its own right, with all the design and experiential possibilities that implies.
The Table: Foundation of the Outdoor Room
An outdoor dining table should be beautiful enough to anchor the space visually. The finest outdoor dining furniture — in teak, powder-coated aluminium, or stone-and-metal composites — is made by Dedon (dedon.de), whose woven outdoor collections represent the design standard for luxury outdoor furniture, and by Kettal (kettal.com), whose powder-coated steel and teak collections are equally exceptional. For a more accessible option, Restoration Hardware's teak outdoor collection (rh.com/outdoor) delivers genuine quality at a reasonable price point.
For tableware, resist the temptation to use plastic or melamine 'outdoor' products. Proper ceramic plates are entirely practical outdoors if handled with care; the visual statement is significantly better. Juliska's Country Estate collection (juliska.com) — ceramic with a hand-painted garden motif — is designed specifically for outdoor dining and is dishwasher-safe. Alternatively, lightweight enamelled steel plates (from Falcon Enamelware, falconenamelware.com) are beautiful, virtually indestructible, and entirely in keeping with the outdoor setting.
Lighting: The Essential Outdoor Element
Outdoor lighting transforms a dinner from simply being held outside into an experience of genuine magic. String lights (Edison bulb, not LED fairy lights) strung overhead at approximately 10 feet above table height create the most beautiful ambient ceiling. Voluspa (voluspa.com) glass jar candles in hurricane lanterns resist wind while providing the warm glow that tableside candles offer indoors. For a more permanent installation, Pooky (pooky.com) and Schoolhouse (schoolhouse.com) both offer outdoor-rated pendant lights in designs beautiful enough for the finest outdoor tables.
The Menu: Designed for the Outdoors
Al fresco dinner menus should favour dishes that are either served at room temperature or can survive a brief journey from kitchen to garden without deteriorating. Avoid delicate soufflés, precise sauce emulsions, or anything requiring last-minute plating precision. The Mediterranean tradition — chilled gazpacho, grilled fish or meats with excellent olive oil and fresh herbs, a composed salad course, a simple cheese course — is al fresco dining's most refined expression.
For a summer dinner, Yotam Ottolenghi's NOPI cookbook (ottolenghi.co.uk) contains the finest collection of vegetable-forward dishes suitable for warm-weather outdoor dining. Diana Henry's A Bird in the Hand (published by Mitchell Beazley) is the authoritative guide to chicken preparations ideal for outdoor entertaining.
Drinks: The Outdoor Aperitivo
A cold spritz served on arrival — whether Aperol-based, Campari-based, or a Mimosavated-inspired elderflower and Champagne variation — sets the tone immediately. Keep all drinks in a large ice-filled cooler or tub within reach; the host should not be disappearing indoors to refill glasses. A designated drinks area (a side table with ice, glasses, mixers, and the evening's selected wines) allows guests to serve themselves between courses.
The Contingency: Weather
Every outdoor dinner party requires a weather contingency. If there is any reasonable probability of rain, position a large outdoor umbrella or a temporary canopy (from Tent and Table, tentandtable.com, or a local party rental company) before the evening. A fine-mesh bug screen canopy, if the occasion calls for it, eliminates the most common summer outdoor dining problem without any visual compromise.
Reference Links:
- Dedon outdoor furniture: dedon.de
- Kettal outdoor dining: kettal.com
- Restoration Hardware outdoor: rh.com/outdoor
- Juliska Country Estate: juliska.com
- Falcon Enamelware: falconenamelware.com
- Voluspa outdoor candles: voluspa.com
- Ottolenghi NOPI cookbook: ottolenghi.co.uk
- Schoolhouse outdoor lighting: schoolhouse.com
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