According to Brian Hay, a chef and culinary instructor at Austin Community College and a sommelier who also teaches for the International Sommelier Guild, "Theme parties now are getting to the point that it is completely 'no holds barred'. I have seen some of the strangest themes in the world, such as a Groundhog Day dinner party."
Why have a theme party? Hay says, "Most of the time people think of their themes as what they call 'basic'. In other words, it's a birthday, wedding anniversary, or rehearsal dinner. Now you can take those common themes and add something new to them. For instance, one of my friends is having a 70th birthday party for her mom. Most people will have a traditional birthday party were they invite everyone, have cake, music, and standard stuff. She is taking it to a whole new realm. She is trying to get all of the toys that they had back when her mom was a kid."
Dinner party themes can be anything you want them to be. Hays tells of an informal outdoor party hosted by one of his friends: "For one of the parties she did last year, she actually got Big Wheels, tricycles, and things that we played on as kids. She found a company that made adult size Big Wheels and had several delivered. There were people riding around with beers in their hand on Big Wheels. That was the coolest thing I have ever seen in my life. Now that's not a formal dinner party; but it wasn't supposed to be. There was an outside barbecue. This was just a free flowing party. It didn't have to be regimented in the sense that we were going to have a formal sit down nine-course meal or anything like that."
According to Hay, the key to a successful theme party is to think outside of the box. He says, "Last Christmas, instead of having a traditional dinner party, I actually had a dessert and drink party. I told my guests to bring a favorite dessert and bring a favorite drink. Everyone brought the desserts and drinks."
Use your imagination when thinking up ideas for a theme party. Get some friends together and brainstorm. Think about things you liked as a child, places you would like to go, and bring those things and places to your party.
Hays says, "Don't just think traditionally; always try to put a twist on it somehow, but make sure you can handle it. The party I am doing this Friday is for a group of hunters actually. We are going to use the fall theme and serve ostrich."
