How to Host a Dinner Party

by Corey Mintz

A fun, informative guide to hosting the perfect party every time. "Every dinner party experience I’ve had in the last ten years at Corey’s has been incredible. But practice really does make perfect and I can now honestly say there is nowhere I’d rather be in the world than at his table … I can’t begin to express the relief I felt in reading this book and realizing there was a method to his success."
- Sarah Polley, from the introduction We’ve all been twenty minutes before guests arrive, and you’re unsure if you’ve got enough wine, or enough chairs, or whether your friend is a vegetarian or a vegan. Hosting a dinner party is hard, but Corey Mintz can help. For his popular Toronto Star column, "Fed," he has presided over 115 dinner parties, every week opening his home to strangers and friends alike in an effort to perfect the craft of hosting. And in How to Host a Dinner Party , he shares everything he’s learned in a hilarious handbook that will appeal to everyone ― from those throwing their first dinner party to seasoned entertainers looking to enhance their skills. This book guides readers through everything they need to know about hosting, starting with the golden rule ― that the goal of a dinner party is to have fun with our friends, not to show off our cooking skills. It will explain why we like to gather for dinner, when we should host, who we should invite, what we should cook, and how we should cook it. Featuring recipes, anecdotes, expert analysis, and an endless bounty of how-to tips, it is the essential guide to perfecting the art of welcoming people into your home.

Genres: Nonfiction, Food, How To

192 pages, Hardcover

First published December 11, 2012

About the author

Corey Mintz is a freelance food reporter (New York Times, Globe and Mail, Eater, and others), focusing on the intersection between what we eat with business, politics, farming, ethics, land use, labor (or labour, as it’s spelled in Canada), education and culture. He has been a cook and a restaurant critic. For his long-running column Fed, he hosted 192 dinner parties, featuring politicians, refugees, criminals, artists, academics, acupuncturists, high-rise window washers, competitive barbecuers, and one monkey. He is the author of two and a half books. He lives in Winnipeg with his wife, Victoria, and their daughter, Cookie Puss.

Reviews

[Adam · Rating 5 out of 5]

More people need this guide. An excellent how to.

[David Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

Make your dinner party a success

What a great little book. My wife and I wanted to start regularly "having people over to dinner", and began looking for tips to help connect us, and strangers, together over a meal.

We found this book and it was tremendously helpful.

I love Corey's casual writing style; he's funny, and a good teacher at the same time.

This is a quick read, full of sound bites, bits of wisdom to make your dinner party successful.

Last night we hosted our first dinner party and it was a rousing success!

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is excellent. Corey Mintz hosted dinner parties weekly and wrote a column about them for the Toronto Star, so he has hosting down to a science. While he has very specific advice for entertaining (you need 26 inches of space at the table for each guest!), he offers it in a witty and reassuring way, with plenty of amusing anecdotes.

It truly is a how-to manual, but one you will be delighted to read straight through.

[Sophia Nunn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mintz’s book shed light on aspects of the dinner party that I’ve never even considered. I would have liked more discussion on how the norms of dinner parties (and what is expected of hosts and guests) differs across cultures. That being said, it isn’t an anthropological study of dinner parties across the world, rather, his own experience as a host. Overall an informative and engaging read, would recommend to any frequent hosts.

[Libby Park · Rating 5 out of 5]

Corey Mintz is amusing (hilarious, actually), practical and blunt. Mintz upholds good company and connection as a dinner party virtue over all else, yet provides a practical guideline in the technicalities of the dinner party. A fun and helpful read for any dinner party novice (like me) trying to get a hang of hosting.

[Emily · Rating 2 out of 5]

Reading a book about making guests feel comfortable in your home by an author who was so derisive to his audience was certainly one of the more bizarre experiences of my life… Two stars for the bits of valuable advice wedged in between all the snark.

[Anita D · Rating 2 out of 5]

Seems mostly like common sense...

[Dai Lo · Rating 2 out of 5]

Didn't learn anything new, other then portobello, cremini, button mushrooms are the same, just different age

[Elli · Rating 3 out of 5]

Too basic for me; not as elaborate as I would have liked

[Robert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun and witty with some good sounding strategies and recipes.

[Ben Zammit · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Let them know you’ve got a red and a white open. There are people who think that opening a bottle is tantamount to rewriting a living will.”

[Specialk · Rating 1 out of 5]

Corey Mintz is trying to be unpretentious, but he's coming off as an asshole.

He talks down to his reader, treating them as if they could barely bumble their way through any social interaction without his exacting direction.

If you take away his snark, he has some good advice: don't try too hard to emulate celebrity chefs, stick with what you know, be an attentive host, prep in advance, etc.

But it's poorly (re: shittily) delivered, and so irritating and so 1990. I mean punch? We want to bring back the punch bowl for our dinner parties?

Skip this one, and just host parties, and see what works for you. Check out some blogs and other food writers - but don't bother inviting Mintz to the party.

[Matthew Marcus · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really wanted to read this book, and I was not disappointed. I have watched the television show Come Dine With Me about dinner parties with five strangers. If only some of them had read this book! The book contains a lot of advice and some recipes for a successful get-together. This is a great book for people who like to entertain. Even someone who has hosted a lot of dinner parties or barbecues will find this book interesting. This is a great knowledgeable guide while remaining humorous. I like the humorous elements as there is never a dull moment in this book! I recommend it to young, middle and old alike.

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brilliant - both a great read and some really good advice. I'm all for the "come as you are" school of dinner parties and "just be yourself" hostess philosophies, but you know what, sometimes little tricks make the difference. This book is full of them and while most of them are obvious in hindsight (why yes, I've spent an uncomfortable night jammed into the corner of my table), forewarned is forearmed. Yes, he is a bit bossy, but in an age when so people often never respond to an invitation, a review of expectations and guidelines is super helpful.

[Alex · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a very informative book on hosting dinner parties written by someone with a lot of experience. Mintz covers a broad range of topics from menu choice to how to deal with drinking and driving, with a number of recipes included. He emphasizes atmosphere over perfection, stressing that it is a party, not a restaurant meal.

I did, however, find the tone somewhat bossy, I'm not sure why, and some of the humour a little meanspirited.

[Ken Hunt · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some practical advice in a quick, light read, but would have benefitted from the author sharing more of his actual cooking tips. I know this isn't meant to be a cookbook, but as someone who loves hosting dinner parties I would have appreciated more advice on how to pull off great dishes and less hand-hoody stuff on how to deal with boorish or drunk guests.

[Connie · Rating 5 out of 5]

My first dinner party was a success largely due to this book. Without it, I would not have thought to:

1. Make sure the bathroom was clean, with a spare roll of toilet paper
2. Get candles
3. Have Early Birds
4. Respect the guests' footwear
5. Serve a good cup of coffee at the end

You also learn to be an excellent dinner party guest. Solid book.

[Josh · Rating 3 out of 5]

An easy, light read with some handy tips and ideas for creating your dinner party hosting agendas. As with many things of a how-to nature, the advice seems common sense, but it's always helpful to see it listed out as a reminder to not forget that simple step no one thought they could ever forget.

[springsnotfail · Rating 4 out of 5]

Practical, sensible, and funny! I really enjoyed this and felt more confident about having dinner parties after reading it. I highly recommend this. It's short and sweet, and it managed to tread the line of being opinionated without making you feel like a terrible person for disagreeing.

[Jen Visser · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book. I anticipated more i of a how-to manual when I grabbed this off the shelf than the insightful guide that I discovered. It was fun to read, a mix of lighthearted storytelling and clear truths about the goals and potential pitfalls of being a host and a guest at dinner parties.

[Michele · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fun and quick read that offers excellent advice for aspiring dinner party hosts/esses. I have already incorporated some tips into my planning and will keep the book close for reference in the future.

[Tiffany · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's like Emily Post comes to dinner but brings a sense of humour as a date. Good advice.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book made me want to host a dinner party, and make cornbread grilled cheese. It also made me want to be a better, snarkier, person.

[Kelsey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some helpful tips make this worth a quick read if you're the type of person who likes to host, or who wants to like to host.

[Lauren Simmons · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a cute book. Equal parts handy tips and Corey quips.

[Jacqueline · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lot of fun. A confidence builder more than anything.

[Brad Koegler · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just the right mix of common sense, uncommon sense, and cutting humour. Let it never be said that the man who told the world to shut their butts doesn't know what he's doing.

[Cordelia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Maybe it's too common sense for Canadians, but it's just what I'm looking for, as a new immigrant. It's like taking a guided tour in a Canadian kitchen and living room.

Plus, it's hilarious.

[Eranga Herath · Rating 5 out of 5]

A guide to become a good host

Practical advice on how to become an expert on hosting dinner parties. Witty, funny and insightful.
Can't wait to read the next book