7 Dinner Party Habits That Annoy Hosts

Dinner parties are the lifeblood of summer. When I’m not traveling, I’m taking advantage of the season’s long daylight hours to eat with friends and family at one home or another. But as with all social interactions, there’s an etiquette to dining with others that can’t be ignored. 

After discussing the annoying habits that most often plague dinner parties with caterers and party planners, I’ve homed in on seven mistakes that should be avoided at all costs. Whether you’re using personal utensils in group dishes or accidentally swapping drinking glasses, these professionals have the advice (and the tools) you need to ensure these embarrassing blunders never happen again.    

Expert-Approved Tools for Fixing Annoying Dinner Party Habits 

• Kebe Serving Tongs, Set of 2, $18
• Pickytarian Disposable Party Plate and Silverware Set, $20 
• Lulu Wine Glass Markers, $10 
• OXO Salt and Pepper Shaker Set, $17
• Paukin Gold Bar Cart, $130 with coupon, originally $140 
• Igloo Self-Cleaning Countertop Ice Maker, $90  
• Farberware Bamboo Cutting Board with Lid, $28, originally $34 

Personal Utensils in Group Dishes

Kebe Serving Tongs, Set of 2

Deborah Miller, owner of her eponymous catering company, has seen every guest faux pas in the book over the 30 years that she’s been in business. Out of the many annoying dinner party habits she’s witnessed, the most common is when a diner uses a personal utensil in a group dish. Luckily, Miller has a solution. To keep this unhygienic tendency in check, she recommends investing in “elegant (and obvious!) serving tongs,” like Kebe’s stainless steel set at Amazon. If you love to entertain, this 2-pack will come in handy this summer.        

Flimsy Disposable Plates 

Pickytarian Disposable Party Plate and Silverware Set  

Laide Olambiwonnu founded Pickytarian, a line of non-toxic, compostable, and disposable dinnerware sets, to fix the flimsy and outdated designs on the market. She attended one too many parties where hosts ran out of paper plates because guests had to double-stack to keep their food from falling on the floor. Olambiwonnu fixed this issue with Pickytarian’s bamboo and sugar cane pulp construction. Sturdier and thicker than their paper counterparts, these eco-friendly plates ensure you will never run out of disposable dinnerware again.  

Forgetting Which Cup Is Yours 

Lulu Wine Glass Markers

If you often find yourself “drowning in wasted and abandoned beverages” at the end of a dinner party, Olambiwonnu suggests adding glass markers to your Amazon cart. This simple hack keeps guests from misplacing their cups or setting them down and forgetting which is theirs. It’s an easy and inexpensive way to keep waste to a minimum.  

Making Guests Ask for Salt and Pepper 

OXO Salt and Pepper Shaker Set 

My dad is the type of person who salts his food before taking his first bite. Rather than offending his friends by insinuating their cooking isn’t to his liking, he much prefers when there are salt and pepper shakers already on the table. This way, he can remedy the situation without drawing attention to it.        

Bored, Nosy Guests 

Paukin Gold Bar Cart 

Bored, nosy guests can be a nuisance when you’re putting the finishing touches on dinner. To help discourage guests from interfering with meal prep, Morgan Bedore, Vice President of Marketing & Creative for Constellation Culinary Group, recommends placing an interactive element outside the kitchen. Enter: the bar cart. “It’s a gracious way to signal that it's time for guests to enjoy their cocktails and company while we focus on plating and service,” says Bedore. “Styled thoughtfully, the cart becomes both a design element and a gentle cue that magic is happening just behind the scenes.” 

Running Out of Ice

Igloo Self-Cleaning Countertop Ice Maker

With summer’s soaring temperatures breathing down our necks, running out of ice halfway through a party is a serious slip-up. According to Miller, the easiest way to ensure this never happens is by investing in Igloo’s portable countertop ice maker. This under-$100 gadget is efficient, easy to carry from one location to another, and more than capable of keeping your guests cool and hydrated during a sweltering backyard barbecue.    

Arriving Empty-Handed 

Farberware Bamboo Cutting Board with Lid

Arriving without a contribution to dinner is a serious misstep that should be avoided at all costs. Thankfully, Farberware makes it easy to travel with food. Available in a few sizes and layouts, the brand’s bamboo tray and lid offer an easy, fuss-free way to bring a gorgeous charcuterie board or fruit and cheese plate to your next event.