Amazing concept! I have done TDPP three times now. It's always a surprise. Every time there's a different chef, different host and different guests. Plus, I love that everything is local. I remember my first time. I went in with reservation and excitement at the same time. I was nervous because it's having dinner with 6 strangers, but the reviews convince me. It's totally worth it. My nerves were eased as the night progressed. You are asked silly and sometimes serious questions to make the night fun. Now, I can't get enough of it. I always get excited when I get selected. There's wine, cocktails and excellent food. If you haven't signed up yet, please do so. read more

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Yelp Challenge 2017 - 14/100 I'd heard about Dinner Party clubs in other cities and was excited when I found a local one here in Orlando. The structure is joining 7 strangers for a four course meal prepared by local chefs. I love the idea of eating delicious food with complete strangers with great conversational topics. To sign up you go to www.thedinnerpartyproject.co/ and sign up for the random drawing to receive your email invite. Once you received it you reserve your spot by paying $50-$90 dollars per person. Shortly after you will receive the time and location to confirm your date. Everyone should try it at least once, especially if you are an introvert like myself. One of the main highlights is that TDPP provides a meal and a day of education to a child in Haiti. read more

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How did I not review this already!? I love Dana, I love the concept, I love her assistant Anna - I love everything about this! I wanted to join in and then with the dinner party project for ages, and I met the owner, Dana, at a private TDPP Yelp event and expressed my interest. Shortly there after I was invited to my first dinner. I had no idea what to expect, and then I got an email asking me how much I wanted to pay for the meal. I gave you a range of $50 and you could pick what you wanted to pay for your meal. I didn't want to go low nor did I want to pay the high end so I went down the middle. We were also asked to bring a bottle of wine to enjoy. I was told by a friend that you won't necessarily drink the wine that you brought, as the meal being prepared might pair well with another type of wine, something that a previous guest might have brought. Our guest chef for the evening was Misty Heath and everything was fantastic. Appetizers were a type of bruschetta, entree was steak and potatoes with green beans, and dessert was a chocolate mouse. We also had brown derby drinks with the appetizer and holy sweet bourbon god, was that incredible!? I'm not a bourbon drinker - at all - but I enjoyed the hell out of that drink. Twice. Lol The host kept the conversation going, although we were a chatty bunch who didn't need much prompting. I've become really good friends with two of the girls who were my table mates, and have kept in touch with two others that were also at our dinner. One, Arielle, is now also a guest chef with TDPP and had launched her own pastry company. I'm so incredible proud of her!! The dinner party project was an incredible experience filled with lots of laughter and delicious food. I am going back tonight for my second dinner and I will post an update afterwards! I kind of cheated this time, though, because I wanted to eat at one particular guest chef's events. Sarah from the Wandering Wonton is cooking tonight and I am more than stoked to try her delicious food. I have been stalking her on Instagram and drooling ever since I found her. Update: Dana had another gorgeous tablescape from InBloom Florist and delish bourbon pomagranet lemonade cocktails prepared for us. The meal was exquisite as well. Sarah from The Wondering Wonton put together a fabulous meal of chicken and cheese wontons, spring rolls, 24 hour marinated steak over noodles with blue cheese, and a peanut butter pie. Omg - fat kid heaven! Everything was so good! Josh was an incredible host - love him to pieces! read more

The Dinner Party Project - 12/4/16 - Social Clubs Near Me - Orlando, Florida

I would participate in The Dinner Party Project every night if I could! The idea of bringing together strangers for a delicious meal and enlightening conversation is right up my alley. While I partook in a private dinner party with some coworkers, it was still an elevated experience from anything we would've found at a restaurant. With different venues for each meal, our setting was the backyard of the fab Orlando CM Andi P. Dana from The Dinner Party Project enhanced the space with such beautiful place settings and decorations. It looked like it was ripped from a magazine. The food... Where do I begin? Local chef Julian Degarden was in the kitchen and prepared for us an amazing meal. While sipping on a Florida Mule featuring spirits from St. Augustine Distillery, Dana passed around a chicken liver mousse crostini with honey and maldon salt. I'm not a big pate person but this combination was perfect. I wanted to eat more than one but glad I saved room for the main meal. We were served a beautiful beet salad and my favorite dish of maybe all my eats in Orlando that week, the bucatini bolognese. Honestly, this is a pasta I still dream about. It was cooked perfectly al dente and the rich beef ragu had me wiping the plate clean. It didn't end there. Desserts from Buttermilk Bakery were the icing on the cake (literally). My favorite was the strawberry cake and I'm not even a big fan of strawberries. It was super moist and flavorful, not to mention beautiful! More important than the food (maybe), is the conversation! After all, the joy of The Dinner Party Project is connecting with new folks. Dana guided our conversation with questions like, "If you could sign anything into law, what would it be?" And a classic, "Who would you most want to have a meal with dead or living?" While it was maybe a little hard to wrangle our loud and chatty group of CMs in, it was fun to learn more about each other in a fun and different way when we did get around to answering. If The Dinner Party Project was in Miami, I'd definitely jump on board immediately! For those in Orlando, get your name on their list ASAP. read more

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I was scrolling through yelp for dinner options for my Bestie birthday and I stumbled across this for myself. I have absolutely NO regrets and will be gifting this to everyone I know. It sounds strange in theory having dinner with strangers but really what better way to get to know your locals??? The food was AMAZING I absolutely plan on hiring the Butcher and the Baker for future events. The host was fantastic I have nothing bad to say about this experience. read more

I heard about the Dinner Party Project through a blog and the idea seemed too exciting not to try it. I mean, what's not exciting about having dinner with 7 strangers? The process is simple, you send your information to their main email address and join the wait list, then Dana uses a lottery process to randomly pick people to be part of the dinner party. She emails you directly and gives you possible dates to join. Once you select your date you paypal a donation between $30-$60 and are booked to join. I attended the February 1st dinner at Dana's house in north Orlando, very close to Winter Park. The house is just lovely, and a great location for an intimate dinner. As the meeting time rolls around all guests start arriving and introducing themselves. Best part is Dana welcomed us with a drink in hand for each of us! Once we sat at the table the introductions began, followed by a few questions to get the conversation going. Great thing is that most of us probably never think of that kind of question, so it was also a good introspective tool. Dinner was great, she had Rashmi Primlani as guest chef, she runs a food blog and prepared an amazing Indian menu for us. We enjoyed a moscow mule as cocktail along with samosas as hors d'oeuvres, then a huge dinner with some amazing wine and tea as digestive. I will add a picture of the entire menu. If you don't like good food and good conversation with people you've never met before then don't bother. I may be quite an introvert, but this was just perfect for me, as everyone was an equal by not knowing the others at the table. Great concept, great food, and great company. I would totally do it again. read more

The Dinner Party Project - Fabulous Indian food menu - Social Clubs Near Me - Orlando, Florida

My long-awaited debut at the Dinner Party Project soiree finally happened 2 weeks ago: this review is long overdue, as are a few others :-). If you're not familiar with the concept, check out their FB page. Dana Marie was a gracious hostess of a lovely home, where this particular dinner was held. Pretty classy affair, with printed menu and all. We started the evening off with a frisky whiskey sour - a foamy one, no less. I don't remember the last time I had a whiskey sour, but this one was excellent - the good Bourbon made it a nice apertif to sharpen those buds. Dinner was preceded by some crusty french bread with a nice distinctive spread, as the other 6 guests gradually arrive. Dinner at the table started with a delicate salad, followed by our main course: short ribs with fettucine. I could have used even MORE sauce, but it was otherwise very nicely done by guest chef of the evening Emily Weidner. The goo-ey chocolatey 'pie' for dessert was just the way to finish. But the Dinner Party Project is MUCH much more than food and drink - it's really the people that we come for, and people that make it work. Couldn't have asked for better dining companions than the wild bunch that was stuck with me! Everyone contributed to the conversation, everyone enjoyed the company. Before we left, Dana Marie took mugshots of us all. We got each other's email address later on. Who knows - maybe the next step is to get together for a bite or a drink with these new-found friends! read more

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I wish I could more than 5 stars...this is an amazing concept. How it works is that you email the organizer Dana to get on the mailing list and you are randomly selected to attend a dinner with 6 strangers. I had been to the Love Feast and that's how I found out about the Dinner Party project. This was my first dinner and all i can say is AMAZING. I have to admit that I was a little nervous at the idea of dining with 6 strangers at first but as soon as I walked in, I was greeted and warmly welcomed by the guest host and the other participants. As we were waiting for the other guests to arrive we had a Blackberry lemon gin & tonic which was fantastic. Our hors d'oeuvre was a balsamic strawberry & goat cheese crostini which was YUMMY. Goat cheese and strawberry all can I wow a great combination. Our dinner was catered by Farmhaus and the food from the starter to the dessert was all very tasty. Our starter was a chilled pea soup which was very good, the braised chicken for our entree was tasty and by the far my favorite part of the dinner. I also loved the apple pie and ice cream. What I really enjoyed about the dinner was the genuine conversations we had. I got to spend an evening with people from different backgrounds and life experiences. We had an engineer, a photographer, a landscape architect, a director of PR, a teacher and an editorial director. How cool is that? This was a wonderful experience and if you live in Orlando, you need to attend a dinner. read more

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An incredible dining experience with the purpose of connecting people from all walks of life. Fun, entertaining opportunity to meet people and make new friends while enjoying craft cocktails and gourmet meals prepared by an experienced chef. Different hosts / locations around Orlando each time. read more

I've attended 3 TDPP dinner parties now, and each one has been awesome and unique in its own way. I love the idea of sharing a meal with 7 strangers in our community and having real conversation (while eating delicious food, duh!). I've had a different chef and host each time and they have all been excellent. TDPP does a great job of keeping things fresh and interesting with the ever-changing locations, menus and faces of course! The questions they ask at the dinner table are fun and deeper than just surface level, so they make you think and you really get to know people. I went to their website and signed up to join the dinner lottery. I received an email invitation to dinner shortly after where I was able to view the event calendar and select the date I wanted to attend. I registered & paid online and then received an event confirmation email with all the deets (location, host, attire, etc.). Pricing is based on a sliding scale of $50-90 per person. This is because they don't want to price anyone out of coming to dinner, so they ask that you pay what want for a cocktail, 4-course meal, wine and coffee service. If this concept is outside of your comfort zone and dining with strangers isn't your thing, DO IT ANYWAY! TDPP allows you to register a plus one if you don't feel comfortable coming alone, so you should still give it a shot. My husband and I went to one together and it actually makes for a pretty fun date night. Shortly after the dinner, I received a follow up email with the contact info of everyone I dined with so we could keep in touch. I love this innovative idea and it's just one more thing that makes Orlando wonderful! read more

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I was lucky enough to attend The Dinner Party Project (TDPP) earlier this month. It was a special dinner with just bloggers which made it even more special. There was a group of 12 bloggers from the Central Florida area and it was amazing! The dinner was hosted by Kristen Manieri of The Orlando Date Night Guide and all the food came from Chef Mike Garcia. We started the evening with a little mingling away from the table. We drank Blackberry + Lemon Gin and Tonics while noshing on Chared Corn and Jalapeno Hush Puppies with Green Goddess Dress. I must say this was a GREAT way to start the evening. After a little while we moved to the table for dinner. The tablescape was done by none other than fellow TDPP attendee and crafter extraordinaire Sarah Hearts. It was so beautiful, yet so simple. She even broke out her treasured gold flatware from West Elm for the occasion. The rest of the night was filled with amazing food and great conversation. We had Zucchini Soup with radish, yellow squash & turnips, tomato salad with micro greens, fennel, blue cheese, & buttermilk vinaigrette, open ravioli of chicken with swiss chard, carrots, & snow peas, and finally strawberry sponge cake (gluten free) and Barnie's coffee. Holy cow! Everything that came out was just as amazing as the item before. I loved getting to know some of my fellow Orlando bloggers while enjoying an amazing meal. TDPP really is one of the coolest things to happen in Orlando and I will definitely be back. If you are interested in attending yourself, make sure to go to their website and get on the list. read more

The Dinner Party Project - Social Clubs Near Me - Orlando, Florida

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I've been wanting to try this out for a while now and because of my work schedule it's been hard to set a day aside for me to attend. So FINALLY I got my opportunity. If you want to attend, sign up for their email list, pick a date to attend and then wait for the details. This is a great concept to meet new people and talk about the awesome community that we live in. One of the reasons I love Orlando is the diversity in our town and how you meet people from all walks of life. With this concept, it's no different. I ended up meeting people from different backgrounds. Our dinner was at a local old warehouse in downtown that's used by a local church. All of the food and drinks are local and prepared by a chef from one of the local restaurants. We started the night with a cocktail from Osprey Tavern and some freshly prepped deviled eggs. This event includes a full course meal with salad, entree and dessert. Also bring a bottle of your favorite wine to share with others. Highly recommend checking this concept out and keeping an eye on the theme dinners for people who work in certain industries. read more

The Dinner Party Project - Full meal included. Salad, entree and dessert. - Social Clubs Near Me - Orlando, Florida

5 Stars because ain't nothing better than eating a great dinner with 6 random Orlandoans. I had the chance to join my second dinner for The Dinner Party Project the other day and I left feeling rejuvenated just like I had the first time. It's a simple concept. 7 random Orlandoans meet for dinner with a charming host who helps get the conversation going. But somehow this simple concept helps illuminate the best things about this community. As we go around the table and introduce ourselves we start to realize that the sort of people who would put sign up for this concept are warm, friendly, creative, and the kind of person you want to keep in touch with. We also start to recognize ways that our lives intertwine and really fascinating connections with folks we've never met before. Dana Marie, our amazing host, sits with the group and facilitates conversation by posing really surprising questions. She also organizes a meal - either herself, or with guest chefs- and opening cocktails and wine. The meals always feel like they're ripped out of a fabulous magazine or pinterest board as is the table setting. When you're at the Dinner Party Project you feel the electricity of being a part of something special. We're all looking to connect and The Dinner Party Project is the perfect catalyst. read more

Why 5 stars? Because what a genius concept this is! --- --- --- It's one of those ideas that seems so obvious, yet no one ever actually thought of it... until now. Do you ever wish you could go back in time and have invented Facebook before Mark Zuckerberg? Or even something simple like pogs, like 6 months before ever kid had 1,000 of them? Well here's an idea: take a bunch of interesting people, put them in a room, and have them break bread together, whilst feeding them interesting topics of conversation. How awesome, right?! I was able to experience this with my co-workers, and we were having so much fun, that the night really flew by. We probably drove Dana nuts, as I felt like we likely had 10x more to say than a normal party. What do you get when you put 9 Yelp employees in a row at once? A LOT of talking! My only teensy, tiny wish is that the questions would tend to shy away from political-based topics. Whether you're amongst strangers, co-workers, friends, or family - there's nothing that can cause tension more than political talk. But, I'm sure Dana knows what she's doing, and maybe our group just randomly went that direction with questions more than others. We managed to avoid taking the tension above a 3/10, so it all worked out :) Also, the food was delicious! It's rare that delicious food takes a backseat in terms of my focus, but I was occupied with the Q&A portion of the evening, that I wasn't even paying much attention to the food. More like shoveling it down my gullet as I thought of things like, "what super power would I have, if I could pick?" read more

What a brilliant concept: Head to an intimate, small, lovely dinner with complete strangers and make new connections. Yes, please. Lawd, I love anything that supports local communities, ummm hello Yelp! So as soon as the lovely Dana Marie Roquemore, Co-Owner and Co-Founder at Other Peoples Property, told me about her idea, I knew it would be amazing! She launched this initiative to simply meet new people and connect others. She lives and breathes kindness and love from her community and wants to spread that love by connecting others. How could you not love this? So, as soon as it launched a few months ago, I signed up immediately. I had the pleasure of attending a night with all ladies, only 2 of who I knew, so I met 3 new lovely ladies during dinner. Two of the ladies were visiting from Korea, how cool? It was not only cool to meet new people, but we also enjoyed the amazing atmosphere that Dana set up and welcomed us into as well as a four course meal with a cocktail and wine. I still can't stop thinking about the dessert, I even got the recipe! YUM! I was lucky enough to be chosen again and will be attending my second dinner next month. I can't wait! --Here is how it works-- - Interested? Email Dana - danamarieroquemore at gmail dot com - Then your name will be put into a lottery. - 7 random people will be chosen to join and notified via email to share a meal w friends and strangers from amazing school teachers to engineers to business owners, to all sorts of creatives. - If you can attend that date, you send a suggested amount to dana to save your spot, which includes a 4-course meal, plus wine & cocktails. Check out a sample of a menu in the past here: http://www.farm-haus.com/blog/2014/10/20/the-dinner-party-project-orlando - If not, get put back into the lottery. - Once the list has been exhausted, your name will be put back into the lottery, so the next time you are invited to dinner, it will be a completely different set of people. Go forth and connect my friends! read more

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"Excuse my ignorance" said London native, Oscar M. "But, what are grits?" As I started my meal with The Dinner Party Project, everyone chuckled at this question and quickly explained this Southern treat to Oscar. On a recent Sunday night, eight strangers including myself, gathered in the home of Dana Roquemore, founder of The Dinner Party Project. Created to draw the people of Orlando together over a meal, this simple concept is unprecedented in our city and taking off like crazy. In a constantly connected world, conversation is dwindling and screens are typically the first point of contact. Siri and I are BFF's, but there's something refreshing and invigorating about quality conversation and fantastic food shared with new friends. This creative concept is a new way to meet interesting people and enjoy freshly prepared meals. Everyone who attends has their name drawn at random, so each dinner is truly unique and special. "I got the idea when I was at a crossroads in life. Everything seemed boring and I wanted to do something new," Roquemore said. "Someone posed the question 'What brings you life and joy?' So, I thought about that, and I know that I LOVE food and people. I see people out socially, but I often don't know their personals stories, or much about them. So I thought, let's mix it up and invite people over to share a meal with friends and strangers. There is something beautiful about sitting down and sharing a meal with people. It has a way of breaking down the barriers and therefore being more known as humans." After enjoying cocktails and brief introductions, our group gathered around the table for three courses of goodness prepared by Emily Weidner. Our first course accompanied by the question "Where were you on 9/11" brought deep conversation and a freshly prepared salad with a light and tangy dressing. It was fascinating to hear everyone's point of view and the effects of that day on one's life. Next we were treated to the most delicious shrimp and yellow stone ground grits topped with chorizo and fresh cilantro from Emily's garden. I've tasted a lot of shrimp and grits in my day, and these were some of the best. The yellow grits and tender shrimp topped with spiced chorizo were fantastic and made even better by dining with the chef herself. Throughout the dinner and wine drinking we were charged with questions sparking conversation like "When do you feel most confident" and "If you could enact any law, what would it be and why?" For the grand finale we were treated to rich and creamy coffee gelato made with kahlua. Prepared by a fellow dinner party diner, this sweet treat ranks up there with the likes of what I've tasted in Italy. We each arrived as strangers and left as friends, full and happy. To throw your name in the dinner party lottery email Dana at danamarieroquemore@gmail.com. Each dinner is a little different, but they are all full of food and interesting people! read more

The Dinner Party Project - The Dinner Party Project! - Social Clubs Near Me - Orlando, Florida

Great experience. That's what I would call this, a delightful dinner experience that almost feels like a social experiment. It was fun and the food was perfect thanks to local chef Mike Garcia. Mike has worked with some local restaurants that have a super tasty reputation (like The Smiling Bison) and he really "brought it" for the diner menu. Our group dined in a urban warehouse space on Brookhaven Drive near Virginia Drive. When you walk in you see the table, it's beautifully adorned with lavish place settings and fresh flowers. The dinner table is clearly the focal point of the event and very inviting. The concept is appealing-the opportunity to eat dinner with seven other strangers and get to know each other over a great meal. The conversation was flowing and we enjoyed corn jalapeño hushpuppies with green goddess dressing and a blackberry lemon gin cocktail for appetizers. Aside from the food and drinks tasting fantastic, the presentation was very visually appealing. More courses were presented and introduced by the chef, including fresh zucchini soup, tomato salad with micro greens & blue cheese, a main entree of "open" ravioli, and whipped cream strawberry sponge cake for dessert. All of the items were gourmet, unique, flavorful, and just plated gorgeously. Wine was also served only with the main entree, but I would have liked to enjoy wine at the start of the meal as more of a pairing. It's just my habit to have wine at the beginning of a meal as I don't like to drink wine when I'm starting fill up on food. I prefer it at the beginning of the meal. That is my only suggestion, to serve wine during the start of dinner. While our host was gracious, I didn't understand the delay with the wine serving and myself and another guest both brought wine bottles to share for those at dinner. This was a very unique night and I had a chance to meet new people and we could talk unabashedly about our lives in this elegant setting. Thanks to the host and also creator Dana for putting this fresh concept together in Orlando. It's easy to see a lot of work and planning go into these events, so I'm very appreciative to have a chance to attend. Thanks again! read more

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Great concept and I love that it is expanding. The dinner party project gives you the chance to eat healthy, delicious food with friends--known and not yet known. Really great way to form community. read more

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You have to do this!! Super cool experience. Dinner with 8 strangers and a professional chef. I have done 3 of these since 2017 and have made friends each time and unique experience read more

You read that right...I attended my first "The Dinner Party Project" event and it was held at...an appliance store! But not just any appliance store, an awesome, high-end appliance store that has been in business for over 30 years. Tina made us all feel very welcome at the store, and it was more like attending a dinner party at someone's home! Aggressive Appliances is off of E. Colonial Dr. (617 Mercy Dr., Orlando - http://www.aggressiveappliances.com/) and has six working kitchens used for a variety of events, including The Dinner Party Project which took place last week. Our guest chef, Mike Garcia, who has previously worked at The Smiling Bison, The Rav Pig and Cask & Larder, had some lovely kitchens at his disposal for this event. Our table for twelve was set up in the center of the showroom, and each place setting showed us our menu for the evening. We began with drinks prepared by Michael Ring with Old Forester. He was kind enough to prepare special non-alcoholic drinks for me...a sweet treat! My first drink was a strawberry hibiscus punch with lemons and basil, made with Onli (sparkling flavored water). Very refreshing! We began with an hor d'ouevre of "shrimp and grits". Sweet little grit cakes topped with shrimp mousse and pickled onion. Loved this! Next, our starters were a cucumber gazpacho with fennel, peppers, cherry tomatoes and micro basil, and red beets tartine on grilled sourdough with crème fraiche, dill and radish. Michael again created a lovely drink for me (that apparently I sucked down so fast I forgot to take a photo), that was made with green tea, lemon and mint. It was my favorite drink of the night...and so pretty! You'll just have to use your imagination. I'm still dreaming about it! Next our entrée, a grilled sweet tea chicken dish with peach mostardo, baked sea island pea puree and a 63 ° egg. I'm now thinking that grilled sweet tea chicken is something I must learn to make at home ASAP! My drink with this dish was a homemade apple cider. Last but not least was dessert. We enjoyed an almond panna cotta with vanilla, lavender, sponge cake and topped with blueberries. This dessert was light and not too sweet. Our accompanying drink was a lavender simple soda, and espresso soda and Barnie's coffee blend, with vanilla bean half and half foam as the whip. It was a great evening getting to know some local bloggers and enjoy some great food! What an amazing opportunity and concept. Long live The Dinner Party Project! Thanks Dana Roquemore for creating such an awesome event! You can see more about The Dinner Party Project on Facebook as well as via their instagram. read more

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Some people go skydiving. Others ride rollercoasters. What do I do when I'm in a thrill-seeking kind of mood? I eat dinner with eight strangers. Anyone who's met me will tell you I'm shy and socially awkward. So why in the world would I try this? Well, I have lots of friends who have either attended or hosted. They speak so highly about their experiences, so I finally caved. Thankfully, the dinner surpassed my expectations. Our host was so welcoming and funny. It really helped everyone feel comfortable and avoid any awkward silences. Our group was a good mixture of people from all kinds of backgrounds, professions, and interests. It was interesting to see how we could be quite different in some aspects, while having so many common experiences. Oh and I can't forget the food! Everything we ate was awesome. I even found myself going outside of my comfort zone food-wise. I normally don't eat a lot of pork, but the wellington-style main course was delicious. I'm officially a fan and I hope to convince as many friends as possible to try it too. read more

Amazeballs, you know it is going to be good when I start off the sentence with Amazeballs. What a freakin, brilliant, great concept to have an intimate dinner with complete strangers. Dana who was the one who came up with this brilliant idea is an amazing host and just simply awesome. In order to get on this infamous list you have to email dinnerpartyprojectorlando@gmail.com. Once you are contacted you will get to choose between three dates, and then you make a payment via pay pay pal, via donation anywhere from $40.00 to 70.00. The menu includes a starter cocktail, Hor d'Ouevres, starter appetizer, an entree, Wine, Dessert and Coffee. So delicious food and great company is a great way to spend an evening. During the dinner each person gets a chance to make an introduction and a little background information. Also, what make the evening delightful is Dana mixes up the evening by posing questions to everyone that will make for great conversation. For instance if you could have a super power, what would it be? How great is that? I also loved that we showed up to a dinner where we were having genuine conversation, and not worried about our phones. This was such a great experience because you are wondering where have all these awesome people been hiding. To make sure everyone stays connected Dana will email everyone's email address. Once you are on the dinner party project list your name will stay in rotation to attend another lovely event. So take a chance and venture out people. read more

The Dinner Party Project - The menu for the lovely evening... - Social Clubs Near Me - Orlando, Florida

I was finally selected to attend a night at the dinner left project after weeks of drooling over their Instagram. Our evening was held at the Ivanhoe Warehouse and the crowd was really nice! Mike Garcia was our chef and Jordan was a truly wonderful host. We started with white ginger and mint coolers and feta mouse crostinis. We sat at the table and Jordan did a delightful job of facilitating easy conversation to get everyone talking. Meanwhile, Mike continued to bring us plate after plate of delicious courses. We started with a chilled corn soup. The main dish was fried chicken roulade with citrus collard slaw, watermelon and jalapeño honey. I had requested a vegetarian option, so Mike prepared mine with eggplant, instead of chicken. The option for a veggie meal was much appreciated, especially since it was a special meal for a small group of people. And the main course was FANTASTIC. I was so impressed with how well the eggplant was presented like the other dishes and I didn't feel like I was missing out on a thing. We finished with dessert and coffee. Mike made a vegan coconut carrot pana cotta and it was truly delicious. It was so nice having a special, small batch meal and sharing it with strangers who quickly became friends. Learned a lot from folks who wouldn't be a part of my daily activity and enjoyed myself. Hopefully will be able to come back soon! read more

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Can I please give more than 5 stars?! Pretty please?! What an incredible experience. So the short version is you email Dana, get on the list, get randomly picked to attend one of 3 dates, RSVP and give a donation. Then you show up for the fun part. I was beyond excited to attend and even a little nervous although I'm an outgoing person. There's something exciting about knowing you'll be spending an intimate few hours having dinner with randoms who you may never see again. Luckily, Dana pre-picks conversation starters to make sure there are no lulls. When I arrived, Dana gave me a big hug and handed me a cocktail. Ours was mint, lime, vodka, and I think tonic. Very tasty. There was also crostini with sumac yogurt and a red pepper and eggplant caviar. We made small talk until everyone arrived and then moved to the table. Our chef was Mike Garcia of Smiling Bison/Cask and Larder so we definitely lucked out. He used local ingredients so it was a farm to table experience which is always special. He started us off with a popcorn infused custard served inside an eggshell and topped with pickled onions and yellow squash. The custard was amazing and topped with a thin layer of salty goodness. We got to eat it with tiny spoons which was fun. Dana led us through introductions. We had a middle school technology teacher, an assistant principal for an elementary school, a woman who does social media and newsletters for AAA, someone who works with student entrepreneurs at UCF, a businessman, and the guy who does marketing for Orlando City Soccer along with myself and Dana. Everyone discussed their back stories and also what brought them to the event. Our next course was a stack made with tomatoes, green bean salad, and a poached egg yolk. So good. The beans were crispy and everything was perfectly seasoned. Dana led us in conversation about what hobbies we wish we had and some interesting ones were brought up. Mike then presented us with 'his take' on corn chowder which was a creamy corn purée topped with sautéed potatoes and corn and also a seasoned oil. I need more words to describe this food because it was just so delicious. We discussed embarrassing moments with this course. The main course was next. I do not eat duck so I was served a roasted cauliflower steak atop a carrot purée, with Parmesan gnocchi and roasted carrots. Everyone else had a duck tureen and roasted duck with a duck jus. I want to eat this now. I completely cleaned my plate. Topic at this point was what would we enact into law. The final course was a tart topped with pastry cream and strawberry jam. I ate the entire thing. We discussed who we would like to have dinner with - a living or dead person. I am sad because once you attend, you get taken off the list for a while and I want to go again. It's an amazing thing Dana is doing, bringing random Orlando residents together for a meal, and I am so excited her concept is taking off. If you do anything cultural this year, so this. You'll be happy you did. Ps. Mike Garcia is a private chef now and everyone should book him for their fancy dinner parties. read more

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What do you get when you take an amazing six-course meal from Chef Mike Garcia and add seven interesting strangers? A great night in Orlando. Every experience will be different, but the Brookhaven space is interesting and the chance to meet other Orlandoans is worth the risk. Put yourself out there. And enjoy a creative, delicious, five-diamond quality meal. read more

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Wow, just wow. Such a great concept. Such great company. Such great food. Such a great time. Such a great venue. Great, great, great. Big props to Dana Roquemore for making such a unique concept a reality in Orlando! The way the Dinner Party Project works is you visit their website and are added to a lottery. When your name is drawn, you receive an email with a few possible dates to attend a dinner with seven other individuals. A donation of $40-70 via PayPal or Venmo then secures your spot. The dinners are hosted in a wide variety of locale. The dinner I had the pleasure of attending was held in a warehouse like space. Each dinner is prepared by a Guest chef, ours being Chef Mike Garcia. There were a total of eight "strangers" that attended the dinner, including our wonderful host Jessica! Upon arrival we were greeted with a Blackberry and Lemon Gin & Tonic which was awesome! Definitely not a normal gin and tonic girl, but this was amazing! There were also "fancy" jalapeno hush puppies which were pretty fantastic- I would have been perfectly content to eat those for dinner! Our group had the opportunity to mingle and get to know everyone's name before we sat down to dinner. Dinner included an amazing chilled zuchinni soup (probably one of the pretties dishes I've eaten ever), a tomato salad, an open chicken ravioli and an amazing strawberry shortcake dessert. Everything was amazing. The ravioli was so unique and the fresh pasta made for it was to die for! I usually veer towards chocolatey desserts in my day to day dining, but the strawberry shortcake was really special as well. Both red and white wine were available to go with dinner and coffee was an option with dessert. If you have any dietary restrictions, the chef for the evening makes sure you are taken care of as well! We had a couple vegetarians in our group who received a modified entree. I am definitely an introvert, so this concept was a bit outside my comfort zone, but I was immediately put at ease. Our host, Jessica, asked some questions to prompt conversation that definitely kept the evening flowing! It was a wonderful way to meet 7 other individuals whose paths I may not have ever crossed with otherwise! I can't wait for my next opportunity to attend a dinner! read more

You + 7 strangers = 1 incredible and unique dining experience. The Dinner Party Project offers an opportunity for strangers to dine together, share stories, and hopefully walk out with a greater appreciation for people and the Orlando community. After my first dinner I couldn't stop telling people about it and how refreshing of an experience it is. This week was my second dinner experience and I might have to walk around with tape on my mouth. The conversations were vibrant and full, the atmosphere intimate and cozy, and the food was nothing short of fantastic. The host I had this time around was Anna Christmas, and she did a great job of greeting people the second they walked and had cocktails at the ready. We had a pina colada sangria from Vanberry's, and it was light and refreshing. Paired with that was a beet and avocado deviled egg sprinkled with salt by Em's Neighborhood Kitchen. After about 20 minutes when everyone arrived Anna directed is towards the table where wine was at the ready, and then the appetizers were served. We had blueberry soup that was slightly warm. I know this sounds crazy, but it was nothing short of genius. Very fruity and light. Around this time Emily, the chef, came out and talked about herself and her journey as a chef. She was insanely humble about all the talent she brings to the kitchen! Dinner was presented which was a lemon honey chicken with kale slaw and roasted potatoes. I hear the chicken was moist and cooked well! The potatoes and slaw was really a treat to enjoy, and all the flavors blended ever so perfectly. Dessert was a tasty Oreo donut by Baked Goodies served with iced cream. If I could sign up everyone I know and require them to go to a dinner I would. Orlando is filled with such great people with beautiful stories of successes, failures, and the power of encouragement through community. read more

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Such a clever yet simple concept - have dinner with some really cool people and make some new friends. And it works very well! I attended the first large-scale dinner, the Love Feast just before Valentine's Day, which I think included about sixty people. When we arrived, we were given icebreaker questions for starting conversations while everyone mixed and mingled with a drink before taking our seats. Then, we enjoyed a four-course meal while getting to know all the folks around us! Farm-Haus served up a delicious amuse, a fresh salad and tender ravioli, and Project Pop treated us to a huge variety of desserts. My nearby dining partners included two folks from the UK affiliated with Orlando City and the Orlando Eye, a manager of a bar downtown and a fellow member of the Orlando tech startup scene among others, and we all found a lot of common interests not just in food and wine but our love of Orlando and of traveling afar, and much more. The food and ambiance are as fabulous as the company. The Dinner Party Project is a fun way to meet new people, while enjoying delicious food - can't wait to try one of the small group events. read more

The Dinner Party Project - Desserts from Project Pop - Social Clubs Near Me - Orlando, Florida

Review #100! This is an amazing concept and a great way to not only enjoy some truly amazing eats but also meet some great people. I had the privilege of attending my first dinner for The Dinner Party Project this past Wednesday. Jessica was our guest host and dinner was held at a lovely little condo in Baldwin Park. Being the ever-paranoid of being late person that I am, I was, of course, the first to arrive. Jessica and the other host made me feel incredibly welcome right away, and immediately offered me hor d'oeuvres and a pre-dinner cocktail: chickpea fritters and a whiskey sour. The fritters were incredible and the whiskey sour was amazeballs. I'd never tried a whiskey sour before because I really don't like whiskey. But I think I now have a new drink. A few minutes past and the rest of the dinner party guests arrived. For a while, we sat in the living room enjoying our drinks and making conversation until guest chef Mike Garcia let us know dinner was ready to be served. So we made our way to the table (which was beautifully decorated), poured the wine and the meal began. The first course was a beet salad with sumac yogurt, herbs, walnuts, and radishes. Mike had picked all the ingredients fresh from his garden. The dish was beautiful. And I'm usually not a lover of radishes, but this was so good! The second course was a spin on chicken and biscuits with veloute, peas, and carrots. The chicken was shredded, formed into patties and fried, and served with adorable little medallion biscuits. Absolutely incredible. We finished off the meal with dessert and coffee from Barnie's Coffee Kitchen. Mike had prepared a lemon pot de creme. And, as with all of his other dishes, it was just amazing. All the while throughout the meal the dinner guests were engaged in great conversation. Jessica had some pre-prepared questions she asked of the group for conversation starters. And the talking never stopped. I'll be honest, I was concerned I would feel awkward because I'm not super outgoing. But not so! This was a great evening with great conversation and some AMAZING food. Guarantee I will be attending another dinner very soon. read more

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My friend and I attended a blogger event here a couple of years ago. I was so pleased that our vegan diets were catered to. The chef whipped us up some amazing tempeh. The craft cocktails were on-point, and the location at Aggressive Appliances was right up our alley! We had so much fun and met so many interesting Orlando area bloggers. If you have the opportunity to attend one of these events- do it!! read more

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100% recommend this experience. What's better then good food and even better company? I had a few friends recommend this experience and as someone who is a bit more on the reserved side, this was an amazing experience. Our host Maureen, did an amazing job making everyone feel comfortable. The flowers, place settings and all were perfect! We started the evening with a delicious cocktail from Titos and fresh coconut shrimp with the best pineapple salsa dipping sauce, ever! We started with an Asian flair salad accompanied by the main course, Steak and rice and we finished the night with fried donut and ice cream! Everything was amazing, including the company. If you haven't gotten the opportunity to try this, go sign-up now! I will definitely be back at another dinner party soon! read more

BEST. IDEA. EVER. Seriously. I am obsessed with this concept. My first experience was actually a private birthday party for a friend but most of us in attendance didn't know each other... so we still got to partake in the random people meeting thing. Previous Yelpers described how the concept worked, so I'm just going to gush about it. The host, Dana, is absolutely delightful. Our chef was Mike (formerly of Ravenous Pig, C&L and Smiling Bison) and my God, can that boy cook. We started with a kale salad with a sous vide poached egg (YES), a butternut squash soup with housemade ricotta (DOUBLE YES), the main dish was gnocci with a lamb ragu (YES YES YES YES) and then a chocolate stout souffle with the god damn most incredible creme anglaise I've ever seen (pardon my french, but parlez vous FUCK YES). My next experience was the Love Feast which was 60 people (!!). The food was provided by Farmhaus and it was delicious! My favorite part was the carmelized mushroom and onions on fried polenta appetizer. I literally could have eaten 15 of them. I was so impressed with the execution of this event- it was MUCH bigger than any other of the dinner parties and it was definitely a success! We left with full happy bellies, a bit of a buzz from the cocktails and wine, and with new amazing friendships that were made throughout the party. I can't wait for my next one and to meet more amazing community minded people (oh and to eat and drink amazingness, of course!!) I love Orlando and I love meeting those who feel the same way about our amazing city. A BIG thank you to Dana for bringing such a great thing to our lives! read more

This was a great experience. You meet with seven strangers for a meal prepared by a local chief. They ask for a donation of $50-$90 with $50 being the minimum you must pay. The money goes to charity. The portions are small, but very good. It was fun and interesting I would do it again in the future. Anytime I can donate to charity and eat is a good time. read more

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When I heard about the concept, I thought... right up my alley! I love connecting with people, eating amazing food and discovering new spots in my beloved Orlando. I signed up online and was chosen for a dinner pretty shortly after. Luckily, I was able to attend and so I received an email with the super top secret location and showed up (with some nerves, to be honest...) The food was pretty good - and our chef was one that does not currently have a restaurant gig, so it was cool to experience something I couldn't really elsewhere. The portions were small (I had to eat dinner after), so I felt it was more of a tasting than a meal - but I'm not sure if this is representative of the experience, as the chefs constantly rotate. The conversation was fueled by pre-chosen questions by the guest host. They were mostly pretty typical ("If you could go to dinner with anyone in history..."), but did inspire some good conversation. My main disappointment, honestly, was that although contact information was subsequently shared, the new best friends I made didn't really reciprocate my efforts to stay in touch. No big deal, but sort of took something away from the authenticity of the situation, and I hope that if I were to return (which I do hope to someday), that I could have a different experience in that regard. read more

Had the wonderful opportunity to experience the Dinner Party Project. Each aspect of the evening was delightful: cocktails, company, meal, ambiance, etc. Conversation flowed well as I enjoyed dinner with complete strangers learning their stories. Chef Emily impressed with slow-cooked short ribs with handmade linguine and lemon herb gremolata. read more

The Dinner Party Project - Social Clubs Near Me - Orlando, Florida

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If you haven't checked out The Dinner Party Project what are you waiting for? This concept is awesome! Here's how it works: email dinnerpartyprojectorlando@gmail.com to get on the list. Every week 7 people are randomly selected from the list; you'll receive an email if you are selected. Give a donation towards the dinner, bring your favorite bottle of vino (optional) & show up -- it's that simple! My first time (I say first because I hope to get selected again) Dinner Party Project (DPP) was at Aggressive Appliances, a high-end appliance store with beautiful kitchens. Our host Colleen & Dana, the founder of the DPP, were incredibly accommodating & made sure us seven strangers had plenty to talk about! Prompted with interesting questions, we all kept conversation (& wine) flowing while enjoying the most delectable food. It really doesn't get any better! If you're a vegetarian like me you're in luck because DPP will accommodate you! While my dinner group enjoyed a chicken course the chef made me an AMAZING cauliflower steak I still dream about. I'm not kidding. So delicious. So go ahead, sign up for the Dinner Party Project & get ready to enjoy a great night of food & conversation! read more

2 year anniversary was a major flop. Only writing this in hopes that they rethink what they are trying to do. Been to several small dinners and definitely 5 stars but have to beat them up on this hoping they will take notice. Marketing said "Wine Galore!" but only had two lazy stoners pouring beer. (note to organizer, if you have a backup in the kitchen, the ONLY way to calm the masses is with booze. You did not do that) So meandering to the back and taking it upon myself to get some beer, (since the promised wine wasn't coming) I observed an affirmative action, female cook working with a single, residential, housewives' electric range, attempting to put out 100 dinners, and a mix of restaurant misfits standing around texting. Hope they stick to the small dinners they do well and wait till they have their act together on the big ones. Oh and also for the location to not be ghetto central! read more

I was lucky to snag a spot at an open seating dinner last night and I have to say, I loved it! The concept was a unique approach to dinner and it was refreshing. Our dinner was located at Downtown Credo with Mike Garcia as our chef and Dana as our host. Dinner was amazing! Mike used locally sourced ingredients, which I loved. We started off with a whiskey sour and chicken liver crostini topped with bourbon peaches. We then moved into a cold corn soup topped with jalapeños, creme fraiche, and tomatoes. Our entree consisted of braised chicken with a side of summer squash, oyster mushrooms in a smoked tomato jus. We ended our dinner with a pot de creme topped with coffee maple syrup. Great conversation topics with a great group of strangers. It's nice to have a meal with people you've never met. I liked the concept of bringing the community together and a chance to meet and connect with new people. I highly recommend this to everyone in the Orlando area looking for a new dining experience! read more

The Dinner Party Project - Braised chicken with summer squash and oyster mushrooms - Social Clubs Near Me - Orlando, Florida

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Everyone should experience TDPP. Phenomenal way to enjoy cuisine that is simply scrumptious, meet new people and sharpen conversation skills. The experience is sophisticated and starts with the space. Trending different venues that create interest and spark conversation. Next meeting new people you don't know. Small and conversational. No blaring music, yet music playing low in the background. Cocktails on arrival with horderves that whet the appetitive. Who creates the menus? Local chef talent that create culinary visions that appeal to all the senses. Definitely holds up to 5 star restaurants. FYI this is a good date night event as it just the right balance of on trend, not to overly romantic and shows you are creative. Dana Marie Roquemore is genius. read more

This really is a great concept...at a great location...with great people involved. Overall, a very solid and memorable experience. And even though it appears that only the ladies of Yelp have reviewed TDPP so far - don't be afraid guys, you are invited as well. And because there are less guys who sign up, and because Dana tries to find a nice "balance" to the dinners - as a guy, your time on the waiting list will probably be much shorter - cool, huh? The event was in this quirky, little multi-use mini-warehouse space over by Santiago's Bodega. As you walk up, you are greeted by your host and a cocktail (ours was a blackberry lemon gin & tonic) with some appetizers (which I ate like three times as much as anyone else - oops). You'll probably immediately meet like 5 people - but don't worry, you'll have plenty of time to learn their names later. Our dinner was hosted by Emily - who killed it in the hostess chair, keeping the conversation flowing, balanced, and everyone engaged. The best part about this event was our group of diners - remember, everyone who signs up for this type of thing is the type of person who goes to this type of thing - and we all seemed to enjoy getting to know who each other were and what we love about Orlando. She may say this to everyone - but even Emily said we were her favorite group (sorry to burst your bubble, other groups). The dinner itself bounced back and forth from good to great for me. The crostini appetizers we had were awesome; a decent Caesar salad; and lots of freely-flowing wine. The food portion was put together by Farmhaus, so the Coq au Riesling was something from their website - and I sort've wish we would've had something special just for us - but other than that, everything was beautifully done. Good dessert, good coffee, and of course, more wine. I'll be looking forward to seeing this idea flourish into "the next big thing" in Orlando, and of course the next email I get from Dana letting me know I won the #tdpp lottery. read more

The Dinner Party Project - 3/11/15 - good times! - Social Clubs Near Me - Orlando, Florida