Diner en Blanc: The Biggest Outdoor Dinner Party that Paris Started

Diner en Blanc is one of my absolute favorite events that late summer brings. It’s truly one of the most unique experiences that gives you a chance to meet people you otherwise might not – what better way to bring out conversations between strangers than sitting down to a beautiful outdoor dinner? Every year we’ve been, my husband and I end up having the best time and leave knowing a few new friends from across the Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. area. Diner en Blanc isn’t just in the DMV though! It began in Paris years ago, and it’s expanded across the country and the world ever since. Diner en Blanc, or DEB, is now in more than 70 cities in 35 countries across the world, so there’s a chance that there’s one near you!

This members-only event takes place in a secret location with one major rule: everything must be white. That means tablecloths, outfits, napkins, servingware, and so on. It’s also meant to be elegant, which means almost no paper is permitted – only porcelain and actual glassware. I did manage to get away with my Beatriz Ball tray, silver bow napkins rings (similar here, here, and here), and monogrammed acrylic stemless wine glasses.

With these rules and guidelines, a bit of additional preparation is always needed. We did a test run at home to figure out which of our pieces we’d bring. In retrospect, this gorgeous marble wine chiller (similar here) would probably have been left at home due to its weight. That’s the other challenge: you must be able to carry everything yourselves to the undisclosed location!

We also made sure to test our flameless candles (other sizes here) in our pre-run. This is one of the most important things to bring as the location is outdoors – and secret. You don’t know if you’ll be on the water, in which case flames will likely burn out quickly, or on Constitution Avenue (like this year) where it’s free of wind, but there isn’t much light after sundown.

We packed up our outdoor dinner party in a vintage picnic basket (similar here and here), rolling cart (like this one), and white canvas bags. I wish we’d found this one earlier!

I loved the gladiolas we found at Whole Foods before Diner en Blanc. They were a last minute run as I wanted something to give height to our table. Since we flew in from NYC earlier that morning (because we are crazy), we grabbed our flowers at the grocery store and assembled them on the way to DEB. I kept the rubber bands, assembled the arrangements into bouquets (turning the bouquet as you add flowers helps fill in any gaps), and then rubber-banded them to hold them together. They were much easier to transport that way, and it helped cut down on our prep time once we arrived to the secret destination. Also, props to American Airlines for getting us from NYC to DC earlier than the on-time departure and with an upgrade!

(dress: available in a few sizes here-> Jill Jill Stuart, similar here in black, similar in white here and here, earrings: JCrew, watch: Michael Kors, similar here and here, bracelet: David Yurman, similar here and here)

Once everyone has set up their tables and lined them up in a row, the entire dinner party waves their napkins to announce the beginning of dinner. This year, Mike Isabella Concepts offered catered dinners. As much as we enjoyed curating and packing our dinner last year, we knew that we’d be short on time since we were landing three hours before Diner en Blanc began. Our catered Italian picnic was just the amount of cured meats and cheeses, pasta salad, crostini, kale Caesar salad, and tiramisu. It was perfect!