Ever since I found this tomato-print dress at H&M, I’ve had the idea of throwing the perfect tomato themed dinner party. At the time, I didn’t even think we would be in our new home early enough this summer to actually host it here, but somehow everything aligned so beautifully.
The original plan was completely different. I pictured a sunny summer afternoon outside, a pool day that slowly turned into a garden dinner party, with the table set outdoors and tomatoes, basil & Italian inspired food everywhere.
And then it rained.
At first, I was a little disappointed because I had such a specific vision in my head. But we moved everything inside, opened up the French doors & let the sound and smell of the rain fill the house. It ended up creating an entirely different kind of atmosphere. Cozy, intimate & honestly so special. The doors stayed open, the rain became our background music & what was supposed to be a sunny garden party turned into the coziest Italian-inspired dinner at home.
The Tomato Tablescape
For the table, I wanted everything to feel playful & a little rustic while still being beautiful & intentional. Tomatoes were obviously the star.
Instead of traditional floral centerpieces, I picked up basil plants from Trader Joe’s & transferred it into simple terracotta pot. I love using things on a table that actually make sense with the food & theme, & fresh basil could not have been more perfect. It added greenery, smelled incredible, & gave the table that effortless Italian garden feeling I was going for.
I scattered different varieties of tomatoes throughout the table, different colors, shapes, & sizes, so it didn’t feel overly styled or perfect. I wanted it to look abundant, like everything had just been gathered from a summer garden.
I also added different kinds of pasta I already had in my pantry throughout the table. It was such a simple little detail, but it added another layer to the Italian theme & made the table feel even more playful & abundant.
One of my favorite little details was using ciabatta bread as candleholders. I created small holes in the loaves & tucked flameless candles inside. It was such an easy DIY, but it added so much personality to the table. & because I used flameless candles, I didn’t have to worry about an open flame near the bread, napkins, or greenery.
Since the rainy weather made the house darker than I had originally planned for, I also added rechargeable LED table lights throughout the space. They gave us the prettiest warm glow as the afternoon went on & made the rainy day atmosphere feel intentional instead of like Plan B.
& sometimes the most random finds end up being the best ones: I found paper placemats that matched my blue gingham table runner almost perfectly. The napkins coordinated beautifully too. It was one of those moments where everything just happened to come together without having to overthink it.
The mix of blue gingham, red tomatoes, terracotta, fresh basil, bread, pasta, & warm lighting gave me exactly the Italian summer table I had imagined, even if it ended up being indoors.
The Drinks: Tomato Martinis & Peach Moscato
Obviously, a tomato-themed dinner needed a tomato cocktail.
I made a batch of tomato martinis ahead of time so I wasn’t mixing individual drinks once everyone arrived. They were savory, refreshing, and such a fun way to carry the theme beyond the tablescape & into the menu.
We also had one of my favorite finds from Trader Joe’s: peach Moscato. It is dangerously good. Cold, sweet, bubbly & way too easy to drink. It was the perfect contrast to the savory food & tomato martinis, so everyone had options depending on what they were in the mood for.
Appetizers
I wanted everyone to be able to snack as soon as they arrived, so I kept the appetizers very Italian-inspired & perfect for sharing.
I made traditional bruschetta with fresh tomatoes, basil, garlic, olive oil, and seasoning, then added burrata because, in my opinion, burrata makes almost everything better.
& obviously, there had to be a cheese board. A dinner party at my house without some kind of cheese board just wouldn’t feel right.
I also served arancini, which were the perfect little warm bite to add alongside the bruschetta and cheese board.
I also added a small veggie platter. The goal was to have enough food out that everyone could pour a drink, grab a little plate, and just hang around the table while we talked before dinner.
The Italian-Inspired Dinner Menu
For the main dinner, I definitely went a little overboard, but that is part of the fun of hosting.
We had:
- Chicken schnitzel
- Vodka pasta
- Stuffed shells
- Tomato soup
- Garlic bread
- Caesar salad
- Margherita pizza
- BBQ chicken pizza
I wanted the menu to feel abundant with different dishes being passed around the table instead of everyone having one perfectly plated meal.
For the Caesar salad, I switched things up & used seasoned breadcrumbs instead of traditional croutons. You still get that salty, crunchy element in every bite, but the breadcrumbs distribute throughout the salad rather than having a few big pieces of bread here and there.
And while I love cooking for people, I am also completely in favor of taking shortcuts when they make sense. For the BBQ chicken pizza, I grabbed shredded rotisserie chicken from Trader Joe’s, mixed it with BBQ sauce, spread it over a Trader Joe’s pizza crust, and topped it with red onion and cheese. So easy, but so good.
I finished everything with Italian seasoning wherever it made sense. It was such a simple detail, but it helped tie all the different dishes together.
When Plan B Becomes Better Than Plan A
I think my favorite part of this dinner ended up being the thing I couldn’t plan: the rain.
I had spent so much time imagining this as an outdoor summer party by the pool & in the garden. But having everyone gathered inside, the French doors wide open, the sound of the rain outside, candles glowing on the table, & the smell of basil, bread, tomatoes, & pasta coming from the kitchen created a completely different memory.
It reminded me that hosting doesn’t have to go exactly according to plan to be beautiful.
The dress that started the whole idea, the tomato covered table, the basil plants in terracotta pots, the ciabatta candleholders, the martinis, all the food, & even the unexpected rain, somehow came together exactly the way they were supposed to.
& getting to host a dinner like this in our new home made it even more special.
Maybe the garden party will happen next summer. But for our first tomato dinner here, I don’t think I would change a thing.
-Love
Blair
