We have great neighbors and really enjoy bumping into them at the local restaurants or at the pool in the summer, but a lot of the time we just wave to one another as we come and go during the daily grind of life. In an effort to get to know our neighbors better we organized a neighborhood progressive dinner and have found it to a great way to socialize and get to know one another better.

What is it? A progressive dinner is a meal in which each course of the meal is served at a different host’s home. For example, one family or couple serves appetizers, another serves soups or salads, and another prepares the main course, before wrapping up the night at the final home for dessert.

Who is invited? One person has to elect himself or herself the party organizer to streamline the process. We’ve found it’s easiest to orchestrate the planning details over email. First, you should decide how many people to invite. It works best to consider the size of the homes and their proximity to one another to make it a comfortable and fun night for everyone. While it would be nice to include lots of folks, it can hurt the conversation and flow if you have too many guests. It’s best if the homes are within walking distance, too, so you don’t have to deal with traveling in cars and parking.

How do you start? The party organizer selects a cuisine theme (Italian, Mexican, Chinese,  etc.). Be creative if you have some daring cooks in the group. Once you’ve settled on a theme, the organizer should either assign or ask their neighbors to sign up for the part of the meal that they would like to host.

How do you get organized? Next, the party organizer should send out a schedule with everyone’s address and a timeline for how long to spend in each home. Be sure to pace yourself well so that you have time to socialize and eat, but not too long that is drags out over hours. The organizer should make sure to inform everyone of the head count including children (if they’re invited).

Enjoy. On the day of the event, try to prepare your part of the meal in advance as much as possible and then sneak out five minutes or so in advance of everyone else in the party to get the food on the table. Over dessert you can set a date and a theme for your next get-together.