THE FIRST FLOOR SUPPER.
Above, I dine with a sizable group of old friends. Recently, I had a floor supper with two very new friends, and it was such a success. We ate too much, drank too much, and talked a great deal. Do it, do it, do it. You're never too old to sit Indian-style and swap stories while you stuff your face. Promise.
This is me, telling you what you must do the next time you're hungry for food but also friends. It's a fail-proof plan for a pleasant evening, I promise. Clear your living room floor. Put the coffee table in your room and scoot the furniture to the walls, because you're going to be eating down there with the people you love. This formula works especially well for new friends you meet at work, classmates that seem worth getting to know, or those delightful strangers you bravely strike conversations with at coffee shops (I applaud you for this-- remind me to tell you a story I heard about coffee shops and why they're so populated).
What you do with your floor is completely up to you, but make it beautiful, that's all I'm going to require of you. I remember the first time I hosted a Floor Supper I took an old tabletop without legs we had laying about the apartment and set the plates on top just as I would have a table with legs. The food went on top as well, and pillows served as the seating. Now, just because you're eating on the floor, don't deny yourself the pleasure of creating a neat centerpiece. Do it. DO IT.
The food should be PLENTIFUL, with big bowls and huge plates filled with comforting things like mashed potatoes and pasta and vegetables! Half the fun is passing the grub, isn't it? Preparing the food should be a group activity as well-- no one likes a cook who does all the work, I promise, really.
When everything's ready, calm down and join your guests on the floor. Candles are a great mood-setter-- you'd be surprised how they're stripped of their usual romantic connotation when it's a small group of friends you're with instead of your boyfriend or girlfriend. Soon, you'll be talking about really big things in small ways, and vice versa, and you'll all instantly fall in love. Food releases a chemical in a person's brain that forces them to talk about their day, really. I might have made that up, but I would buy it if somebody told me.
Having friends over for dinner is something very classic, and removing the stuffiness of chairs and a dining room table makes the atmosphere so much more relaxed. Good things come from it, I swear. It should be a group process from the get-go, really-- you and your dinner guests might buy the groceries together at one of your local markets (places like Trader Joe's are wonderful and terrific but the lines can be patience-wearing and the small-village-market vibe is simply lacking). Cook together, eat together, and most importantly: talk together. This works well on a weeknight when you're not too overloaded with work. You'll feel content all evening, and pleasantly at ease throughout the next day.
So break out the broom and sweep up, dinner's on the floor tonight.
Best,
Jordan
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