Your dinner description is a tiny invitation to yourself: What do I want this Friday night to feel like?
Maybe you want to unplug. Maybe you want to reconnect with friends you haven’t seen in forever. Maybe you want to eat something really good. Whatever you need from Shabbat this week, your dinner description is a chance to name it — for yourself and for your guests.
Writing a dinner description should be a moment of reflection that brings extra meaning to your Friday night. Whether you’re Shabbating for the first time (or the first time in a long time) and need some inspo, you’re Shabbating every week and need a way to make each dinner unique, or you fall somewhere in the middle, here are some things to think about when writing your dinner description.
First, let’s recenter. What is Shabbat?
Shabbat is what you need it to be. It’s a chance to pause, connect, and mark the transition from the busy week to a period of rest. That can happen over takeout, an intricate meal, a birthday cake, a board game, a campfire, the list goes on and on. Shabbat can be an opportunity to go outside or to escape the heat. It can be a chance to have hard, important conversations or a chance to focus on gratitude and hope. It can be a chance to slow down and breathe, or to let loose and celebrate.
So, now that we know your Shabbat can be as unique as you are, let’s focus on how to make your Friday night feel like Shabbat.
Five Ways to Glow Up Your Dinner Description
1. Name your intention.
What are you hoping to get out of this dinner? There is a big difference between “I’m having people over for a game night” and “Let’s celebrate making it through a long week with a little bit of friendly competition”.
How do you want to feel at the end of the night?
2. Add a little ritual.
Candles. Kiddush. Challah. A moment of gratitude. A quote or song you love. These elements can help your evening feel distinctly like Shabbat. Try mentioning what you’re planning so your guests know what to expect: “We’ll light candles, say a blessing over the wine, and celebrate a special birthday”.
Now we know there is a little Shabbat flair to this birthday celebration!
3. Set a boundary.
Shabbat can also be a chance to decide what doesn’t get your attention for the next few hours. Invite your guests to leave the work talk at home, put their phones on do not disturb, or avoid rushing through dinner to get to the next thing. Use your dinner description to create a little more room for the Shabbat you want: “No doomscrolling, no work talk. We’ll light candles, eat too much pasta, and finally finish that puzzle we started last week.”
4. Bring in the senses.
What will people hear, smell, taste, or feel when they walk in? Freshly-baked challah? The glow of Shabbat candles? A very full bowl of chips?
5. Include a question to gather around.
Give your guests something to think about before they arrive. Bonus: your dinner description just became a conversation starter! Here are some of our go-tos:
- What are you leaving behind this week?
- What are you looking forward to?
- Who has shaped the person you are today?
- What’s something you want more of this year?
- What does rest look like for you right now?
Your dinner description doesn’t have to be perfect. It just needs to give your guests a sense of what to expect and remind you why you’re gathering in the first place. We can’t wait to read all of your glowed-up dinner descriptions!
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This resource was originally written by Anne Prusky in 2022 and updated by OneTable in 2026.
