Dîner en Blanc Chicago 2017

The Dîner en Blanc aka the biggest white party of the year. Have you heard of it? Well I’ll be honest…I had not heard of it before I was invited to go. And boy am I glad that I was!

Dîner en Blanc started almost 30 years ago in Paris. The founder, Francois Pasquier, wanted to meet new people and admire the beauty of his city. He asked his guests to meet for dinner, bring a new friend and dress in white to identify themselves. From there, the tradition continued and spread to 6 continents, 25 countries and 70 cities worldwide.

Gaining more and more traction over the years, the press has started to take notice, appearing in Crain’s Chicago, Forbes, Huffington Post and many, many others.

My favorite way to breakdown the Chicago Dîner en Blanc is to look at the numbers:

6 Years in Chicago (This year the dinner was held at Fullerton beach)
3,600 guests in Chicago (!!)
15,000 People on the wait list (!!!!)
4,000 sparklers used (sparklers were lit to kick off the dancing part of the evening and signify that the dance floor was open)
Over 1,800 bottles of wine consumed (I definitely contributed to that)
More than 2,000 bottles of Evian or Badoit served
18 Departure Points throughout the city (We were advised to meet at Diversey Harbor, so only a short walk to the actual dinner location)
103 Dîner en Blanc Volunteers

I have gotten a lot of questions about why the dinner is held and what it is for. It isn’t to raise money or create awareness for something, it is truly to bring people together. The idea behind the dinner is that you show up to the location, which is not disclosed until 10-15 minutes before the dinner starts, setup shop, enjoy your meal, meet new people, and at the end of the night, pack up and go, like it never even happened.

All guests have to bring their own tables, chairs, linens, china, flatware, glassware, etc. Everything should be white. You have the option to bring your own meal, or you can pre-order the meal provided that evening and pick it up upon arrival. When the evening concludes, no trace of the event is left behind.  I love the secrecy of it. If you didn’t walk by at the time of the event, you would never even know it happened there.

My favorite part of the night was the lighting of the sparklers. All of a sudden, you look around and thousands of sparklers light up the sky. This signifies the dancing part of the evening (obviously the best part). The DJ starts and literally seconds later the dance floor was packed. I kept thinking “this is like the biggest wedding/party of the year.” And I definitely think this was the coolest event I’ve attended in Chicago.

If you have the opportunity to attend in Chicago or in your own city, then definitely go! I didn’t have to buy a ticket, but tickets range from $30-$50 and it is so worth it. I honestly don’t think I’ve ever experienced anything like it. There are so many people, of all different ages, races, etc., in one peaceful setting, just enjoying the company and ambiance. It was one of those nights that makes you realize humanity isn’t so bad after all.

Now I just need to find a way to make sure I’m invited every year moving forward…

xoxo,
Whit