Dinner times

I think this really depends on your crowd. Personally this timing is perfect for me but I know some friends would be starving by then lol. Maybe send out some feelers and see? Also do you have any young kids at your event? They tend to eat pretty early in my experience...

I agree with CJ. That time would be perfect for me, but I know older guests would probably prefer to eat sooner. I would probably start cocktail hour at 5:30 and have dinner served by 7:00. I think that is a good, standard, dinner time.

I usually eat dinner by 6:00, so not eating until 7:30 would be very late for me. I’d try and serve dinner a little earlier.

View Quoted Comment No kids, but I am concerned about some of my older guest. The cocktail hour will have plently of appetizers so I don't think anyone will starve and be super uncomfortable but I think I might push it back just to be safe. We have a pretty mixed group and didnt want to start too early because we wanted a fun night of dancing without everything ending super early...

I would serve dinner around 6:30 and have cocktail hour lasting just one hour (not 1.5 hours).

I would recommend

5-6pm cocktail hour with at least some hors d'oeuvres, canapes, crudité platter, snacks

6pm guests to seats, grand entrance, first dances

6:15pm salad and toasts

6:30pm main course is served

Anywhere between 5pm-8pm tends to be a standard dinner time, and families with young kids tend to eat earlier, so if a family is used to eating at 6pm and you invite them to an event at that time but don't feed them until 1.5 hours later, I think it would feel really long, drawn out, and torturous.

As a mom, your original timeline is barely late enough to settle kids with a sitter, finish us dressing, and out the door to arrive by mid cocktails. Snack there. Have a good long time to be social before a full meal.