A Camp VR Cozy-Season Guide: Dinner Party Themes and Where to Host Them

Dinner Party / Reception

Located in New York’s Greene County, Gather Greene sits on 100 acres between the Catskill and Berkshire Mountains and features a large open-air pavilion designed specifically for outdoor dining and receptions. The pavilion accommodates seated dinners for large groups and includes built-in amenities, making it well suited for cold-weather gatherings that move between open landscape and covered space.

CAMP VR Take: Late-Season Harvest

• Food: Wood-roasted squash and root vegetables, whole roasted birds or porchetta-style cuts, mushroom-forward pastas, and warm breads served with cultured butter. Finish with baked apples, spiced cakes, or cider-soaked desserts.
• Drinks: Mulled wine, hot toddies, or Calvados-forward cocktails served fireside or at the Boulder Bar before dinner.
• Table Styling: Heavy linen runners, stoneware plates, low arrangements of dried branches and seasonal produce, and candlelight kept low and deliberate.
• Insider Tip: Start guests outdoors with a warm drink and first bite, then transition everyone into the pavilion once darkness sets in to anchor the meal.

Group Getaway / Brand Event

Camp DeForest is a restored 1950s Maine camp set among evergreens along the Midcoast, with private campfire rentals, open grounds, and a central lodge designed for card games, knot tying, and ring toss. The property lends itself naturally to casual, high-energy dinners that prioritize participation over formality; ideal for brand events and group takeovers.

CAMP VR Take: Classic Camp Revival (’80s–’90s Edition)

• Food: Gourmet hot dogs and sausages from onsite Happy Trails, served with house-made relishes, charred onions, potato rolls, and kettle chips. Add chili, baked beans, or corn cooked directly over the fire.
• Dessert: An elevated s’mores flight (dark chocolate, peanut butter cups, smoked marshmallows, and shortbread) finished fireside.
• Decor: Camp pennants, merit badges at each place setting, enamel plates, checked blankets, and handwritten menu cards clipped to boards.
• Insider Tip: Lean into nostalgia without irony. Keep the menu playful but well executed, and let the fire circles act as the evening’s anchor instead of a formal seating plan.

Read More About Camp DeForest in our editorial: “A Former Motor Lodge Turned Into Maine’s Most Charming Grown-Up Campground” 

Group Getaway / Welcome Dinner

Part of our Camp VR series, Prospect Berkshires is a former 19th-century picnic ground turned lakeside retreat that actually works in cold weather. Think 49 modern cabins spread across lake and forest, bath houses with saunas and cold plunges, walkable trails, fire pits, and a restaurant perched above the water that keeps groups on site once the temperature drops.

CAMP VR Take: Gone Fishing (Preppy, Lakeside Edition)

• Food: Freshwater fish crudo or smoked trout dip to start, whole grilled fish or pan-roasted chicken for the main, potatoes wrapped in foil, and seasonal greens finished with lemon and herbs.
• Drinks: Martinis, chilled white wine, and thermoses of hot cider once the temperature drops.
• Decor: Striped linens, simple white plates, vintage fishing creels as centerpieces, taper candles, and dock lighting pulled into the dining area.

Read More About Prospect Berkshires in our editorial: “What Happens When a Century-Old Picnic Ground Becomes the Coolest Camp for Your Next Lakeside Celebration” and get more Gone Fishin’ inspo from our roundup “Gone Fishin’: A Girls’ Trip Guide to Fireside Feasts, Fisherman Sweaters & Ralph Lauren Charm This Cozy Season”

Dinner Party/Group Getaway

Start with the guest list, then give them a reason to stay put. A full buyout turns The Henson into a private weekend base, with terrace drinks before dinner and a long, well-paced meal inside Restaurant Matilda, where the Bar Contra and Wildair team cooks with Catskills produce and a light hand. Sixteen bedrooms upstairs mean the night ends when people feel like it, not when cars are called.

CAMP VR Take: American Sporting Club

• Food: Plated dinners built around seasonal game or beef, roasted root vegetables, mushrooms, and restrained sauces. Think venison loin, duck breast, or dry-aged steak, followed by classic American desserts reworked with precision—baked apples, custards, or bittersweet chocolate.
• Drinks: Cocktails named with a wink to Americana (The Adirondack, The Hudson Club, The Polo Grounds) served neat, stirred, and unapologetically classic.
• Decor: Layered tartans, dark wood tables, leather details, taper candles, and subtle sporting references; vintage rugby balls, polo mallets, or archival photographs used sparingly as table accents.

Ceremony + Reception

Set on twenty wooded acres along the Little Truckee River, this Dancing Pines offers an entirely outdoor setup with a riverside ceremony site, cocktail patio, fire pit lounge, and a broad lawn designed for long tables and dancing. With BYO catering and alcohol, it gives hosts full control to shape a dinner that feels grounded in the landscape rather than staged on top of it.

CAMP VR Take: Hunting Season

• Food: Game-forward menus inspired by the setting (venison or duck), smoked trout, cast-iron vegetables, and bread meant for tearing and passing. Finish with dark chocolate, roasted pears, or a tableside digestif poured by the fire.
• Cocktail: A pre-dinner drink poured fireside; bourbon with apple cider and bitters, a rye old fashioned with smoked orange, or a hot toddy once temperatures drop.
• Decor: Waxed canvas, wool throws, layered plaids, lanterns, trumpets, antler accents used sparingly, and low candlelight that plays well against pine and river stone.

Ceremony + Multi-Day Celebration

This Wyoming ranch sits where the canyon opens into wide valley views, with guest cabins clustered close enough to feel communal but never crowded. Events anchor around the Homestead Lawn and green barn, while the Lodge becomes the natural gathering point once the sun drops (cards on the table, another round at the bar, boots kicked off by the fire.) A natural warm spring, horseback access across the property, and open skies shift the focus away from programming and toward shared time, making it a venue that rewards staying put rather than packing the weekend too tight.

CAMP VR Take: After the Ride

• Food: Ranch-driven and generous. One-pot dishes and hearth-style cooking: slow-braised short ribs or bison stew, cast-iron chicken with root vegetables, skillet cornbread and cultured butter, charred greens, and desserts finished tableside (baked apples with cream and brandy) or a warm skillet cake meant to be shared.
• Cocktails: After the Ride (bourbon, honey, black tea), High Plains Old Fashioned (rye, demerara, orange peel), Warm Springs  (tequila, citrus, saline, served rocks or up)
• Decor: Raw wood tables, naked taper candles, thick Navajo blankets layered over benches, leather details used sparingly, metal cups and serveware, saddle-inspired textures, and low lantern light that plays against barn wood and open sky. 
• Bonus Points for including a Most-Wanted style photo booth and making custom matchbooks.

Welcome Dinner/Ceremony

Think of this as camping for people who care about finding their next favorite Cabernet and a good hot tub. Set just outside Guerneville, AutoCamp Russian River trades tent poles for polished Airstreams and turns the classic campground into a social landscape: redwoods overhead, fire pits, and a central Clubhouse that pulls together the entire experience. Days pass between river floats and long walks under the canopy; nights get everyone back together for dinner, music, and something strong poured over ice.

CAMP VR Take: Redwood Supper Club

A dinner party that borrows from old-school supper clubs and mid-century road-trip culture.

• Food: Family-style plates meant for sharing: rotisserie chicken with herbs and lemon, grilled mushrooms with brown butter, smashed potatoes finished with crème fraîche, and big bowls of bitter greens. Dessert leans nostalgic skillet blondies, (soft-serve with olive oil and sea salt) or campfire affogatos served straight from the Clubhouse.
• Drinks: Supper-club classics with a Northern California twist: martinis with a choice of lemon or olive, negronis cut with local citrus, chilled red wine poured generously. A signature batch cocktail (gin, redwood-tip syrup, and soda.)
• Decor & Activities: Long communal tables under string lights, mismatched wooden chairs, pressed-paper menus clipped with brass. Checkerboard accents nod to roadside diners; disco ball optional, encouraged. After dinner, migrate to the fire pits for cards, vinyl spinning in the background, and a low-stakes game rotation (dominoes, backgammon, or anything that invites conversation.)

From ranches and lakeside lodges to camps, cabins, and glamping retreats, Camp VR is built around places that invite people to gather, stay awhile, and eat well together. If you’re planning a winter dinner, group getaway, or multi day celebration, consider this your starting point. Explore the full Camp VR collection for more venues, themed hosting ideas, and practical inspiration for bringing people together outdoors this season.

🔥 A Proper Camp Send-Off

🍴 Campfire Cocktail Recipes →
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Your guide to turning fire season into fine dining. Think heritage flannel meets Baccarat sparkle, and cabins that make s’mores feel like a Michelin moment.