About 18,000 people are wishing they'll get invited to the exclusive Dallas dinner party called Diner en Blanc this fall. But only 3,000 people will get to go.
Diner en Blanc is an event shrouded in secrecy and surprise. Nobody knows who will be able to snag tickets. Hopeful guests don't even know where the event will be; the location is never announced until the evening of the event.
But we do know one thing: the date.
Diner en Blanc will take place on Nov. 9, 2018, in Dallas.
Its new hosts use words like elegant, chic and super dope to describe this large-scale party where each attendee is required to wear white from head to toe. Guests also bring their own tables, chairs and linens to this pop-up Dallas dinner party among thousands of strangers.
"This is one of the biggest social events of the year," says Jiles R. King II, one of three hosts.
King and his two party-planning partners, Christie M. Howard and Kia D. Davis, have never attended Diner en Blanc in Dallas. They understand the irony: They're supposed to organize a 3,000-person dinner party, having not been to any of the show-stopping ones in the past. The parties took place first on the Continental Avenue Bridge in 2015, then on the plaza in front of Dallas City Hall in 2016, and most recently at the Dallas Arboretum in 2017.
King did get the opportunity to go to a Diner en Blanc in Atlanta, calling it "the best two hours I've had in a long time." Howard has been trying to go to the Dallas event since the beginning, but luck was never on her side. "I'm the chick on the waiting list who never got in!" she says.
Howard, King and Davis are taking over as hosts this year after three others helmed the party for its first three years. All of the newcomers have worked together at the Black Academy of Arts and Letters, and each has a day job in theater, radio or the performing arts.
They're already dreaming of their Diner en Blanc outfits, too. King is hiring a tailor to custom-make an African-inspired white suit; Davis' mom has bought her two white dresses — and counting; and Howard has at least four dresses picked, with the option of two fascinators for her hair.
In the past, the event in Dallas has brought a unique mix of people of all ages and races from many areas of Dallas-Fort Worth to converge in the same place for a jovial seated dinner.
"You get a microcosm of what Dallas looks like," Howard says of the event, which will cost $51 per person, not including additional prices for dinner. (Attendees can also bring their own food, if they choose.)
Diner en Blanc is basically a "fancy picnic," our own Tiney Ricciardi said after attending the inaugural Dallas event. The first Diner en Blanc started 30 years ago in Paris among a group of friends and has now blossomed into an international dinner party that takes place around the calendar and around the world, in Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe and North and South America.
Its most distinctive quality, beyond the all-white dress code, is the secret location. Howard hinted that the venue will be outside, in an "iconic Dallas" spot. It won't take place at any of the past venues, she adds.
She oversees Diner en Blanc's social media platforms in Dallas and says she's asked to divulge the secret location "every day — all day, all night. Everybody wants to know."
"And they all say, 'I won't tell.'"
How to get on the waiting list for Diner en Blanc
- Save the date for Nov. 9, 2018.
- Sign up for the waiting list at any time.
- Look out for an invitation via email. Guests will be assigned to Phase 1, 2 or 3.
- If your turn comes up, cross your fingers and get online to purchase tickets. Similar to buying concert tickets online, not everyone will be able to purchase tickets before they run out.
Tips from the hosts for buying tickets online
- When purchasing tickets, buy them on a computer — not on a tablet or cellphone.
- Log onto the website before your allotted time.
- First step: Pay for the ticket — $51 per person ($43 to participate plus a $9 membership fee). Check out with only those items first.
- Second (or later, if you prefer) go back into the system and pay for extras, like catered dinners or bottles of wine.
- You must complete your original order in 15 minutes.
