The Shore Blog

Hello fellow beach lovers! Slowly, but (hopefully) “shorely”, the beaches are starting to open up. However, when the restaurants will open for business is still yet to be seen. At a time when we should be heading to the shore on weekends and enjoying our favorite seaside restaurants as they open for the season, we’re home having to come up with meals . . . Every. Single. Day. Since we’re not focused on much else besides food, why not have a little fun? In this article, we will show you how to create a festive beach-themed dinner for you and your family.

All you need is a little creativity, and we’re here to help. Take our step-by-step guide and soon you’ll have yourself convinced that you’re sitting in your favorite dockside, bay front or ocean view restaurant.

Pick a Theme

Your beach dinner can be whatever you want it to be. What kind of beach experience makes you most happy? Do you want to relive a favorite shore memory from summers past? Make it a Jersey theme. Or for tropical beach lovers, why not make your own Backyard Luau? If you love the New England scene then maybe a “lobstah dinnah” is what you need. Every parrothead knows “it’s “5 o’clock somewhere!” so maybe a Margaritaville Party is in order. The only rule here: do what makes you happy!

Plan your menu

Once you have selected a theme, a menu is pretty easy to come up with. If you’re stuck for ideas for meal plans, check out our Pinterest pages. Here, you’ll find a bunch of ideas to create your own Beach Party or Backyard Luau. And if you want to plan a Margaritaville Party, we have ideas for that too!

Make It Festive

Serve your meal with a side of fun! Ask your family to make it festive by wearing their favorite shore tee shirts and hats. Or Hawaiian shirts with leis. Add some colorful luau decorations or some beachy coastal decor. Drink tropical beverages out of coconuts and don’t forget the beach music. May we even suggest a grass skirt?

Plan an activity

Don’t make it just a meal, make it an experience. After all, we’re cooped up inside together – we might as well make the best of it. If you’re going with a Jersey shore beach theme, bring out your favorite beach games like Cornhole, Spike Ball or Bucket Ball (just don’t forget to drink out of your red Solo cup!) For a tropical theme, tape two brooms together and challenge your family members to the Limbo. Or pass around the grass skirt and have a Hula competition. Be creative! We have a bunch of beach party games on our Pinterest page so check them out too.

Share your photos

Make sure you commemorate your beach themed dinner with photos and share them on social media. Feel free to share your photos to our Facebook page, or tag us on your Instagram so we can relive your fun – and don’t forget to #theshoreblog .

Need more ideas or resources?

Here are more ideas to help you plan the perfect beach-themed dinner.

Jersey Shore Theme

Menu: Plan your menu around your favorite Jersey shore restaurant dishes or boardwalk fare. If you have a favorite dish from a local restaurant or boardwalk eatery, see if you can find a copy-cat recipe online or get creative and try to duplicate it yourself. You can check out some popular Jersey Shore restaurant dishes with The Jersey Shore Cookbook: Fresh Summer Flavors from the Boardwalk and Beyond. Another idea is to contact your favorite shore pizza joint or seafood market to see if they ship their products. Or simply recreate one of your typical vacation meals to stimulate everyone’s taste buds and trick them into thinking they’re at the shore.

Activities: Put together a slideshow of past family vacations; play your favorite beach games, play shore-themed charades, take turns sharing a favorite shore vacation memory.

Decor: Use beach chairs for seating and beach towels for tablecloths. Or make it a picnic and spread out a beach blanket. Place photos from past vacations in frames around the room or on the table. Play your favorite beach tunes. Make your own beach decorations or order them online.

Luau Theme

Menu: We have a ton of luau menu ideas on our Pinterest page. You can find some tropical meal recipes or copy-cat something from Disney’s Polynesian resorts, including their popular Dole Whip treat.

Activities: Play limbo, have a hula contest, have a lei toss. Check out our Backyard Luau Pinterest page for more ideas.

Decor: You can make your own luau decor by checking out our Pinterest board above, or you can order luau decorations online.

Margaritaville Party

Menu: Anything seafood will work here. You can also purchase Margaritaville products such as marinades and dressings.

Activities: Watch the sunset with a cocktail, play Pass the Lime, listen to Jimmy Buffet tunes.

Decor: Lots of color, key limes, parrot-themed decor – be creative!

New England Theme

Menu: Find recipes for different seafood dishes or order fresh Maine Lobsters to be delivered right to your door on the day you choose. They also offer other seafood meal options.

Activities: Check out our beach party game ideas for inspiration!

Decor: Make your own beachy decorations or order beach decorations online.

We hope this post has inspired some beach-themed creativity for you, to help you pass the time and enjoy each other’s company with a change in attitude. Enjoy, and don’t forget to share your photos!