Food lovers will now be able to live out their ‘Come Dine With Me’ fantasies thanks to the launch of the UK’s first ever online dinner party service.
FoodHost.co.uk aims to make civilised dinner parties something everyone in the UK can enjoy, with members able to host and attend dinner parties in their local area.
The site, launched by self-confessed foodie Chris Tau, is the first of its kind in the UK, with similar sites having already proven popular in the US.
Visitors to the site – which is free to join – simply register some basic information about themselves before browsing the listings for upcoming parties in their local area, and clicking to attend any which catch their eye.
Those wishing to host an event can do so privately – inviting up to six people from the site, or publically, detailing the type of meal they will be cooking, with any guest them able to sign up on a first come, first served basis.
Some events even encourage shared cooking responsibilities with the host specifying which dish they will be cooking and agreeing with guests what foods they will bring along.
Attendees are asked to leave feedback on their meals with hosts scored out of five stars meaning there is an incentive to go all out to ensure a great evening is had by all.
Events, which cost between £2-3 to attend, can last just one evening on be done on a reciprocal basis similar to the popular format of hit TV show Come Dine With Me.
Chris says he hopes the site will encourage fine dining in as many UK homes as possible.
He said: “Never before has awareness of food and cooking been so high amongst the British public and programmes like Come Dine With Me have shown just how much fun people can have hosting and attending local dinner parties.
“I hope we’ve created a foodie social network which will allow people across the country to enjoy some of the best home cooked food around, whilst at the same time making new friends.”
Hosts are unable to charge attendees for the meal, which Chris believes adds to the social element of the site.
He explains: “We researched what opinions would be if the host charged for food and found that for many guests this would make them feel uneasy, detracting from their overall enjoyment.
“If hosts were to charge there would be an incentive for them to use cheaper ingredients to maximise their profits which once again would result in a less enjoyable culinary experience and goes totally against what the site is all about.”
As with all social networks safety and security is a top priority and the site has taken steps to ensure guests and hosts alike continue to have great experiences.
Chris explains: “Our research found people had reservations about having strangers in their home, which is understandable.
“Therefore we have taken every step to build a creditable community by vetting all new members to ensure they are who they say they are and by encouraging them to link their Facebook and Twitter accounts, we hope to give members the greatest opportunity to find out as much as possible about the people they’ll be dining with.
“Guests are welcome to only offer private events whereby they pick who they invite and there’s even the option to specify the balance of male and female guests.”
For more information view FoodHost.co.uk .