Whether you’re wanting to host a Great Gatsby movie night or plan a roaring 20s party, these 1920s party foods are sure to be a hit! We love a themed party because it’s a great way to get together with friends!
Flapper girl: Retro party invitation design. Vector illustration.
Plus – The Great Gatsby is the perfect option for an adult-friendly movie night.
The best part? The movie gives you tons of ideas for your own event!
Featuring lavish parties, delicious foods, and sparkling drinks, this film is the perfect template for hosting an amazing dinner party at home.
Great Gatsby Movie Night or 1920’s Party Ideas
No matter what elements you choose to use in your own dinner party, there are a few simple ways you can bring the Roaring 20s to your own party menu.
1. Drinks
This fun decade was all about the cocktails, which means you’ll need to add a few vintage drinks to your menu.
Classic cocktails like sidecars, mint juleps, and gin Rickeys are great options for a Great Gatsby party.
2. Hors d’oeuvres and Appetizers
Start off your dinner party with some prohibition era appetizers.
Snacking plates with meats and cheese are a great option for a 1920s dinner. Or try some other classic starters, like shrimp cocktails, deviled eggs, or oysters. Keep reading for more 1920s party foods!
3. Main course
After your guests have enjoyed some cocktails and finger foods, it’s time for the main course.
To make your dinner decade appropriate, serve some 1920s dinner favorites, like beef tenderloin, pork chops, or roasted chicken.
4. Desserts
A sweet treat is the best way to end a delicious dinner. That means you’ll need to come up with some fun Roaring 20s desserts to serve after the main course is over.
Pineapple upside down cake, Neapolitan ice cream, and icebox cake are all great options for topping off your movie night meal.
5. Decor
Decorating for a speakeasy party is so much fun and pretty easy to do!
A few fun ideas are to do a white, gold, black, and red color scheme. You could also include gold balloons, feather boas, and pearl strands on the table! You could also put 1920s slang words on each table as a fun touch!
We also love to include these fun touches on the party invitations – whether they are mailed or emailed.
You could watch the Great Gatsby, or if you want your guests to mingle, having silent movies on in the background makes for a great atmosphere as well!
6. Activities
So many fun activities lend themselves to a 1920s party or Great Gatsby movie night! You could do card games or a dance floor with only the best jazz music and classic songs.
Another fun touch is to do a photo booth! Make sure to have a few fun props, too! We like bow ties, cloche hats, pearls, and feather boas!
You could also do a costume contest or a dance contest with a specific dance like the Lindy Hop.
Since the 20s also were a time of prohibition, another fun and unique idea is to end the party with a (pretend) police raid at the end of the night!
Now that we have the 1920s party ideas listed, let’s get into the food ideas! Because any good party has to have great food!
1920s Party Foods
If you’re hosting a Great Gatsby movie night, you have to have some decadent recipes to serve your guests.
From fun classic cocktails to delicious finger foods and ice box cakes, these recipes are the perfect way to bring the Roaring 20s to your dinner party.
This classic recipe for French cheese puffs from Casual Foodist would make a great starter for your dinner party.
Whether you’re looking for a simple appetizer or delicious movie night snack, deviled eggs are a great choice. This no-bake 1920s party food recipe from Erica’s Recipes is a great way to kick off your movie night party.
Make sure your dinner party guests have something to snack on while they watch the movie with the help of this simple appetizer recipe. The classic combination of goat cheese and fresh herbs makes this recipe from A Paige of Positivity the perfect Great Gatsby movie night snack.
These Raspberry Goat Cheese Bites are impressive looking, but they are actually pretty easy to make with crescent rolls!
The goat cheese and blueberry filling in these delicious pastry bites make them a favorite vintage recipe. Use the instructions from Straight to the Hips Baby to whip up these sweet and savory treats for your Great Gatsby movie night. (They are one of our favorite 1920s party foods, too!)
Bring the flavors of a vintage afternoon tea to your movie night menu with these delicious cucumber sandwiches with cream cheese!
We love this variety of tea sandwiches for 1920s parties because they are easy to grab and eat! They're also delicious!
Cheese platters are all the rage right now, and they're also perfect for a roaring 1920s party!
Every 1920s party has to have shrimp cocktail!
Kick off your Great Gatsby movie night with fresh oysters with a mignonette dressing as appetizers using this simple recipe from A Tasty Kitchen.
This Waldorf Salad is the perfect side dish to pork chops!
Serve your movie night guests a delicious main course at your dinner party with the help of this classic recipe idea. Tender pork chops are paired with mushrooms, red wine and thyme to create a flavorful main dish in this recipe from Always Use Butter.
Sweet, creamy, and thick, this 1920's inspired Stovetop Rice Custard is a vintage recipe keeper! All you need are a handful of simple ingredients to prepare this classic recipe from Cup of Zest.
This Sweet Tea Mint Julep puts a modern twist on the classic cocktail!
Create a homemade strawberry syrup to make this delicious 1920s strawberry gimlet cocktail for your Great Gatsby movie night. Using this simple recipe from The Littlest Crumb, you’ll be able to whip up an impressive cocktail for your dinner party.
Your movie party guests will love the classic combination of gin and lime in this recipe for a vintage gin Rickey from Cocktails with Class.
You can’t go wrong by serving a classic cocktail at your dinner party, like this simple recipe for a sidecar from Ann’s Entitled Life.
With the addition of a unique flavor, this lavender Bees Knees from Burrata and Bubbles transforms a classic Prohibition Era cocktail into a delicious modern drink. Your party guests will love sipping on this fun mixed drink while watching the movie.
The decadent combination of chocolate, raspberries, and cream in this chocolate trifle recipe from Straight to the Hips Baby is the perfect way to end your Great Gatsby inspired dinner.
This pineapple cake tastes heavenly and requires just 2 ingredients! We love it for a Great Gatsby movie night because it's low calorie and easy to put together quickly!
We love the look and taste of this cherry Oreo ice box cake!
If you're looking for a classic, gorgeous cake recipe that is easy to make - look no further than this Pineapple Coconut dump cake!
Bring the flavors of the 1920s to your dinner party with the help of a classic dessert option. This sour cream pound cake from Bakecellence combines basic ingredients to create a delicious sweet treat that’s the perfect end to your Great Gatsby dinner.
With the help of this no bake dessert, you can serve a delicious sweet treat to your movie night guests without the need of an oven. Your party guests will love the delicious combination of cookies in this recipe for icebox cake from Spend with Pennies.
If you need a gluten-free option, this icebox cake is the perfect pick for dessert!
If you plan on doing your 1920s party outside or around the Summer holidays, this patriotic ice box cake is perfect!
If you love this these 1920s Party foods and ideas, we have plenty of other great ideas you may like:
