I truly could not be more excited to say: WELCOME to Jurassic Park. Ahh! I’ve been wanting to say that since I was seven years old. Here’s everything you need to know to throw your own Jurassic Park party – recipes and all!
Jurassic Park is one of my all-time favorite movies. I can’t even count how many times I’ve seen it. I even wanted to be a paleontologist when I was little! This party is truly my love letter to one of the greatest films of all time.
“It’ll be just like taking a walk in the woods 65 million years ago.” – Owen Grady
The Dinosaurs
The biggest decor element for this party of course was the dinosaurs, an effect that I projected on a window from outside using my AtmosFX projector. This is the reason that I decided to host my Jurassic Park party at my parents’ house instead of my own. The ground outside of my dining room window is extremely sloped and uneven.
At my parents’ house, I was able to set my projector on the covered patio so that it was protected from the elements. And yes, this is the same projector I used to project fireworks on my ceiling, dancing skeletons at my Haunted Mansion party, and singing pumpkins for Halloween.
I saw the Dinosaur Encounter pack on the AtmosFX website years ago and could not even wait to use this at my Jurassic Park party. I set my projector about 6’ feet away from the window and hung the screen that came with my projector in front of the window.
Photos don’t even do this effect justice. It looked so realistic in person – like there were really dinosaurs right outside the dining room. The projector cycled through all of the dinosaurs (t-rex, raptors, brontosaurus, and triceratops) all night long. I finally achieved my dream of dining with dinosaurs!
Other Decor
To get those Jurassic Park vibes, I set a ton of plants around the dining room, including a couple from Central America. I also hung vines from the chandelier, wrote “Life finds a Way” on my chalkboard, and proudly displayed my new Clever Girl sign, custom made by my friends at Enchanted Farmhouse.
The Table
The table was very simple. I chose a brown linen tablecloth, woven chargers, and big tree trunk candle holders for a natural look. I wanted it to look like a dinner party in the middle of Jurassic Park.
Since dinosaurs are huge, I arranged one big floral arrangement for the center with green and yellow flowers, a nod to the original Jurassic Park tour car.
I had adorable dinosaur place cards and a menu at each place. I don’t always design menus for my parties but I just loved the idea for this party, since every dish was so very on theme.
The real piece de resistance though were these amber mosquito fossil lollipops from Palilas Lollipops. ARE YOU KIDDING ME? This has got to be one of my favorite purchases ever for a party. They are just perfect for a Jurassic Park party!
“Sometimes, after bitin’ a dinosaur, the mosquito would land on the branch of a tree, and get stuck in the sap. After a long time, the sap got hardened and became fossilized, just like a dinosaur bone, preservin’ the mosquito inside. This fossilized tree sap, which we call “amber”, waited millions of years with the mosquito inside until Jurassic Park scientists came along. Using sophisticated techniques, they extract the preserved blood and… bingo! Dino DNA!” – Mr. DNA
The Fashion
For my paleontologist look, I chose a khaki dress with natural jewelry and brown heels. I got this dress for $30 on Amazon (affiliate link here) and it really could not have been comfier. This is so out of my fashion norm but I loved this look!
My friends looked so fabulous, really nailing the theme. Julie wore dinosaur earrings, Brooke was inspired by amber, Austin had subtle dinosaurs on his shirt, and Katie looked very rock ‘n’ roll in her LBD paired with combat boots.
“Clever girl” – Muldoon
The co*cktail
Meet the Clever Girl, named after one of my favorite lines in the movie. This drink was inspired by the scene where Lex sees a raptor in the dining room while holding a spoonful of green jello. I started by making lime jello with vodka – but you could of course make a kid-friendly version with regular jello.
To make the Clever Girl, I flaked the jello with a fork, then spooned the flaked jello into hurricane glasses, topping each with sparkling white grape juice. In just a few minutes, the drink becomes totally green and tastes like fruit punch.
This is just such a fun drink for the whole family to enjoy during a Jurassic Park movie night. Get the recipe (both alcoholic and non-alcoholic) here.
“So, who’s hungry?” – John Hammond
The Food
This is one of my favorite party menus ever! It’s so prehistoric AND easy to make – an entertainers dream.
Jurassic Park Menu
Herbivore Salad with Dino Eggs
Rack of Lamb with roasted potatoes and homemade pesto
Dino Dig Cups with Dinosaur Fossil Cookies
Herbivore Salad with Dino Eggs
I could not be more thrilled with this salad. I mean, could it be more perfect?! Leafy greens are topped with prehistoric pine nuts and “Dinosaur eggs” served in cheesy nests.
To make the dinosaur eggs, I lightly pan-fried hardboiled eggs with a bit of butter, turmeric, and paprika. It really doesn’t alter the flavor of the eggs and in just a couple of minutes, it turns them into fabulous Dinosaur eggs.
So fun! Get the recipe for Herbivore Salad here and Dinosaur eggs here.
“Oh my God. Do you know what this is? It’s a dinosaur egg. They’re breeding.” – Alan Grant
Rack of Lamb
For the main course, I wanted something that a carnivore would love to devour so I made rack of lamb. Fun fact: My dad came up with this brilliant idea for the main course!
This recipe so easy to make. You just whisk together olive oil, lots of garlic, and fresh rosemary, rub it all over the lamb, then season well with salt and pepper. Pop it in the oven at the same time as the potatoes for about twenty minutes, pull it out to rest while your potatoes finish roasting, then carve and serve.
It’s especially delicious with my homemade pesto sauce. The perfect carnivore course! Get the recipe here.
“What’s the matter, kid, you never had lamb chops?” – Dr. Ian Malcolm
Dino Dig Cups
Last but certainly not least, I served Dino Dig Cups for dessert to honor our favorite paleontologists, Alan Grant and Ellie Sattler. I baked Dinosaur Fossil Sugar Cookies by using a t-rex toy to stamp Dino tracks onto cookie dough.
I topped my favorite chocolate pudding dirt cups with fossil cookies, which I partially buried with cookie crumbs. Little paleontologists will love brushing the crumbs off of the fossil cookies! Get the recipe for Dino Dig Cups here and Dinosaur Fossil Cookies here.
“You did it. You crazy son of a bitch, you did it.” – Ian Malcolm
I hope you enjoyed dining at Jurassic Park as much as I did! After all, spared no expense. 😉 Watch the episode:
Stay clever,
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