The Dinner Club

What The Dinner Club does

The Dinner Club is a private, Amsterdam-headquartered social dining marketplace that connects adult home cooks ("hosts") with adult guests ("diners") for shared home-cooked meals in private residences. The platform operates on a curated, two-sided model in which every guest request must be manually approved by the host, no instant bookings are permitted, and the exact address is only revealed after approval — a design choice that emphasizes safety and trust over transaction velocity. Hosts set a menu, review full guest profiles (including verified identity and prior host reviews), and are compensated for grocery costs via supermarket vouchers rather than cash payouts; guests pay a per-dinner contribution covering the grocery split plus a platform service fee, with all payments processed in-app through Stripe. Following a soft launch in Dutch cities (Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague), the company is extending operations to a "Launch 15" footprint across Western and Southern Europe (Paris, Berlin, Munich, Vienna, Milan, Turin, Barcelona, Madrid, Lisbon, Dublin, Copenhagen, plus Antwerp and Brussels) and shipping its first native mobile app on iOS and Android on 7 September 2025.

The underlying technology stack is intentionally lean and commodity: Supabase provides database, authentication, and messaging with SOC 2 Type II compliance and EU-region data residency; Stripe handles all payments and host payout flows; Apple and Google supply social login; Resend sends transactional email; and a third-party supermarket voucher provider settles host compensation. Compliance posture is GDPR / Dutch UAVG-compliant, with EU-US Data Privacy Framework alignment for cross-border payment data via Stripe. The company is privately held, registered in the Netherlands (KvK 95477233), is led by two co-founders (Mara, Dutch with prior NYC residency; Daniele, from Sicily), and has not disclosed any funding rounds, institutional investors, revenue figures, or employees beyond the founding pair. Reported scale metrics — roughly 200 guests hosted, 85 reviews averaging 5.0 stars, and zero safety incidents since launch — are used as the primary marketing proof points for trust.

Name

The Dinner Club

Legal name

The Dinner Club

Website

https://thedinnerclub.eu

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Dinner Club is a mobile-based social dining platform that connects home-cooking hosts with adult guests across European cities for shared home-cooked meals, monetizing via a per-booking platform fee on top of grocery cost recovery.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Social Dining Platform

NAICS

Full-Service Restaurants (722511), Food Services and Drinking Places (722)

SIC

Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810)

akta.pro primary industry

Special Occasion & Destination Restaurants (THAFACAK)

Keywords

• Social dining platform
• Home-cooked meals
• Community dining app
• Host approval marketplace
• European dinner community

Headquarters

HQ city

Amsterdam

HQ country

Netherlands

HQ region

Europe

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Platform Service Fee (Guests): Guests pay a contribution amount that includes the host's cost-sharing (grocery split) plus a platform service fee. The fee is clearly displayed before booking confirmation. Processed through Stripe.
2. Host Cost Recovery via Vouchers: Hosts receive supermarket vouchers (not cash) to offset grocery costs. The Dinner Club deducts its platform service fee before calculating voucher amounts. Hosts may not charge above actual costs.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

The Dinner Club operates a mobile-first social dining platform that connects individual home cooks ("hosts") with guests seeking shared home-cooked meal experiences. Hosts set menus, manually approve each guest request, and receive supermarket vouchers (not cash) to offset grocery costs, while guests pay a contribution covering groceries plus a platform service fee processed through Stripe. The service emphasizes manual approval, address privacy until approval, and a zero-incident safety track record across 15 European launch cities.

Product overview

The Dinner Club is a social dining platform operating as a single unified product accessible via web and mobile apps. The platform connects home cooks (hosts) who want to share meals with guests seeking meaningful social connections. Users can host dinners (setting menus, approving guests, and opening their homes) or join as guests (browsing dinners, requesting seats, and attending). The platform facilitates booking, host approval of guests, address sharing after approval, and payment processing through Stripe. Host compensation is delivered as supermarket vouchers rather than cash payouts. The service currently covers 15 European cities including Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Paris, Berlin, Barcelona, and others.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• The Dinner Club Platform A social dining platform that connects hosts who wish to share home-cooked meals with guests seeking meaningful social dining experiences, featuring a host approval process, booking system, Stripe payment processing, and a review/rating system. Designed for adults 18+ in 15 European launch cities.
• The Dinner Club Mobile App A mobile application for iOS and Android that allows guests to browse dinners, request seats, and pay, while hosts manage dinner listings, approve guest requests, and communicate with attendees.

Quantifiable outcome

• 200+ guests hosted with 0 safety incidents
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration7 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• StripecoreTechnology or IntegrationPayment processing partner handling all guest contributions and host payouts. Processes guest payment details and hosts' payout information. Guest payments processed securely in-app with no cash at door.
• SupabasecoreTechnology or IntegrationDatabase infrastructure and authentication provider. Stores account data, booking data, and messages. Maintains SOC 2 Type II compliance. EU region data storage.
• Supermarket Voucher ProvidercoreTechnology or IntegrationThird-party voucher provider delivering supermarket vouchers to hosts as compensation for hosting. Receives host name, email, and voucher amount to facilitate delivery.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Feastly: Feastly is a community-driven marketplace for communal and private dining experiences hosted in homes and pop-up venues. Directly comparable in the supper-club model, ticket-based contribution mechanic, and host approval flow.
• BonAppetour: BonAppetour is a peer-to-peer marketplace for authentic home dining experiences with local hosts. Comparable to The Dinner Club on supply side (hosts opening homes), payment model (per-meal contribution), and target customer (travelers/expats seeking authentic experiences).
• EatWith: EatWith is a global social dining marketplace connecting travelers and locals with home cooks for hosted meals. Directly comparable to The Dinner Club in product (hosted dinners), business model (take rate), and trust/safety design, and is the most established direct competitor in the category.
• MealSharing: MealSharing is a home-cooked meal sharing platform where travelers eat with locals. Closely comparable business model (host contributions, take rate, profile/review system) and similar European market presence.
• EatWith (VizEat rebrand history): VizEat was the original competitor platform that merged with EatWith; both share the same host-dining marketplace DNA and represent the same category The Dinner Club competes in. The historical consolidation illustrates the strategic question of whether category leaders absorb smaller players.

Regional players

• Withlocals: Withlocals is a marketplace for private tours and local dining experiences, primarily in Asia. Comparable hosted-meal product and trust model, but geographically complementary rather than overlapping with The Dinner Club's European focus.

Emerging players

• Cookly: Cookly is a marketplace for cooking classes and food experiences often hosted in private homes. Partial overlap with The Dinner Club — same host-side supply pool and trust requirements, but focused on cooking classes rather than dinner seating.
• Supper Clubs near you (directory): Supperclub directories and aggregators list informal monthly dining events at hosts' homes. Comparable cultural category (supper clubs) but typically offline/event-based rather than a continuous marketplace with automated booking and payment.

Broad incumbents

• Airbnb Experiences: Airbnb Experiences offers hosted dining and cooking experiences as part of its broader travel platform. Comparable on the dining experience vertical and host-approval mechanics, and has dramatically larger distribution and traffic — a major incumbent threat to niche social dining players.

Others

• Meeting new friends apps (e.g., Bumble BFF): Bumble BFF and similar friend-finding apps address the same adult loneliness/social connection pain point but through digital matching rather than real-world shared meals. They represent the substitute product category The Dinner Club is competing against for the same consumer mindshare.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/thedinnerclubsocial
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/thedinnerclub

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Dinner Club