Asian Dinner Party- How we prepared for it

Getting Started
My first party needed to have a fun theme to kick off our goal to party every month for a year! I wanted a theme that would ensure some great food, unique decorations, and the capability to really do something different! Jeff and I knew that we needed to invite about 7 couples who would do well together. Which means- personalities couldn't clash, new friends and old friends should both be invited,- a variety in ages- but no kids! We had a hard time narrowing the list down which is a lot of the reason we decided to host these until we had had every couple in the ward over to our home. We just started coming up with a list of ward members that we thought might work. And so far we've done a good job. We chose 7 couples, picked the Asian theme and decided it would be a potluck. We spent too much on food last time with the Italian dinner party. As a family for family home evening we went to China Town down off the I-15 and Spring Mountain to get some Chinese lanterns and visit an Asian Market. The girls really loved the market with all the live lobsters and crabs and funny looking veggies and fruits. I made the invitations myself with some gorgeous Asian scrapbook paper, vellum and ribbon.
The invites
I contacted them personally to get a commitment first, then gave them the invite with an email reminder to RSVP. This system seems to work well. So far we have not had a guest flake or forget. In the invite I asked them to bring either an Asian main dish, side dish, appetizer or dessert.
Party Favor
I wanted to have something for couples to take home to help remember the night. So I asked everyone to email me a copy of their recipes so that I could compile a recipe book. I printed them, bound the books with metal coils, and had them on the table to take home.
Games and Dessert
I hate games. I really dislike them. But I have found that some kind of get-to-know- you game is really important when mixing a group of different couples who aren't well acquainted. I found a fun recipe for homemade sweet fortune cookies in a Family Fun Magazine. I knew that I would have to put some kind of fortune in those cookies and I couldn't come up with anything clever to say. I had an idea to print questions onto cardstock, cut them into strips, fold them and put them into the cookies. The couples got a cookie with a scoop of icecream for dessert. They broke open their cookies and when their turn came they would read their question and answer it. Some of the questions were:
Share your engagement story.
What quality most attracted you to your spouse when you first met?
Where did you go on your honeymoon and why did you pick that place?
What is your favorite restaurant to eat at and what do you usually order when you eat there?
When did you know that you wanted to marry your spouse?
If you could spend a month on desert island with your spouse and one other person who would it be and why?