15 Restaurant Table Top Ideas

 

Elegant and Fine Dining Restaurant Decor
Farm-to-Table Restaurant Decor
Modern Restaurant Decor
Bar Decor
Cafe and Bistro Decor
Get Creative With Your Restaurant Centerpieces

 

You’ve already nailed your menu with signature dishes, specials, and flavors that make your customers crave more of your delicious food. Now it’s time to focus on the ambiance to set the stage for memorable meals out and special moments at your eatery.

Restaurant table decorations create that ambiance, whether you’re decorating a trendy farm-to-table eatery or an upscale fine dining establishment. Centerpieces don’t have to be complicated, and you don’t have to use the same tired candles or floral designs everyone else favors. Creative restaurant table ideas amplify your establishment’s theme, make the tables look more appealing, and add that special touch your patrons will notice.

If your current centerpieces need a refresh, check out our restaurant centerpiece ideas to inspire your design and achieve the vibe you want.

Elegant and Fine Dining Restaurant Decor

Decorations for restaurant tables should reflect the overall vibe of the establishment, so a fine dining experience calls for sophisticated restaurant table lights and décor. Fine dining restaurants are often venues for celebrations like engagements, anniversaries, and birthdays. Décor pieces that design a tasteful backdrop for those activities make your customers take notice. Incorporate one of these fine dining centerpiece ideas to update your tables.

1. Romantic Lighting

Many people choose fine dining restaurants for their upscale, romantic setting. Deliver that ambiance by incorporating romantic lighting into the centerpiece. Candles traditionally signal upscale style. For a graceful presentation, choose a tall candelabra like our crystal votive holder piece. The height adds a dramatic energy to your restaurant without blocking sight lines across the table, so patrons can easily hold conversations.

Combine the romance of candles and flowers with the candelabra with bowl. Choose taper candles in a color that coordinates with your restaurant décor. Fill the center bowl with large silk blooms like light pink peonies for a beautiful color accent.

View our wide variety of lighting options from candles, to lanterns, LEDs and more!

2. Elegant Floral Arrangements

Flowers never go out of style when it comes to upscale centerpieces. Silk flowers offer the easiest solution because they won’t wilt or rot – their long-lasting nature ensures that you’ll always have beautiful arrangements to showcase, and will save money in the long run since you won’t always have to fresh flowers every few days. We carry an extensive selection of realistic blooms to coordinate with your décor for long-lasting, maintenance-free floral beauty without the mess of falling petals or the hassle of refilling vases with water.

For understated elegance, top each table with a single vase and a few small blooms. The leaning crystal bud vase gives your tables an upscale yet updated appearance. This is ideal for intimate tables.

For a bold take on larger tables, group several vases in varying heights with a few blooms each. When choosing the vases, search for a common trait, such as color, material, or general style. If you prefer a single container, opt for a shiny, ornate aluminum urn to hold your selection of silk flowers – the silver-plated finish and scalloped details will provide your tables with an unparalleled elegant look.

3. Curated Decorative Trays

Instead of choosing just one item as your centerpiece, employ a decorative tray as the foundation for a collection of well-matched items. The antique brass etched tray is one that adds a classy look to the table, especially with its intricate, hand-etched pattern.

When choosing items to place on the tray, consider the overall theme of your restaurant or the type of dishes you serve. For example, if you serve fine wines, you might lay down artificial grape vines as a base, and proceed to top the tray with artificial grapes, wine corks, a wine bottle, and a wine glass for a more authentic vineyard feel.

Another is to complement your tray with an arrangement of candleholders like the iced silver glass votive holders. Arrange several silk blooms and greenery on the tray to fill in the spaces between the votive holders. You can also place pillar candles directly on the tray, using the silk blooms to hide the bottoms of the candles.

Farm-to-Table Restaurant Decor

When you think of farm-to-table restaurant table design ideas, you imagine rustic, organic, and natural, just like the food you serve. Pulling in natural elements, textured pieces, and eclectic arrangements produces fitting centerpieces. Try these decorative possibilities.

4. Fruits and Veggies

Pull in the very ingredients that make up so many of your dishes with containers full of fruits and vegetables. Choose a holder that works with the rest of your décor:

• Teak wood bowls work well for a natural-looking, rustic touch
• Mercury glass cutwork cylinders establish a vintage feel

Another route is to arrange the fruits and vegetables directly on the table with a natural raffia runner underneath. Note that while beautiful, this can result in the fruits and veggies getting shifted around or knocked off the table – using artificial fruits and vegetables would help prevent the produce bruising if you opted for this idea.

Though you can certainly utilize real fruits and veggies for your display, another reason to use artificial versions is because they simply last longer. Realistic versions of decorative limes, brightly colored oranges, and Bartlett pears make stunning decorations for farm-to-table restaurants, and their high quality makes it hard for guests to tell they’re not real.

5. Lanterns

Create a vintage farm vibe on your restaurant tables with lantern centerpieces. Position a small antique-style lantern in the center of each table. For larger tables, place multiple lanterns of varying heights in the middle.

Restaurant lighting ideas often revolve around candles, and for good reason. They’re easy to set up for a warm, romantic glow. You can certainly put candles inside decorative lantern centerpieces, but you can also try string lights like the warm white naked wire LED lights for a creative interpretation of illumination. Bunch the battery-operated lights inside the lantern alone or with flowers or greenery.

The lanterns can also hold themed items inside instead of lighting. Ideas include flower buds, wine corks, or artificial fruits and vegetables. This lets you switch things up whenever you want by choosing a different filler. You can even make the lanterns seasonal by putting decorative items like pine cones and mini pumpkins inside for fall, or pine boughs and ornaments for winter.

6. Rustic Floral Displays

Charm your guests with a rustic flower arrangement, starting with a wood slice as the foundation for the display. Top each wood slice with a vintage-style glass container resembling an old canning jar, which you can fill with a variety of silk blooms in different colors for an eclectic, country vibe. Add a burlap bow around the jar to complete the look.

Modern Restaurant Décor

Modern restaurant tabletops should reflect the chic, contemporary sense of the space. Modern elements are often minimalist and simple with clean line – think basics, but not boring! When opting for a modern look, choose trendy décor that complements the other colors, materials, and designs in the space. Appear sleek and stylish with these tabletop inspirations.

7. Potted Plants

A small, single potted plant in the center of each table embraces a modern air without taking up much space. Pair succulents with a small, simple flowerpot and place them on the center of the table for an understated, clean look. Choose from an assortment of artificial succulent picks for a low-maintenance pick. Have the same plant style on every table, or mix it up with a unique bloom on each.

8. Collection of Glass Containers

Glass is a fitting way to fulfill your desire to stay modern. Keep it simple with clear glass containers, or make a splash with colored glass bottles. For an easy option, arrange the glass containers in groupings on the table. Pairing different heights or container shapes builds some interest in the arrangement. You can also place a single floral bloom in each bottle for a natural addition.

9. Metallic Beauty

Metal is a versatile material that fits with a variety of decorating styles, including modern. Shiny metal finishes blend the best with modern restaurant décor. You can incorporate metal into the centerpieces in a variety of ways. Try these modern metal centerpiece ideas:

• Tea light holders: Arrange gold metal tea light holders on the tables. The tipped design on the holders is whimsical – simply add a tea light for a sparkling effect.
• Gold candles: You don’t have to incorporate actual metal to get the metallic effect. Ribbed gold pillar candles add a shimmering glint to your tabletops. Place them on a simple candle plate for an ultra-easy, modern-looking centerpiece.
• Metal planter: Put a metallic twist on the single potted plant idea with an antiqued brass planter as the foundation. Arrange a succulent inside the metal planter for a simple table display. 

Bar Decor

 Bar centerpiece ideas extend well beyond a bowl of pretzels or a cardboard table tent displaying the drink specials. People may show up for the socializing and drinks, but well-designed centerpieces enhance that experience and make your bar something special. Treat your bar patrons to one of these table centerpiece ideas.

10. Bottle Vases

Boost the bar theme by using empty spirit bottles as vases for your centerpieces. You likely have plenty of “vases” already on hand. Hold on to the most decorative bottles in your bar supply once they’re empty to function as your containers for the bar-themed table toppers.

Use silk flower stems with the bottle arrangements. Servers at the bar stay busy enough without worrying about spilled vases or damaged real flowers. Pull colors from your bar’s décor to choose flowers for the arrangements. The overall style of the bar also helps you make your choice:

• White and orange gerberas create a full, colorful bar tabletop.
• For an earthy touch, slip a green millet branch into each bottle.

11. Sports Memorabilia Jars

If your bar has a sports theme, capitalize on the idea by keeping your centerpieces sporty. Start with a large clear container to hold the items. Arrange sports items inside the container, so they show through the glass. Ideas include:

• Baseballs
• Sports player cards
• Golf balls
• Golf tees
• Hockey pucks
• Mini basketballs

Round out the display with other filler items and toppers. For example, arrange peanuts in the shell with the baseballs. Hot-glue an old baseball cap from a favorite team on top of the container. For a golf centerpiece, arrange artificial grass in the bottom of the glass container. Attach a golf ball to a tee in the grass.

12. Wine Cork Candle Display

If wine is a popular offering at your bar, collect all the wine corks you remove from the bottles for simple centerpieces. Fill a glass container with your collected goodies. Weave a battery-operated strand of lights into the corks to transform the centerpiece into soft tabletop lighting.

Another lighting option is to place a smaller container inside the larger outer container – slip the wine corks between the two containers, and then place a candle in the inner container. The glow from the candle sparkles magically through the wine corks.

Café and Bistro Décor

Bring your cozy eatery to life with bistro and café table decorations. Intimate table settings in close quarters mean you need arrangements that work in the space available. Choosing pieces that also serve a purpose maximizes your space. Brighten your café or bistro tables with one of these decorating ideas.

13. Chalkboard Display

Ensure your café or bistro visitors know the specials of the day or extras like desserts by creating a chalkboard display on each table. A freestanding chalkboard on a pedestal is a convenient choice that is visible without taking up a lot of table space.

Wrap lavender garland or a similar garland around the base and frame of the chalkboard for a pretty accent that livens up the area. Hot glue the garland in place. You can easily change the message on the chalkboard, whether you jot down daily offerings or simply write a thank you note for guests. You can also leave it blank with a piece of chalk at the table to keep young patrons busy.

14. Tray

Make the table decorations work double time by displaying essentials such as salt and pepper or napkins in a decorative tray with a rim to keep the items contained. Arrange the items so they’re all easy to see and grab, no matter where you are at the table. To add a touch of interest to functionality, add a decoration to the tray, like a small ceramic flower pot with an artificial stem to round out your centerpiece. This keeps all the items on the table together, and it makes it easy to lift up and clean the tabletop.

15. Wooden Tray of Potted Plants

Bring hominess to the bistro or café tables with a divided wooden tray holding pots for plants. A wire basket with a similar design is an alternative. Fill the pots in the tray or basket with small silk flowers or greenery, such as succulents. This generates an intimate, natural feeling. You can also place silverware, napkins, sugar packets, and other small items your patrons may need in the containers. View all of our wooden tray options for effortless homeiness. 

Get Creative With Your Restaurant Centerpieces

With so many table ideas for restaurants, the question becomes which one to try first. Making custom table decorations sets your restaurant apart and establishes the theme and ambiance of your eatery. Many decorations are easy to customize with different colors, container sizes, materials, and styles to coordinate with the existing pieces in your restaurant. Put identical centerpieces on every table, or fashion slightly different versions for a unique appearance.

Jamali Garden makes it simple to get the restaurant table looks you crave. With our wholesale options, you get the quantities of centerpiece supplies you need to produce attention-grabbing decorations for every table. From classic to contemporary, our products let you make your vision a reality.

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