For those who are new, here would be my recommended procedure for planning an AZBurners Phoenix Monthly Dinner:

1) The dinner is always on the 12th of the month. This is not to say you may not plan another event on another day. In fact, please feel free to do so! The more the merrier! But, us die-hard monthly dinner goers always keep our 12th of the month free to hang with our dusty buddies. So, please don't disappoint us.

2) Check to make sure someone hasn't already planned a dinner for the month in question. It's a little bit rude to schedule a competing dinner! You can check the mailing list on Yahoo! and this web site to see if there's already one advertised. It probably also avoids confusion if there's only one dinner planned in advance at once. If you've lost track and aren't sure you can always post "Has anyone planned the Novobuary Phoenix dinner yet?" (Did you like my made-up month?)

3) Pick a place. There really aren't any hard and fast rules as to what kind of place to pick (nor do we have an AZBurners Dinner Dictator to make such rules), but "McDonald's" and "Ruth's Chris" are both likely to get a low turnout. Some things to think about are:

A) Expense -- not everyone has a lot of disposable income. pick something reasonably priced.

B) Ambiance -- fast food is probably a turn off for people. it's nice to relax and chat at a big table. Also, in my experience, restaurants that aren't chains are generally friendlier and more interesting. alcohol availability is always a plus.

C) Capacity -- we normally have between 5 and 20 people show up at the monthly dinner. ideally it would be someplace that wouldn't mind either headcount.

D) Food -- the burner community has a higher incidence of vegetarianism and veganism than the general populace, so you're likely to get a better turnout if there are more vegetarian options than "side salad". also, good food is always better. i myself am a bit on the adventurous side and prefer interesting and ethnic food, but everyone's tastes are different.

E) Location -- People live throughout the Phoenix metro area, so anywhere's good! But, if it's in AJ or Avondale, not a lot of people are going to make the trek. The more centrally located it is the more people it's going to be convenient for.

F)  Post-dinner activities -- occasionally we'll have something going on after the dinner. 

4) Reservations -  This isn't always required, but it can be helpful. If you reserve under the name "black rock" it helps newbies find our group if they don't happen to know any of us beforehand. Unfortunately it's tricky to tell how many people to expect. Sometimes we get 5 and sometimes we get 20. Hopefully you picked a  place which won't be too put off if there are 15 unused seats at the table!

5) Post to the list. Make sure everyone knows about the dinner! A reminder a couple days in advance doesn't hurt either. Make sure you include the time of the dinner (traditionally 6:30ish), the address, directions, and what the reservation is under (traditionally "black rock"). Make sure your subject line is informative ("Novubuary Phoenix Monthly Dinner") so it's easy to see when wading through the plethora of messages most people get in their email.

7) Show up at the designated time and place and make sure everyone gets a big hug. Actually, you should do this each month even if you're not the one organizing!