There are moments in life that deserve more than an ordinary table at an ordinary restaurant. A 40th birthday. An engagement dinner. A Nikkah reception. A corporate evening where the company you keep — and the setting you choose — quietly communicates everything about your standards. For these moments, private dining is not an indulgence. It is the right choice.

And in Birmingham's Jewellery Quarter, that choice now has a definitive answer: Decorum. But planning a private dining event — even at a restaurant as experienced as ours — requires thought, preparation, and a clear vision of what you want the evening to feel like. This guide walks you through every step, so that when your guests arrive, everything is exactly as it should be.

Step One Define the Occasion and Your Guest Count

Before any other decision is made, you need to be clear on two things: what you are celebrating, and how many people will be joining you. These two factors will shape everything — from the space you need to the menu format, the level of service, and how the room is laid out.

Decorum regularly hosts a wide variety of private events. Some are intimate — a table of eight for a milestone birthday, where the conversation flows naturally and the courses are savoured slowly. Others are grander in scale — a Nikkah reception for 100 guests, a corporate dinner for 60, a full exclusive venue hire for a product launch or charity gala. Each requires a different approach, and knowing your occasion upfront allows us to guide you towards the right configuration from the very first conversation.

Types of Events We Host

• Milestone birthday dinners — 18th, 21st, 30th, 40th, 50th and beyond
• Engagement parties and pre-wedding celebrations
• Nikkah receptions and wedding dinners
• Baby showers and gender reveal dinners
• Corporate dinners, team celebrations, and client entertainment
• Product launches and networking events
• Anniversary dinners and romantic milestone evenings
• Charity galas and fundraising dinners
• Graduation celebrations and academic milestones
• Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha family gatherings

Step Two Choose Your Space and Seating Format

The Jewellery Quarter has an atmosphere unlike anywhere else in Birmingham — elegant Victorian architecture, independent character, and a sense of occasion that begins the moment your guests step off Kenyon Street. Decorum is designed to complement that atmosphere, with an interior that is refined without being cold, intimate without being cramped.

For private dining of up to 20 guests, we offer dedicated table arrangements within the restaurant — either a long banquet-style table for a communal, celebratory feel, or a series of connected tables for a more relaxed, conversational layout. For groups of up to 160 guests, the entire restaurant is available for exclusive hire — allowing you to shape the space entirely around your vision, with bespoke staging, a DJ or live entertainment setup, and full flexibility over the evening's flow.

Seating Format Options

Step Three Build Your Bespoke Menu

This is where private dining at Decorum truly distinguishes itself. Every private event menu is built in consultation with you — not selected from a fixed list, but shaped around your guests, your preferences, and the kind of dining experience you want to create. Our executive chef will work with you to design a menu that reflects the occasion, accommodates dietary requirements, and showcases the very best of our kitchen.

Menu Format Options

Private dining menus at Decorum are typically structured as set menus with two or three courses, allowing the kitchen to deliver consistently outstanding food to every guest simultaneously. For larger events, a sharing-style menu — with generous platters of steaks, seafood, and sides arriving at the table — creates a convivial, celebratory atmosphere that works particularly well for family gatherings and Eid celebrations.

• 3-Course Set Menu: Starter, main course, and dessert — the most popular format for intimate private dinners. Offers each guest their own selection, plated individually.
• Sharing Feast: Large platters of our signature dishes — tomahawk steaks, whole lobster, king prawns, sides — placed at the centre of the table for guests to share. Theatrical, generous, and ideal for celebrations.
• Bowl Food / Canape Reception: For standing events and cocktail-style receptions, we offer a selection of elegant small plates and canapes circulated by our service team.
• Full A la Carte: For smaller, more intimate groups who prefer the full restaurant experience — each guest orders freely from our complete menu on the evening.

Step Four Think About the Details That Make the Difference

The best private dining events are remembered not just for the food, but for the feeling — and that feeling is the product of dozens of small decisions made well in advance. Here are the details that experienced event planners and our own events team consistently identify as the difference between a dinner guests enjoy and one they talk about for years.

Lighting and Ambience

Decorum's interior has been designed with warmth and intimacy in mind. For private events, our team can adjust the lighting throughout the room to suit your preferred atmosphere — from the golden candlelit glow of a romantic anniversary dinner to the slightly brighter, more social setting of a birthday celebration. Discuss your preference during the consultation and we will ensure the room feels exactly right from the moment your guests arrive.

Personalised Touches

Small gestures of personalisation consistently elevate private dining from pleasant to exceptional. Printed menus with your guest's name at each setting. A welcome card at the entrance. A personalised message from the birthday guest woven into the menu card. A specific dessert with a candle, timed to arrive at the moment the speeches finish. None of these are complicated to organise — but all of them are remembered.

Speeches, Entertainment and Timings

If speeches, a cake ceremony, or entertainment form part of your evening, let us know at the planning stage. Our events team will build these moments into the running order of the evening — ensuring courses are timed around speeches, that there is a natural pause between the main course and dessert for the cake to arrive, or that the room is configured correctly for a live music performance. These conversations are easy to have in advance and impossible to fix on the night.

Step Five Getting Your Guests There — Location and Logistics

Decorum is located on Kenyon Street in Birmingham's Jewellery Quarter — one of the city's most distinctive and accessible neighbourhoods. For guests travelling from across the city or from further afield, here is everything they will need to know.

We recommend sharing clear directions with your guests a few days before the event — particularly for those who are less familiar with the Jewellery Quarter. A simple message including the address, nearest station, and car park details is all it takes to ensure no one is searching for the restaurant while everyone else is already seated.

Step Six Why Decorum Is Birmingham's First Choice for Halal Private Dining

Birmingham has no shortage of restaurants willing to take a booking for a large group. But a large-group booking and a genuine private dining experience are not the same thing. The distinction lies in the preparation, the personalisation, and the unwavering commitment to making your guests feel that the entire evening has been designed with them in mind.

At Decorum, every private event is assigned a dedicated events coordinator who manages your enquiry from initial contact through to the last guest leaving the table. Our kitchen team prepares every element of your bespoke menu fresh on the evening. Our service team is briefed on your guests, your timeline, and your expectations before you arrive.

And crucially — for Birmingham's Muslim community and for guests across the city who value an inclusive environment — Decorum is fully HMC-certified halal and completely alcohol-free. Every guest, regardless of their faith or background, is welcomed into a space where they can be fully present, fully comfortable, and fully focused on the celebration at hand.