The Real Housewives: 5 Best Parties (& 5 That Were Too Dramatic)

Bravo’s Real Housewives franchise is famous for memorable and intense parties that sometimes get out of hand. Whether the cast members invite their friends over for a classy dinner, or they host a themed gathering, chances are that tempers will flare, arguments will happen, and no one will have any fun. While a certain amount of conflict makes for good episodes, sometimes it can all feel like a little too much.

While some of these parties are elegant and have included some entertaining and dramatic moments that viewers still chat about, there are some Real Housewives get-togethers that were almost too tough and intense to watch.

10 Best: The Dinner Party From Hell (RHOBH)

The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills has included many dinner parties over the years but “The Dinner Party From Hell” is a famous RHOBH episode. This was nowhere close to an ordinary and regular gathering and the actual meal was the last thing on anyone’s minds as Camille Grammer seemed upset that Faye Resnik was there.

Between Camille mentioning Faye’s Playboy posing to psychic Allison Dubois talking intimately about the cast, it’s tough to know who was more shocked, the cast or the viewers watching at home. Every Real Housewives party will be compared to this one. It might not have been much fun to attend, but it was full of unexpected moments.

9 Too Dramatic: Kyle’s Christmas Dinner (RHOBH)

Season 11 of RHOBH has included a few dinner parties, including Kyle Richards inviting everyone over for a delicious Christmas meal. This scene wasn’t very jolly or festive, though, as immediately, the conversation turned to Erika Girardi and her legal woes.

Erika found out that the cast had gathered to talk about her situation, and she wasn’t pleased about that. With Sutton Stracke commenting that she was scared to associate too much with Erika, the tension was incredibly thick and this dinner party was way too dramatic. With everyone sad and upset and stressed out, this episode was memorable for the wrong reasons.

8 Best: Shannon’s 1970s Themed Party (RHOC)

In an iconic season 11 episode of The Real Housewives of Orange County, Shannon Beador wanted to have a party that had a 1970’s theme. There are many reasons why this is one of the greatest parties in this reality franchise, from the fun costumes that the cast wore to the fight that broke out between Shannon and Kelly Dodd.

When Kelly said she totally knew why Shannon’s husband David wanted to have an affair, it’s safe to say that every viewer gasped. This was an unexpected and exciting party to watch, and it ended up saying a lot about the cast members. The party told fans that there was still a deep wound inside Shannon when it came to her shaky marriage, and it showed that Kelly didn’t shy away from making hurtful comments.

7 Too Dramatic: The Infamous Game Night (RHOBH)

Season 2’s “Game Night Gone Wild is one of Brandi Glanville’s most dramatic RHOBH episodes but it’s a difficult one to watch more than once.

While the cast originally wanted to have an enjoyable night playing some games, that wasn’t what happened at all, as Kyle and Brandi fought over Brandi’s son peeing on Adrienne Maloof’s lawn. This led to Kyle insulting Brandi’s poor background and while this episode will always a crucial part of Brandi’s history on the series, the party had a fairly mean-spirited vibe. Fans know Kyle to be a much kinder person than she showed herself to be here.

6 Best: The Vegan Dinner Party (RHOA)

Porsha Williams hosted a vegan dinner party on the season 10 episode of The Real Housewives of Atlanta called “Peaches Be Trippin.'” It was clear that there would be some fun drama and that’s exactly what happened.

This was a great party episode, as Cynthia Bailey mentioned the upcoming Barcelona vacation that the cast was going to take, and Kim Zolciak-Biermann wanted to bring her partner Kroy on the trip. This didn’t go over well, of course, since this wasn’t supposed to be a trip that involved spouses. Things didn’t totally fall apart, though, and the evening went over relatively smoothly, so it’s up there with one of the best parties on the reality show.

5 Too Dramatic: Ramona’s Dinner Party (RHONY)

As soon as RHONY fans learned that Ramona Singer was hosting a dinner party, alarm bells went off as Ramona said it was to celebrate Carole Radizwill running a marathon, but it seemed like she just wanted to have a gathering.

This is one of the worst parties in the Bravo franchise as no one had a good time. Tinsley Mortimer actually threw a check in Sonja Morgan’s direction, as Sonja was complaining about Tinsley being a guest at her house. Dorinda Medley made things even worse by calling Sonja a liar for saying she was dating Rocco. It wasn’t a pleasant evening at all and this type of drama wasn’t enjoyable to watch.

4 Best: Carole’s Election Party (RHONY)

Carole was often right on RHONY as she’s known for looking at a situation from a practical perspective. In season 9, Carole threw a party for the 2016 election, which was very meaningful to her as she was a journalist for many years and supported Hillary Clinton.

The amount of drama in this episode was perfect, not only because the political climate created a tense background by itself, but also because Ramona said she wouldn’t attend the party and then said she wanted to. It was also nice to see Carole talk about issues that are important to her.

3 Too Dramatic: Tamra’s Baptism (RHOC)

Right away, it was clear that the party to celebrate Tamra’s baptism on RHOC would actually be about something else. But while fans were eager to learn more about Vicki Gunvalson’s relationship with Brooks Ayers and the rumors that he might not have cancer, this party ended up being too intense.

Vicki didn’t want her co-stars talking about her, but instead of calmly dealing with the situation, she said she was being “nailed to the cross like Jesus.” No one was sympathetic as this was an odd comment to make, and now that fans know that Brooks did lie about his health, the party has turned sour.

2 Best: The Dinner Party From Hell Part 2 (RHOBH)

When fans learned that RHOBH named a season 11 episode “The Dinner Party From Hell Part 2,” it was clear that this would be another stand-out part of the show’s history. Once again, the cast tried not to talk about Erika’s troubles and then the fighting began. Kyle wanted Erika to know that they were there for her but Erika wasn’t so sure, asking, “Then why are you torturing me about it, all of you?

Erika’s best RHOBH episodes have included her fashionable moments and also the sad and difficult journey that she has been on. Just like the dinner party from season 1, fans couldn’t stop watching this one, either, as the cast was now at a point of no return. They were nervous about the big and scary changes in Erika’s life and they couldn’t hide it.

1 Too Dramatic: Jen’s Birthday Party (RHOSLC)

The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City featured an overly dramatic party in season 1. Jen Shah had a birthday party for her husband with a golf and hip-hop theme, and Meredith Marks learned that Jen had been talking about her marriage.

When Whitney Rose explained to Jen that Meredith and Lisa Barlow were afraid of Jen, any hope for a fun party definitely went out the window. There were a lot of hurt feelings here, as Mary Cosby didn’t like not being invited to the gathering. This episode felt a bit too “real” as no one was acting like a kind, compassionate friend.

About The Author

Aya Tsintziras
(1742 Articles Published)

Aya Tsintziras is a freelance writer who writes about pop culture and TV. She has a Political Science degree from the University of Toronto and a Masters of Journalism from Ryerson University. She loves coffee, reading, working out, and watching TV. She lives in Toronto with her husband.

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