The 8 Best Outdoor Dinnerware Sets of 2025
Top pick
Despite their delicate shapes, these bamboo plates are strong enough to withstand drops and scrapes. They aren’t suitable for holding very hot food, though.
These brightly colored, striped bamboo dinner plates are durable, and they look great, but they’re not suitable for holding very hot food.
Meri Meri is best known as a company for children’s party supplies. But the sweet floral print plates and brightly colored, striped ones we tested (or any design from the reusable bamboo plates line) are equally great for adult soirees, family picnics, and even an impromptu PB&J served poolside.
They are durable. We tested Meri Meri’s large floral and striped reusable bamboo plates (but not the compostable ones, which the company said are intended to be single-use). Like the Xenia Taler and Poketo bamboo plates, the Meri Meri plates are lightweight, but they beat those other picks on durability. They passed our drop tests without cracking, and they suffered no scratches when we ran knives back and forth over their surfaces (this was not the case with our Xenia Taler and Poketo picks, which scratched easily). The Meri Meri plates also resisted sauce stains as well as our other picks.
They’re available in unique shapes and colors. Meri Meri’s bamboo plates come with scalloped edges or raised rims, which keep food on the plate while you’re standing and eating (or help them work as adaptive dinnerware). These plates come in a variety of colors and patterns, including speckled and solid options. Seasonally, the company also offers holiday plates, in the shape of Easter bunnies, for instance, or Halloween ghosts.
They’re widely available and inexpensive. These dishes are available directly from the company’s online store, as well as from Nordstrom, Target, and Maisonette; you can also find them in various brick-and-mortar shops across the country. (Our Poketo and Xenia Taler picks are not as ubiquitous.) Normally running about $10 per dinner plate, these are the least expensive of our bamboo or melamine picks.
Flaws but not dealbreakers
These plates are suitable for hot food only up to 158 degrees Fahrenheit; that’s about the same temperature as a medium-rare burger. We don’t expect that most people will be serving food hotter than that outdoors. (If you do plan to serve food that’s hotter, consider our Falcon or Red Co. enamelware picks, which are oven-safe.)
Dish options: large plates, small plates, cups, cake stands
Colors and patterns: bright colors, pastels, earth tones, prints
Material: bamboo fiber mix (bamboo, melamine, and cornstarch)
Care: dishwasher-safe up to 140 degrees Fahrenheit; not microwave-safe
