Apply to Speak at Off Menu

About Off Menu

Off Menu is Night Owls’ intimate dinner and conversation series for curious minds and adventurous palates. Each evening brings together a small group of guests in a beautiful private Manhattan loft for a tasting prepared by a private chef, paired with a keynote talk exploring a provocative theme. Conversations often center around attraction, intimacy, relationships, human behavior, and the psychology of connection.

Select evenings feature keynote speakers and notable thought leaders, sometimes joined by a moderator to help guide the discussion.

After dinner, the tone relaxes. Music rises, cocktails appear, and the evening opens into a more social after-hours atmosphere.

Who We’re Looking For

We’re always looking for thoughtful, engaging speakers who can spark curiosity and conversation around topics connected to:

• attraction and desire

• relationships and modern dating

• intimacy and connection

• sexuality and sex-positive culture

• psychology and human behavior

• sociology of relationships and nightlife

• communication and emotional intelligence

• cultural perspectives on sex, love, and partnership

You don’t have to be a traditional academic. Many of our favorite speakers are practitioners, researchers, therapists, writers, educators, performers, or creative thinkers with a compelling perspective.

What matters most is that you can hold a room, present ideas clearly, and inspire conversation.

What Speaking Looks Like

• 15–25 minute keynote talk

• Followed by moderated discussion and guest questions

• Audience size: typically no more than 20 dinner guests

• Setting: an intimate dinner table environment rather than a formal stage

• Tone: conversational, curious, and accessible

We encourage speakers to share ideas that invite discussion rather than lecture from a podium.

Suggested Topic Areas

Some of the themes we explore include:

• The Art of Attraction

• Desire vs. Wanting

• The Language of the Gaze

• The Psychology of Flirting

• Touch, Trust, and Boundaries

• Power, Presence, and Surrender

• Emotional Foreplay

• Modern Dating and Algorithms

• Public vs Private Selves

• The Science of sire

• Why We Party

• The History of Seduction

• Taboo and Curiosity

We also welcome new ideas we haven’t thought of yet.

Speaker Benefits

Speaking at Off Menu offers:

• Access to a thoughtful, curious audience

• A beautiful and intimate salon-style environment

• Opportunities to connect with members of the Night Owls community and the extended reach of the network through media channels and partnerships (0000s)

• A chance to test and refine ideas in a lively room

Many speakers also use the event to share upcoming projects, books, workshops, or research.