File photo / Fred Field
Susan Ruhlin
Updated: 0 sec ago
Maine startup will offer a new twist on dinner parties
Photo / Lindsay Heald Becker- Photography & Film
Participants at a JoynaTable test dinner in Maine, part of an early pilot exploring community-based shared meals.
Susan Ruhlin, a longtime mentor to entrepreneurs in Maine, is getting ready to launch a business venture of her own that aims to bring people together for shared in-home dining experiences.
Called JoynaTable, the platform will allow vetted hosts to organize small gatherings for a handful of verified guests.
The name reflects “the idea of celebrating the simple joy of having a dinner party or bringing people together over food,” Ruhlin told Mainebiz.
Ruhlin, the former managing director of the Dirigo Labs business accelerator in Waterville, was honored as a Mainebiz Woman to Watch in 2023. She lives in Industry, an 808-population town close to Farmington in western Franklin County.
With JoynaTable, Ruhlin is setting out to deliver authentic, food-centered experiences that can’t be replicated in the digital world.
“We’re creating a way for people to open their homes, meet new faces and feel a sense of belonging around the table,” she said.
While the platform is intended for all age groups, Ruhlin said she hopes it will generate strong interest among the Gen Z demographic.
Business model
JoynaTable guests would pay for the dinner parties they attend.
While hosts can set their own pricing of around $20 to $50 per guest, they can also choose to offer pay-what-you-can seats to keep dinners accessible for guests, Ruhlin explained.
Her company would take a percentage of those fees, supplemented by revenue from partnerships, referrals and other sources.
Inspiration & test runs
Ruhlin has been thinking about starting the business since the pandemic, when she and her husband spontaneously decided one night to create a restaurant experience at home for their kids.
“We piped in literally restaurant sounds of people talking, we made our front hallway a bar and we turned the dining room into a restaurant,” she recalls.
They later did the same with friends who were vaccinated, and the idea for a business gained momentum.
For testing purposes, Ruhlin's daughter, Helen, hosted five strangers for an Asian-themed meal in her home that was documented by a professional photographer and videographer.
Ruhlin herself did not attend since she would have known at least three of the guests and wanted to capture the event authentically. She also wanted the photos to reflect the genuine experience of strangers dining together.
Game plan
Ruhlin aims to launch JoynaTable in late January with a slate of events for guests to choose from. Long-term, the plan is to scale the business and eventually become national.
“We have a very nonprofit-like mission, but we are a for-profit company,” Ruhlin said.
Mainebiz web partners
Most Recent
Most Recent
0 Comments