 The episode has been met with critical acclaim since it has aired and is considered one of the best episodes of The Office by many critics . Travis Fickett of IGN wrote that " this is one of those great episodes of The Office that is hysterical and difficult to watch at the same time . " He noted that this was largely due to the fact that " it 's not because of something Michael is doing that makes you wince . It 's because of what 's happening to him . " He ultimately gave the episode an 8 @.@ 9 / 10 , denoting a " great " episode . Jay Black of AOL 's TV Squad said that " [ he ] was happy The Office was back " but " the only thing [ he ] worried about was whether it 'd still be good " after the writers strike . However , he noted that his fears were put to rest and that " Dinner Party " was " a Barry Bond 's @-@ style [ sic ] chemically enhanced mega @-@ home @-@ run . " M. Giant of Television Without Pity graded this episode with an " A. " Aubry D 'Arminio of Entertainment Weekly said that her favorite moment of the episode " was when Jan popped on that song by her former assistant , Hunter . " 
