Whether you have family over for a holiday dinner or throw the doors open for a crowd of friends, hosting can be daunting. Yet most of us love to attend a party … and will be ever so grateful that we’re on the guest list.
There are many resources in the area to help make gathering a success. We reached out to several to find out what tips, tricks and triumphs they could share.
Food factors
First on the checklist is food. Some suggestions were downright basic, yet ever so insightful.
“Serving spoons! There’s never any freaking serving spoons. When I do catering, I’m like, ‘I’m gonna include serving spoons for you.’ Because people are like, I didn’t have nothing to serve the food with.” Mayra Fernández of Café Cubano said.
Fernández also said to pick a theme and go with it. Maybe something you haven’t tried in the past. Obviously, she thinks you should try Cuban food.
She starts cooking lechon early in the holidays and though she appreciates advanced orders, at the holidays they always have some cash and carry with trays ready to go.
That leads to another piece of the food puzzle.
“Hosts should not forget about who their guests are. Meaning, is it kids? Adults only? Guests with food allergies? Ordering the appropriate food items is crucial to having your guests really enjoy themselves at your event instead of possibly going home hungry!” Anthony Gambino of Cucina Paradiso said.
“At Trattoria 225, we do a lot of items that are naturally gluten free,” Bill Quick said. “You’re really not picking food for yourself; you’re picking food for a group.”
Quick also had a tip for setting up a buffet. “When we set up our tables, we call it elevation and fluff. We put pizza boxes underneath the tablecloth. You have different levels, and it just makes it more interesting.”
Books or upturned pans work too.
Now that the table has been prepped, it’s time to think about temperature.
“Most events do not have a great plan for holding food both hot and cold. Especially if they are doing a buffet or open house. Icing cold food and transferring hot food from the foil pans they come into Dutch oven-type pots with lids is a great way to keep food hot without it drying out or getting over cooked,” said Anthony Gambino of Victory Italian.
If you have catering trays with simmering water, try putting cloves and cinnamon sticks in the warm water to infuse the air with holiday spirit.
Tablescape
A sit-down dinner can sometimes feel strait-laced. Infuse a bit of fun with the English tradition of holiday crackers. The pull-apart tubes contain surprises inside.
“It’s a very inexpensive way to add levity and a little bit of novelty to your table and make the guests laugh,” Karen Morava of the Careful Peach said. “Each one just has just fun little silly things in it. All should have a paper crown, so everybody gets to be royalty for the evening.”
Another strategy for amping up the table is candles. Low profile votives are better than eye-line disrupting candelabras, according to Morava.
“Put votives straight down the middle of the table. It’s a more modern look, but it’s very easy. It’s very affordable,” said Morava.
Floral finish
“If you ever go to an event and there’s no flowers, it’s noticeable,” Therese McGuire of Garland Flowers said. “They don’t need to be huge. They just provide the finishing touch.”
Gigi Rowe of Pickle Hill Parties agrees, “When someone walks into a room and sees a beautiful flower arrangement, you can’t help but smile. Flowers make people happy!”
“The key to longevity for flowers is temperature. Keep them as cool as possible, down to 36 degrees. Find that not-quite heated sunporch or chilly room in the house. And keep an eye on the water. Change it daily and always use cold water (ice cubes even),” Rowe adds.
McGuire suggests a swag of evergreens. “When people come in, they’re smelling it. It smells wonderful. And then the beauty of them they’ll last the whole season.”
As you reach for “hostess with the most-est” heights, remember that you should be enjoying the party too. A little planning, preparation and some help from local businesses can go a long way. Mostly, we all just want to be together during the holidays.
“You could serve potato chips in a pretty bowl and sit on the floor, and it will be just as fun and wonderful as a fancy four-course meal, if you have the right frame of mind,” Gigi Rowe reminds us.