Serving Guests at Home Parties

When you host a party at home, the question of how to serve guests inevitably comes up.

How you serve guests will depend on how large your home is, or how large a space you have to serve guests.  You may decide that, weather permitting, it's best to have guests eat outdoors as there might be more space there. 

Also, of course, your choice of how to serve your guests will depend on your budget and time, because seated dinners usually require help.

Here are several possibilities for serving your guests at a home party (we're assuming that you're not in a forty-room mansion):

• Food buffet and beverage station, with guests standing to eat and drink
• Hors d'oeuvres and cocktails buffets, then seated dinner (i.e., main course and dessert) in another room or another part of a large room
• Seated dinner--doable only if your group is small enough to be seated in the space you have, indoors or outdoors.  Guests either serve themselves from a buffet and are seated at one or more large tables or they are served at table.  Some homes have two "dining rooms" or "dining areas" and if this is your case take advantage of it--BUT be aware that if the 2nd dining area is away from the main party the guests eating there might feel isolated.  On the other hand, they may like this, for instance, if the isolated dining area guests want a cozy chat away from the madding crowd or the rugrats.  We've seen both cases happen, so you will need to consider your guest list.
• Small tables and chairs, or large dinner table plus small tables and chairs
• Food buffet and beverage station, with guests being asked to sit in easy and straight chairs to eat--We really don't recommend this as you have to put your food in your lap to eat (or hold it mid-air while sitting down) and your drink on the floor or an occasional table, and it just really isn't comfortable for the guest, plus often people knock over plates and glasses

Your choice of seating arrangements at your home party will also depend on whether your gathering is more casual or elegant and if kids are present.  It can also depend on whether you want to rent furniture and/or move all or most of the furniture out (most people don't).

In fact, we've seen that, unless it's a fundraiser at a quite large home, parties where the furniture has been overly "staged" by renting obvious lounge furniture or moving everything out are not too fun because guests pick up on this.  Guests really generally prefer to either stand and eat and drink and socialize or sit and eat on "home"-type furniture as it feels more personal to them.  Otherwise they could go to a restaurant or lounge.

If necessary move some furniture out, but loftlike spaces emptied of most of the furniture or with the home's furniture replaced with obvious rentals are not very welcoming to guests at more casual gatherings. And if you rent tables, make them more welcoming with tablecloths so they look "home"-like but festive.

In any case, putting out a festive touch or two such as flowers or decorations or tablecloths or colorful serveware will add just the right "party" touch to your seating arrangements.

Enjoy!

Kristina

Fandango Catering and Events
(713) 522-0077
www.fandango-catering.com