Fandango Catering Offers 4 Fast Food Ideas for Fall Entertaining

If you'd like to host a fall gathering and are somewhat short on time, here are 4 food ideas that will help you entertain stylishly, but that don't take a lot of time.

Do a one-pot classic with salad and dessert--We like Grace Parisi's recipes in her article on New Comfort Classics in the Nov. 2012 issue of Food & Wine.  For more casual gatherings, the concept works well and isn't as much trouble as a starter, entree plus sides, then dessert.  Do a one-pot braise, stew, or soup and serve with a salad and dessert, and you're done.  Dishes like Parisi's Braised Chicken with Cilantro, Mint & Chiles or classics like goulash, paprikash, white or regular chili, minestrone or another hearty soup...Ideas for dishes like these abound in cookbooks or on the web.

Do a pressure cooker risotto--Same idea, but make a risotto with chicken or pork or beef or sausage the one-pot dish, with salad and dessert.  Kuhn Rikon's and other good pressure cookers can do risotto in around 7 minutes.  The work is in the prep; then just start the cooker and voilà! The finishing touch? Stir in Laughing Cow Cheese wedges, plain or flavored--no kidding! Easy and it really adds a master touch, a trick we learned a few years ago from a chef colleague.  The pressure cooker risotto concept is also great for casual gatherings.

Make crumbled cake balls--Fast cake balls, no baking in special molds! Crumble pieces of baked cake or even brownies in a bowl.  Mix with frosting, then roll out scoops of the mixture with an ice cream scoop.  Use a fork to dip cake balls into sprinkles or chocolate or other syrup, or drizzle syrup over cake balls.

Use chocolate spread as a dessert--We saw this in last month's F &W--Serve the new chocolate-cream cheese spread (or, our take, mix up your own with Nutella and cream cheese) and serve as a dessert course with the spread in ramkins or small dishes and a dipper like cookies, or even serve as a sort of pudding with spoons.  Decadent!

Warmly,

Kristina

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

Fandango Catering Offers 5 Tips for Serving Appetizers with Dinner

If you're thinking of serving appetizers with a dinner (at smaller events), here are 5 tips to make this go more smoothly. 

Choose 2, max 3 appetizers--Unless your main course is on the light side, 2 or max 3 appetizers should be more than enough.  Don't make the mistake of serving too many kinds of appetizers before a seated dinner or buffet then seated dinner; it's too much work and stress and your guests will be too full to enjoy the main course.

Choose appetizers based on doability--Don't stress and choose appetizers that can are good served room temperature rather than hot.  Many appetizers can be served this way, including all kinds of skewers, rollups, tartlets, pie or quichelike bites, and many others.  Look at cookbooks and on the web for ideas for cold appetizers.  And don't get overly ambitious--it's better to do something simpler well than to try something ambitious and not have it turn out as well.

 Offer a lovely cold board selection as an appetizer course--Cold cuts (charcuterie) and wonderful cheeses or cold boiled shrimp with a couple of interesting sauces or a nice antipasto are even easier than cooked appetizers, and are often served in Europe this way, as an appetizer course.  And it can be done buffet/self serve or passed style, or seated.  It's important to buy best quality, though.

Leave the appetizers on a side table or sideboard or bar--This way people can continue to enjoy them throughout the evening.  As your guests get up from the dinner table(s) and are lounging etc., they can continue nibbling from the appetizers if they wish, and we have often seen this to be the case.

Have enough plates--Be sure you have enough plates for all the courses you'll serve.  To be on the safe side have 1/3 to 1/4 as many plates as guests.  If you have 20 guests, have 20 + 7 or 5 extra for the appetizers, and so on for each course.  Unless your event is very informal AND the guests know that they are expected to reuse their plates, it's best to have extra plates.  Or use eco-disposables if the event is not overly formal--bamboo plates are lovely though more expensive, but bagasse is seen widely now in entertaining and is a less expensive disposable alternative that is still eco-friendly.

Warmly,

Kristina

Fandango Catering and Events
(713) 524-0077
www.fandango-catering.com  

Fandango Catering Offers 4 More Fall Entertaining Ideas

If you're looking for ideas for a fall gathering you're hosting or considering, today we offer 4 more ideas for creating successful fall events. 

Wine or other tastings--Tastings of wine, beer, cider, chocolate, or cheese are tremendous fun for guests.  Use a pairing idea--what cheeses or cold cuts or nuts go with what wines or with what fruit, for example.  Set up stations rather than having everything in one place--blind wine tastings are out and were boring anyway.  At each station have a different larger type of wine or whatever.  You can offer a self-guided tasting tour of the stations set up around your home, where guests stop at each station to sample.  There are all kinds of fun ideas for tastings--do a web search on "ideas for wine tastings." 

Fall sports-watching events--Here the key is to be unique! BHG has a great article this month on this type of event.  We especially like the idea of serving sandwiches and soup (sandwiches in kraft paper, soup in cups)--more original than the same old wings, pizza, or chili.

Outdoor brunch--Brunch time is so cool for outdoor entertaining in fall--lovely weather, and the time slot is great for people with kids or others who are REALLY busy on the weekends and can only spare a couple of hours mid-day to gather with friends.  And no late night cleanup!

Cocktail hour, also outdoors--People love these parties, which start at dusk, with finger foods, nice drinks, and lounging indoors and outside.  Relaxed and relaxing, and sure to be enjoyed by your guests.  Add ambience with little votives in holders all over, inside and outdoors, and turn all the lights on inside for light to spill outside too.

Warmly,

Kristina

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

Fandango Catering Offers 6 Fast, Cool Food Presentation Ideas

Since many people are now considering or planning a fall or later event, today we offer 6 fast, cool food presentation ideas.

Most everyone is pressed for time these days, and so a few ideas you can use or adapt to make your event better looking come in handy.

Here are some of our fast presentation ideas:

Use small bunches of grapes--Snip small bunches of grapes and put in corners of trays, or in two corners of a tray.  This should not take more than a couple of minutes, and it adds color and style to a food tray with only a little time spent and no special skills needed.  Even fancier? Use champagne grapes. 

Use dill sprigs or cut fresh chives--Put dill sprigs in the center of an hors d'oeuvres tray or on dinner serving bowls or platters (such as on top of mashed potatoes or a vegetable dish).  Or cut fresh chives and sprinkle them on top of the food and a bit on the serving piece on hors d'oeuvres trays, serving bowls, in chafing dishes, on soup glasses or mugs, or on plated food.  To cut chives, line up the strands, cut off the tips, and, using one hand to hold them down, cut across using the other hand--and you can even do this with a steak knife, you don't need a special knife.  Keep moving your hand as you cut, and don't rush so you won't get cut; it's much easier to cut chives than people think.

Use croutons or add-ins to decorate soup servings--Make or buy croutons and put them on top of your little soup cups or glasses (see above), or drop into plated soup bowls or larger mugs croutons, chopped chives, a bit of grated cheese, tiny soup crackers, a cooked shrimp, a bit of crabmeat, some tiny diced red pepper or tomato...Add color by using light or bright-colored croutons or add ins if the soup is dark (such as grated cheddar on a dark soup or a lovely pink shrimp on a red or cream-colored soup), or vice versa. 

Use grapes in a martini glass--Put green grapes in a martini or cocktail glass and let the bunches hang over the sides of the glass a bit (cut the bunch to size)--it looks mod and is easy to do! Then use this as a centerpiece for any display like hors d'oeuvres, cheese, fruit, sandwiches, mini desserts, etc. The glass should not be too tall or too short; you should be able to see it comfortably on the platter from several feet away.

Lay food out in circles--Almost any hors d'oeuvres, cheese, sandwiches, desserts, look good this way.  Creative? Pile a bit of food in a triangle/pyramid as a centerpiece.

Pile up certain foods--Some foods, like Caprese salads or fruit trays or other cold salads, look good piled up a bit.  The secret is to use a serving piece with a bit of sloping sides so that when the food is served it doesn't fall on the table, but instead falls back into the bowl.  Don't use a flat serving piece to pile up food, for this reason.

Warmly,

Kristina

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

Fandango Catering Offers Dessert Shot Ideas for Dinner and Cocktail Parties

One of the signature foods we're known for are our dessert shots, and today we offer several ideas to inspire you to serve dessert shots at your next dinner or cocktail party. 

Dessert shots are fun for guests as their small size is whimsical and, since the portions aren't too big, people eat them more readily than a large slice of a rich baked dessert.

Plus you can have all kinds of fun presenting them attractively.  AND, depending, on the recipe, they're doable even for those who don't cook or bake.

Below, ideas to get you started.

-The way to present dessert shots is to line them up on a (or as the) dessert buffet or on a tray (or both)--the number of little glasses is what's cool.

-Choose real glass (we buy schnaps glasses at IKEA) or now you can also buy elegant mod green plastic that's like acrylic from online suppliers like www.restaurantware.com in cool shapes like triangles, waves, boats, shells, round shot duo cups, parfaits, stars, square glasses...

-Try to make time to add a little garnish to each shot glass--As simple as a mint leaf, a bit of cocoa powder or powdered sugar sprinkled on top, a raspberry or blueberry, a strawberry slice or other small fruit that fits, a small cookie (such as a rolled profiterole) that fits

-If not a plated dinner (and even then, if you adjourn to another room or another part of the room for dessert), pass trays of dessert shots with little spoons (Restaurantware sells the cool green disposable ones), and people will gobble them up.  If you have no one to pass trays, arrange trays with the shot glasses in the room you adjourn to and people will still love them.

Here are some of our most popular dessert shots:

• Valencian dark chocolate mousse
• Bailey's tiramisú shots
• Bourbon cheesecake shots
• Ricotta-coffee mousse shots
• Cheesecake truffle shots

-Pressed for time and don't have a caterer or helper for your party? You can still serve dessert shots! Buy wide-mouthed shot glasses and cut up brownies or cake and ice cream to fit inside each glass and garnish.  Or another idea: soften cheesecake and ice cream and fold gently together, then spoon into shot glasses and garnish, or blend together until smooth, freeze, and garnish.  Or just serve great bought ice cream or gelato in shot glasses, with a garnish--the shot glass presentation will add style and fun!

Warmly,

Kristina

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

Fandango Catering Offers Fall Entertaining Ideas

Fall is one of our favorite times of the year, and it's wonderful for entertaining (actually, we like every season except deep winter; mercifully winter is short where we are).

It seems like people become energized in fall to host gatherings of every type--wine tastings, cocktail parties, dinners, not to mention fundraisers and tailgating.

Today we offer some ideas for fall entertaining.

Harvest--The harvest theme lends itself to so many cool interpretations.  It can be things like celebrating pumpkins or squashes or apples or fall festivals or fall arts offerings or fall sports, or it can be the wine harvest (vendange).  Seasonal produce lends itself to wonderful dishes like pork or beef loin with apples or pears in Calvados cream or rich gratins of potatoes or vegetables or both, plus lovely desserts usings the season's apples and pears or, in some areas, citrus fruits (in our area, satsumas).

Outdoor entertaining--Fall's cool weather inspires outdoor entertaining, from casual grilling to tailgating to more formal outdoor dinner parties.  More ideas? Block parties, Halloween parties, Thanksgiving dinner or post-dinner gatherings, interactive grilling parties where guests help grill (this is fun!).  So nice to be outdoors! During the day is often good for a fall outdoor event, and on a beautiful fall day, who wants to be inside?

Use fall in your decor--We love small white pumpkins for fall event decor, for example, lined up on a runner or mantel or as a display, or even the smallest ones as tray garnishes.  For color, we like burnt peach (not carrot orange), yellows, gold, or deep terracotta for fall events.  These say fall but aren't the stereotypical shades, and are softer, so more elegant and inviting.

Warmly,

Kristina

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

Fandango Catering Offers More Dinner Party Ideas and Resources

Since there has been so much interest on the part of our clients this late summer and early fall-ish season in dinner party entertaining, today we offer more dinner party ideas and some web resources with more dinner party ideas and tips. 

A client recently had a cool idea for a fall dinner party: putting several tables together to make one long table outdoors, with a appetizer food station, an outdoor cooking area, and servers serving the main course.

We love this idea and it can be tailored to your needs.  You could do all three things or choose only one. 

The long table outdoors is the unifier. If the only tables you can get to make one long table don't match or are unattractive, cover them with overlapping tablecloths in the same color or design (make sure that the tablecloths drop nearly or all the way to the ground or you'll see mismatched, maybe unattrative, table legs). 

You could have this long table and a self-serve finger foods station and have people serve themselves and sit at the long table.  Or you can have servers serve the guests finger foods from the station at the long table. 

Or you can have an outdoor cooking area where guests serve themselves and sit at the long table, or are served at the long table.  If you do this, serve interesting food, more so than standard BBQ items...Foods like paella or grilled Spanish sausages, interesting kebabs (Middle Eastern or Russian or other Slavic or Greek), Florentine steak sprinkled with lemon juice, satay or fish skewers...

Go casual or more formal, adults only or with kids, any way you put it together, an outdoor dinner party is cool and fun.

Here is a list of web resources on dinner parties:

www.divinedinnerparty.com

www.food.com/recipes/dinner-party

www.delish.com/entertaining-ideas/parties/dinner-parties/

www.adinnerparty.net

www.celebrations.com/dinnerparties

Warmly,

Kristina

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

Fandango Catering Offers Cool Tips to Make Your Event a Success

Someone recently gave us a stack of Organic Style magazines, and one of the issues has some of the coolest ideas for things you can do to ensure that your event or party is a success that we've come across, so we want to share these with you.

When setting up food (either buffet style or a sit-down dinner), think like a caterer--Try for plenty of red, yellow, and green foods.  Our note: Or add color with easy garnishes like whole or chopped chives or small grape clusters or flowers.

For sit-down dinners, choose foods that don't need too much use of a knife--Struggling with cutlery impedes conversation.  Our note: BTW, European-style holding of cutlery with the knife in the left hand and the fork in the right if you're right handed (or vice versa if you're left handed) means you don't have to switch as in American-style use of cutlery; you push the food with the fork onto the knife without missing a beat! I mastered this years ago and it's so much easier.  Try it sometime if you don't already do this!

Act as your own butler--As you take people's coats or purses, inquire about their commute or if they found parking and ask about their children or significant other if they have one.  Even if you're busy praise their choice of wine or flowers if they bring them.  Then give them their first drink and show them where to get more.  Our note: Beware starting heart-to-heart talks when greeting guests as they arrive or you won't be able to greet everyone.  So often no one greets anyone at the door anymore at a party or event.  If you feel you really will be too busy, ask someone to greet everyone.  It's much more welcoming than everyone just wandering in and asking where do we put this? where are the hosts? are we supposed to go out back? where is the bar?, where is the restroom? etc., etc.

Get the conversation going--Ask a couple how they met or seek advice such as whether to buy a specific car, how to sell old jewelry, where to go on vacation, ideas for your parents' anniversary, and so forth.  Some kind of advice always gets the conversation going.

Turn on a jazz station in the background, such as upstairs or in a bedroom, or leave a piano open or a guitar out and a guest may play--Unless you're very young, blasting music kills conversation (and if you're very young it does too).  Our note: If you hate jazz, how about Brazilian music or world music?  This way you have music but it isn't intrusive; no one has to shout but there isn't dead silence.  And if a guest starts playing--fun!

Warmly,

Kristina

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

Fandango Catering Offers 3 Ideas for Choosing a Dessert for a Dinner Party

Choosing a dessert for a dinner party can be daunting.  Full-size or mini? Frozen, parfait, mousse, ramekins? And on and on.  Here are a few things to keep in mind when choosing a dessert for your dinner party. 

Understand what it means when you choose to offer a full-size dessert--In our experience full-size desserts at a dinner party work best for 12 or fewer guests UNLESS you have a caterer or other helper.  Why? If you don't hire someone to handle dessert, guests will be waiting while you serve dessert portions, and thus will have to wait less if you have 12 or fewer guests.  If you pre-plate full-size desserts to avoid hiring a caterer or helper to handle dessert, you must also make sure that you have space on your counter or kitchen island or in your refrigerator for the pre-plated desserts ON THEIR PLATES.  You must have room for them somewhere while the first part of the dinner is going on.  A full-size dessert for a group larger than about 10 or 12 guests is best served buffet style, with portions pre-cut and/or plated and put out on a dessert buffet before your party starts.

Ice cream and other frozen-type desserts can be messy to handle yourself--Again, if you'll be scooping while guests are waiting, it's better for a small group.  You can pre-scoop and put the scoops on cookie sheets in the freezer until dessert time as long as you have enough room in your freezer.  And frozen desserts can't be left out on a buffet or they'll melt; they must be brought to table or to the buffet table at serving time.

Mini desserts can be easiest of all--They don't need to be sliced or scooped, take up less room, and can be served buffet style or plated.  You can set out mini desserts buffet style before the dinner party starts or have them waiting in the wings for dessert time.  Or here's another way to serve them: one of our clients has one or two of the catering team (us) go around to seated guests and offer mini desserts and small plates to guests seated at her dining tables--sometimes we serve guests and sometimes they prefer to help themselves and all we do is put the plate down on the table for them, depending on the mood of the party.  People really like this as it makes them feel special.  The fun factor of mini desserts is another reason to choose them for your dinner party--their fun size puts guests in a good mood! Also, people feel more virtuous when they have a mini dessert than if they have a full-size dessert. 

BTW, beware relying too much on a candy buffet combined with dessert--though candy buffets are popular at events nowadays, too much candy and not enough baked or made desserts  (whomever actually makes them, be it you or a restaurant or food emporium or caterer or baker) says you couldn't be bothered and is too much like a Halloween party (unless of course it IS a Halloween party).

Warmly,

Kristina

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

Fandango Catering Offers 4 Tips for Hosting a Dinner Party

After Labor Day it seems that everyone is in a flurry to plan and host a gathering of some type.  Today we offer 4 tips for success at hosting a small dinner party. 

A small dinner party is 40 people or less.  Most dinner parties are 20-25 people.

Some dinners are fully plated, with servers serving every course and clearing dishes between courses.  For many this is too much work or too formal.

A seated buffet is when guests are served or serve themselves from a buffet and then seat themselves at one or more guest tables.

A combination is where you have one or more courses plated, such as a starter or dessert, and the guests go to a buffet for the main course.

Whatever type of dinner party you choose, here are few ideas to make yours successful.

Unify guest tables visually--If you have more than one guest table you should unify them visually with tablecloths or something else.  Often people press into service for their dinner party tables that aren't alike in size or shape.  So make them look alike with all the same tablecloths--also a good idea if the tables you use aren't attractive, such as banquet or card tables.

Serve hot food hot--Use or have your caterer use chafing dishes if your guests are the type to mill around for a while after being called to a dinner buffet.  You may want to serve from your kitchen, with the food taken hot out of your oven, but this only works well when people eat it right away.  Chafing dishes keep hot food hot with moist heat for up to 2 hours; or use a tableside warmer/cooker like Fagor's portable induction cooktop.  If you insist on serving from your oven, don't allow guests to mill around without serving themselves after you announce dinner or let a caterer, who knows how to work with "holding" food and keeping it from drying out in the dry heat of an oven, handle it--but be warned that even a caterer can't work miracles at preventing food from drying out if you delay serving from the oven TOO long once the food is hot/ready.

Put cutlery and napkins, if not on guest tables, at the end of the buffet, after the food--That way it's easier for guests to serve themselves or be served and then grab the cutlery and napkins at the end, whether the cutlery is rolled in napkins or not.

Consider serving dessert and/or coffee in another room--If you have room this can be a good idea as so many people don't want dessert or coffee nowadays.  That way, it gives people a gracious out, and often by then guests will want to get up and move around anyway after sitting during the dinner.

Warmly,

Kristina

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

Fandango Catering Offers Easy Ideas for Labor Day Food

Today we offer easy ideas for Labor Day, or any end-of-summer casual gathering, food.

First, an easy starter, such as cold shrimp, boiled with a good shrimp boil, and served with a couple of sauces, such as picante sauce mixed with sour cream--so easy and people love this sauce, and a classic cocktail or remoulade sauce.

For the main course, a few of the great pre-seasoned fresh sausages out there, such as chicken with poblano and cheese, grilled.  Since these are already seasoned, you don't really need to season them, just grill and serve.  Accompany with potatoes or veggies, seasoned with fresh herbs and spices (or even Italian dressing), in foil packets, so it's easy to do.  Just open the packets and serve. 

Then for a dessert, a bar dessert or the currently trendy parfait shots of cake or brownies layered with whipped cream and berries (or just whipped cream), or one we like, softened cheesecake mixed with softened vanilla ice cream for easy cheesecake ice cream.

Bon Appetit!

Kristina

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

Fandango Catering Offers 3 Ideas for End-of-Summer Parties

With Labor Day fast approaching, we have to at least BEGIN saying goodbye to summer.  To make saying goodbye to summer easier--because most people enjoy summer and it's relaxed living--, an end-of-summer party or gathering is just the thing. 

This can take many forms--closing up the beach or vacation house/apartment, get-togethers after everyone's vacation, back-to-school or back-to-school sports gathering for families with kids, groups or clubs starting fall activities...Whatever form your gathering takes, you want it to be a bit summery to send summer off with a bang, and upbeat--because for some people the end of summer is totally sad!

Here are a few ideas to make your end-of-summer gathering wonderful:

Take final advantage of summer's bounty of produce and local food--Summer's lovely produce is still at its best but not for long, so feature it in your menu in some way.  Same for local food--for example, lobster rolls on the East Coast or shrimp boils on the Gulf Coast.  What is your region's special summer food? When we lived in New York we attended a wonderful end-of-summer potuck party where everything was local and regional: gazpacho made with home-grown tomatoes, delightful soft-shell crab rolls, and local lemon pots de creme, with the whole guest group finishing the evening outside with s'mores, with tealights spread throughout the garden.  So New York summer, and then everyone was ready for the after-Labor Day back to work and school thing.

Celebrate summery green things--An end-of-summer party is the perfect time to set out summer's last flowers, ferns, greenery, etc., from your garden or a friend's or neighbor's garden.  Not imported flowers or greenery.  Or if your theme is more beachy, mix summery green things with beach shells and other beach theme items (because too much beach theme alone tends to look kitschy).

Let people catch up without pushing them to organized activities--Often at end-of-summer parties people haven't seen each other all summer, or at least for a while, so why push them to some organized activity if what they really want to do is catch up? Let them do so in peace, and provide mood music rather than an organized activity to keep the party ambience going, and/or provide baskets of fun favors like little horns, slinkys, mini chalkboards and chalk, constellation cards, paddles-and-balls or catch-the-ball-in-a-cup: those who want to interact with these types of favors will do so if they wish, while those who don't won't be annoyed by having to stop their catching up at summer's end to participate in some activity.

Warmly,

Kristina

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

Fandango Catering Offers 3 Ways to Make Your Event More Fun

As many of us are now involved in planning fall events, today we offer 3 ways to make your event, fall or whenever, more fun.

Use a name and/or theme--We recently read something that is so true: whenever you give your event a name and/or theme, it instantly becomes more fun.  Whether a social, corporate, or family event, try giving your occasion a name and/or theme and you'll see that it's not only easier to plan the event but that you'll enjoy planning it more and that more people will enjoy it more.  There are so many stressors out there that people appreciate "letting off steam" in a healthy way like this.

Serve a signature drink--Whether alcoholic or non-alcoholic or both, make the serving of drinks interesting and fun with a sig drink.  Maybe have little signs to let the guests know the name(s) of the drink(s)...Serving signature drinks is not as plain vanilla as just serving standards like wine, beer, sodas, and water.  The latest trend are juice bar setups plus alcohol, but serving at least one sig drink, festively poured and ready for guests, will say welcome and party!, and as many signature cocktails are interesting colors, serving one or more will add interest and fun to your event as guests arrive and discover your sig drink.  There are some great signature drink ideas, both alcoholic and non-alcoholic, in Denise Gee's Porch Parties.

Have a fun take-home item--We recently saw maracas as a fun take-home, and any fun "gag"-type gift will add fun to your event.  Things like lollipops, Etch-a-Sketches, Slinkys...Or a mix of little gifts like this.  You'll see--people will interact with things like this right off, and this will add a great fun vibe to your event.

Warmly,

Kristina

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

Fandango Catering Offers 3 Ways to Ensure Your Guests Enjoy Your Event More

Sometimes when we plan an event we concentrate a little too much on  ourselves and what we like and don't think about whether our guests will enjoy what we've planned for our events.  So today we offer 3 ways to better ensure that your guests enjoy your event as much as possible. 

Always include something vegetarians can eat--As you plan your menu, review it to see that there is at least one food a vegetarian can eat.  If you're hosting a cocktail party, for instance, include at least one vegetarian hors d'oeuvres--there are so many wonderful vegetarian hors d'oeuvres out there now! Whether you're hosting a cocktail party, dinner, or other type of event, consider--in fact, find out--if any vegetarians will attend so you can arrange something for them to eat. 

If you've planned an activity, make sure those who aren't interested have a space where they can hang out--If you've planned an activity like a wine or whiskey tasting or a literary reading or bocce or dancing or whatever, make sure there's SOME place for those guests who aren't interested in this to go to, such as a backyard, porch, terrace, living or dining room, or sunroom--some place they and others who aren't interested can go while the activity is taking place.  We regularly see at least a few guests who aren't interested in a planned activity at events, and they gather together during the activity, then rejoin the group afterwards (though some may decide to stay in their little conversation corner--but if they're enjoying themselves, what's the harm?).

Have someone clearing used dishes and glasses THROUGHOUT the event--This is one of the things that make guests at informal or non-seated dinner events uncomfortable, i.e., being surrounded by piled-up glasses and dishes or disposables (at seated dinners the used dishes are picked up by servers between courses).  Arrange for helpers or servers, paid or volunteers, to clear dishes, glasses, used napkins, cutlery, etc., at regular intervals throughout your event, at least every 20-30 minutes.  And have plenty of large trash bags and at least one table or counter or island for your helpers to use in the kitchen or back area as they clean up throughout the event!

Your guests will enjoy your event much more if these potential problems are avoided.

Warmly,

Kristina

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

Fandango Catering Offers 5 More Ideas for Cool Hors d'oeuvres Parties

As folks begin to return to their routines after summer vacations, many will begin planning a gathering, either for late summer, early fall, or mid fall (or later).  Thinking of hosting an hors d'oeuvres or light bites event? Today we offer 5 more ideas for creating cool hors d'oeuvres events.

Let the coolness begin with a little color on the table--For an evening event, try a black table linen for your food station table--stunning, and sets off any serving pieces put on it.  Or a black table linen with a colored overlay if you want a bit more color.  Another idea--seen in this month's Food & Wine--is to use a Tuscan or other floral table runner (www.surlatable.com and other retailers)--adds color and is suited to a casual event, indoors or outdoors.

Add color with colored paper plates--So easy and fun.  Stacks of red, yellow, or other colored plates or designs like zebra print, chosen to go with your decor or theme, especially if you use a nice table linen or runner, look stylishly cool.

Serve skewers--People are crazy about food on skewers! Whatever the reason, you simply can't have a cool hors d'oeuvres party without at least one kind, and preferably several kinds, of skewer(s).  Vary the skewers by serving them with seafood, meat, chicken, and/or vegetable skewers (or have an all skewer event--easy and cool).  If you have no time to set up skewers artistically and haven't hired a caterer to do it for you, put the skewers spoke fashion on a round, square, or rectangular tray with a dipping sauce in the middle.  Gild it a bit more by adding long chives, either over or under the skewers or even gathered in a corner--this is one of our signature presentations and it's fast and beautiful and our clients and their guests really like it.  And do make sure the skewers are spiced, not just grilled, as just grilled is not as tasty.  A classic rub: chile, paprika, cumin, and garlic, with or without a bit of cinnamon; or try some of Penzeys' wonderful rubs (www.penzeys.com ).

Add an unusual (but doable) hors d'oeuvre--Shrimp cocktail or cold soups in shot glasses; hot soups in small cups or sake cups;  cherry tomatoes and fresh mozzarella balls drizzled with a good vinaigrette and skewered; puff pastry shells filled with chicken salad or pesto shrimp or mini salads or some other mixture...all you do is bake the shells, cut out the precut holes, and fill, then decorate with fresh chopped herbs or minced chives; different kinds of sliders and fixings for a slider bar...But something unusual, to make YOUR event cool and distinguish it from the ho hum ones.

Use an unusual serving piece--Moroccan or Indian beaten, etched, or hammered trays; unusual shapes (we have a wonderful large porcelain shell-shaped tray from Italy); a nice color or pattern like a Chinese lacqueur or a pastel--any of these add flair.

Warmly,

Kristina

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

Fandango Catering Offers 2012 Hors d'Oeuvres Trends for Parties & Weddings

If you're looking for hors d'oeuvres or small bites ideas for a party or wedding, you've come to the right place!   

In 2012 these hors d'oeuvres/small bites concepts will make your party or wedding shine:

Themed--Themed parties and weddings are hot for 2012, and carrying the idea through to the small bites--whether it's a cocktail or tapas party or a pre-dinner cocktail period--makes your event of-the-moment.  Themes such as France or another country, disco, comfort food, Indian or Moroccan ethnic, speakeasy, botanical, all white, etc., etc., add to the fun.  What theme do you like?

Regional--Something like themed, but focusing on one country or region, such as the Mediterranean (e.g., Italy, Spain, Greece), Napa, Texas, or LA.  The small bites would come from the area chosen.

Wontons--These are popular now in both savory and dessert versions.  An international array of wontons, dumplings, purses, etc. adds exotic flair and if carefully chosen can please even the picky.  We like to decorate them with a great idea from Fine Cooking: a skewer in each dumpling and a crouton or little flag on each skewer.  With international spreads like this it's nice to have a menu, whether printed, chalkboard, or ceramic write on slate (at art supply stores).

Little glasses--The little glasses trend continues to be popular and can be a boon to a busy host/ess as if you use them for a cold soup or sip you can prepare the soup or sip ahead and then just pour and garnish.  Mini martini glasses continue to be popular but also look for mini tulip glasses, mini square tumblers, and mini hurricane glasses or sake cups.  Besides cold soups and sips, use to serve cold or room temperature small bites like crab or shrimp salads or cocktails, caprese or other salad "bites," parfaits, panna cottas, and mousses, and so forth.  One don't--don't use them to serve hot food as it will get cold and lose flavor.

Skewers--Continue in popularity, and one fun idea is to have an all-skewers event of both savory and sweet treats, from satays and brochettes to cherry tomato and chickenette or meat lollipops to cake pops.

Warmly,

Kristina

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

Food Entertaining Trends for 2012-And What You Should Know About Them

To help you plan your gathering this year, here is our roundup of the top food entertaining trends for 2012--and what you should know about them. 

The tasting craze continues
The tasting party craze continues in 2012.  An assortment of small amounts of foods in small-ish, often specialized, tasting serving pieces or dishes is set out for guests.

What you should know: Hot food doesn't do as well at tasting parties as the so-called tasting serving pieces do not offer anything designed to keep food hot.  Someone recently suggested that hot bites be brought out midway through an event, but unless you offer the hot bites to people off trays, they won't rush to leave whomever their socializing with to eat the hot food while it's hot, so what's the point? 

A solution may be a hybrid cocktail/tasting party, with the hot food in a chafer (and there are some very mod chafers and chafer options out there now) and the other food in tasting dishes or serving pieces. 

You should also know that if you want to have a tasting party for a lot of people, you will need to use a LOT of little tasting dishes--do you have room?

Wine bar food continues to be popular
In a similar vein to the tasting craze, wine bar food continues to be popular for entertaining, more popular than dinner parties.  Gatherings with wine bar food are easier to pull off than a tasting party as you can serve wine bar food on larger trays and not just the little tasting dishes.  They can also be easier than a dinner party as they tend to be more casual.

What you should know: Be prepared to put out less of a variety of wine bar foods but of the best quality, especially if your guests have traveled and know wine bars, enotecas, tascas, tabernas, salumerias, etc., etc., from different places and have that to compare you with. 

The best thing is to choose only three or max four different dishes and use the best ingredients.  Up the wow factor and green it by using local artisan cheeses, local cold cuts, local produce, local breads, and local wines, mixing one or two hot wine bar dishes with a really good salumeria/charcuterie spread to make it easy on you.

The exotic bites trend continues
People continue to hunt for ever more exotic food--exotic to the U.S.--for, especially, cocktail parties, fundraisers, and weddings.

What you should know: More often than hosts think, this type of food just doesn't taste good, though it may be beautiful.  Suggestion: take the presentation or concept from an exotic bite and adapt it to foods that do taste good and that more people will like and eat. 

For example, we recently added to our menus our Executive Chef's take on Shrimp-, Crab-, and Octopus-Stuffed Avocado with Cilantro-Caper Mayo, changing it to Sherried Gulf Shrimp-Stuffed Avocado "Pears" with Cilantro-Caper Mayo, which we serve by alternating the avocado "pears" with Three-Cheese "Pears" on a serving tray and decorating the "pears" with fresh herb "leaves." 

Interactive food continues to be popular
The trend of interactive food, from make-your-own-skewers to cooking class parties, continues to be popular in 2012.  This type of entertaining is now used for everything from bridal and baby showers to business events. 

What you should know: These types of gatherings, except cooking classes, appeal mostly to younger people, so if you're planning a mixed-age event this year, you may want to keep that in mind and offer alternatives (such as one or two hors d'oeuvres that you don't need to put together yourself or someone to prepare plates for those who don't care for interactive food).

Enjoy.

Kristina

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

Entertaining Trends for 2012

Happy New Year! This year we're going to see the continuance of some wonderful entertaining trends.  Here is our list of the most important six:


Scrollwork Style--The Mission or Old California-inspired style continues in serveware, drinkware, even flatware.  Wrought iron-inspired scrollwork looks are distinctive.  The only thing to remember is that you should counterbalance the dark colors of the scrollwork looks with light or bright linens or pieces or garnishes.  Beautiful pieces at Neiman's (home): www.neimanmarcus.com


Irregular-Shaped Serving Pieces--These will continue to be trendy, and they do add distinction to a gathering.  Irregular shapes, squiggled edges, rhomboids or geometric shapes...These add interest to your party.  Finish the presentation with lovely fresh herb leaves such as fresh basil (purple basil is so cool for garnishing) and fresh berries, or baby vegetables.  Check out the gold-edged ceramic dinnerware at www.upintheairsomewhere.com , or find all manner of wonderful styles at better retailers.


Pedestals--Also called cake stands or dessert stands.  These continue to be wildly popular, in styles from clear glass to white or colored porcelain to sleek chrome to silver or art glass.  Square, round, or rectangle pedestals all add distinction to the serving of food.


Oversize Cocktail Glasses--These continue to be popular from the last couple of years, and they do make a statement, especially in a mod home decor.  But try this idea too: Buy small cordial glasses and put them out also, and I can almost guarantee that people will choose the small cordial glasses first, for wine or any other beverage.  So put out different beverages and let people choose what type glass they want.


Flutes--Speaking of stemware, the trend for serving any cold or room temperature beverage in flutes continues.  We love this idea and there are so many beautiful flute designs out there now! For a small party, a striking presentation is to fill flutes halfway or 2/3s, then put them and a nice decanter filled with the same beverage on a tray for self service.  Adds wonderful but not stuffy elegance to a gathering.


The Table Showpiece--Lovely dining tables without linens continue in popularity to serve food at parties, especially if the host wants to showcase the table. 

Do be careful of food, drinks, or other things at a party that can mar a lovely, expensive table.   You may want to consider a runner or, even better, a small piece of nice fabric, puddled, under the area where food or beverages are most likely to mar the table (such as at one end, where the serving trays are).  Or you can also sort of center the hors d'oeuvres in the middle of the serving trays as this also cuts down on dropped food and crumbs (but doesn't help with beverage rings, sorry!)

Enjoy!

Kristina

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

6 Tips for Your New Year's Party

In our continuing blog series, "Holiday Entertaining," today we offer 6 tips to make your New Year's Eve or Day party cool, distinctive, and fun.

#1
If you want to serve a dinner, don't stress! Buy a pre-seasoned pork loin (as many as you need), and bake according to directions.  If side dishes aren't your strong point, buy several orders of an excellent pasta from a favorite restaurant and reheat (but when you reheat it, put a glop of butter on top before reheating, and cover to reheat--you'll thank me for this).  Maybe add a bought vegetable dish from an excellent restaurant or food emporium (reheat this with butter too).  Use nice plates, cutlery, glasses, and napkins, and everyone will be impressed and happy.

#2
For a fast, fun, no-cook dessert or to create a dessert bar, buy high quality frozen cheesecakes (such as from Costco or Trader Joe's), thaw a bit (not completely), then cut out small cheesecake bites with a square, round, star, or other shaped cookie cutter.  Avoid pre-made commercial cheesecake bites as they are cloying.  Cutting out these bites should not take you more than 15 minutes for a party of 25 guests or less.  And you can do the same thing with purchased brownies (best quality of course).  Then put the cut out cheesecake bites and/or cut out brownie bites on a tray or plates and sprinkle the cheesecake bites with cocoa powder and the brownie bites with powdered sugar.  People love the fun look of these little bites! And your creations will wow everyone, but aren't much work for you.

#3
Set up a champagne bar. There are several ways to do this.  One way is to set out bottles of champagne method beverages such as true Champagne, prosecco, cava, and sparkling wines.  Or choose a country or region where champagne method beverages are made and put out bottles of several different types from that country or region.  If you want to up it a notch, also put out fresh berries for people to put in their glasses with their champagne.  Or put out a tray of champagne cocktails (recipes abound on the web) as well, so your guests can try different variations on the champagne theme.

#4
In Spain it's traditional to begin eating a bunch of grapes when the clock begins striking midnight on New Year's Eve.  If you finish the grapes before the clock strikes midnight it's supposed to be good luck.  It's a fun activity with a group, anyway.  And you can even make the grapes part of the the decor of your party by putting the bunches, separated, on a tray, in cones, or on small plates and decorating with fresh berries.

#5
Party decor colors? Metallics and creams, of course, and we also like black and white, perhaps with touches of red or fuschia, as well as pale blue and silver or pale blue and midnight blue with gold accents.

#6
Tie long curling ribbon around the stems of your champagne flutes to make them festive too (just don't make the ribbons TOO long).

Enjoy!

Kristina

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

Decor Ideas for End-Of-Year Gatherings

As the year draws to a close many of us will have gatherings of one type of another, for New Year's Eve or New Year's Day or even during this week, or next week. 

Some people leave their Christmas or Chanukah decorations as the same decorations for their end-of- or beginning of-year gatherings--and as long as they make the hosts and guests feel festive, why not?

Others change their decorations for their end-of-year gatherings, or did not decorate for Christmas or Chanukah. 

If you fall into the latter group, end-of-year or beginning-of-year gatherings present great opportunities to lift you and your guests out of the winter doldrums.

Traditional colors for end-of-year and beginning-of-year gatherings are cream, silver, and gold; in recent years, midnight blue has also become popular for decor for these parties.  But be careful not to use too much midnight blue as your gathering will look gloomy. 

Tablecloths, runners, trays, or other entertaining pieces can add "lightness" to your gathering, either by a light color (cream or pale gold cloth) or by the "shininess" of distinctive serving pieces.  End- and beginning-of-year parties are the best time of year to use stylish gold and silver serving trays and so forth as these colors are associated with that time of year, just as red and green, for example, are associated with Christmas. 

Or, for a "bridge" look, you can use red and gold or blue and gold.

A few years ago we did a Sunday afternoon tea for a neighbor at the beginning of January and did cream-on-cream tones with black and gold accents from pieces that the hostess owned, including a gold flower-shaped tray that held sherry glasses and sherry as well as the tea and sweets, and, as the day was overcast, everyone liked the design because they said it lifted them out of the winter blahs.

The thing to remember is, in most parts of the world the weather is dreary, so why invite guests to a dark cave for a party now?

But avoid brights for your end- or beginning-of-year gathering as they are jarring this time of year unless you live in a tropical climate.

Enjoy!

Kristina

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