How to Host an Open House
Having a Simple and Elegant Holiday Party in Your Home
Nov 11, 2008 Christin Aitchison
If you want to entertain this holiday season without the stress of serving food during your party, simply host an open house. The benefits are many and the set up quite easy. Follow these basic steps and you and your guests will have a relaxed and elegant affair:
Hosting a Brunch Open House
Setting a time range - if you chose to host a brunch, try and set the time for your party with a range from the earliest to latest that one would traditionally eat brunch. An ideal time frame would be from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Selecting a menu for a brunch -Perhaps the easiest way to host an open house is to select foods that do not require heating or warming and that will keep for several hours without spoiling. This will enable you to create your table setting without the worries of cooking food and keeping it warm. Foods that work well are:
- Fruits
- Muffins/cakes/danish
- Bagels/rolls/croissants
- Salmon
- Quiches/frittatas
- Variety of juices/coffee/tea
- Assorted jams/jellies/preserves
Hosting a Luncheon Open House
Setting a time range - If you choose to host a luncheon, select a time range that encompasses the earliest to latest time that one would traditionally eat lunch. An ideal time frame is from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Selecting a menu for a luncheon - again the key is to select foods that require no warming and will keep for several hours on your table. Lunch offers a wide range of choices from a variety of salads to carved roasts. If you chose to serve a traditional lunch, some ideas are:
- Platters of sandwiches ranging from wraps to gourmet fare such as mozzarella, tomatoes and basil on foccacia
- Fruits
- Salads ranging from a simple tossed salad to a roasted vegetable salad
- Quiche
- Pasta salads with an oil based dressing
- Fruit
- Sliced roasted turkey, ham or beef
Hosting a Dinner Open House
Setting a time range- an optimal time frame for a dinner open house is from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Selecting a menu for a dinner open house - In Kate Hays’article “Open House for a Crowd” found in the January 2009 issue of Fine Cooking Magazine , she recommends the following for an elegant yet simple buffet:
- Bourbon-Orange-Glazed Ham
- Roasted Fingerling Potatoes
- Broccoli with Spicy Gremolata
- Cucumber Salad
- Flaky Cheese Biscuits
- Cheese and fruit Platter
Tips for Setting a Buffet TableFill in your table setting with small go to items such as olives, nuts, grapes, crudités. This makes your table look bountiful and brings people back to the buffet. It creates a nice social setting as it maintains a flow of people. When new guests arrive, those who have already eaten can “pick” while new arrivals get their meal.
Set your table using a theme of dishes and decorations. For instance, chose all white and clear glass. Another decorative theme could be silver and gold. The choice is yours, be creative. Ideally, try and work around a theme that you can build on with items you have in the house. This will keep your cost down.
Create depth and texture by using varying heights of serving dishes. Think outside of the box and use items that might not ordinarily be used for service. For example, use a large goblet to put toasted almonds or jams in.
Don’t forget dessert! Simply select a section of your table and have dessert set out with the meal. Choose simple finger desserts such as petite fours, cookies, candies etc…
Hosting a party is simple. An open house allows you to have your food out before people arrive and enables you enjoy your company.
Buffet Table
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