Holiday celebrations make lifelong memories, marking festive times with family and friends. There really isn’t anything quite like enjoying a feast of comfort foods in a warm atmosphere with beautiful décor, decadent drinks, music, and a crackling fire. However, to pull off your own holiday celebration successfully requires a high level of party-skill savvy and can be challenging in many ways.
So, let’s not oversimplify these celebrations. It's work to throw a party at your home—a lot of work—and it involves planning, shopping, cooking, cleaning, more cleaning… and, worst of all, exhaustion and stress. Managing all of that on top of those special details is overwhelming.
But there is another option that will allow you to have it all—the food, the fun, the quality time—and you’ll even have time to enjoy the digestivo.
What is it, you ask?
PAY AN EXPERT to do it for you!
That’s right, simplify. DON’T cook all week; DO hire a local restaurant or caterer to cater your party. Better yet, bring your party out of your home and into the community. Hosting your festivities at a local restaurant can allow you to be both the party host and the most sought after guest, creating a memorable and inspired evening for everyone involved.
When you hire a company to cater at your home, you are free to cater to the guests and the part of party planning that you enjoy — decorations, games, music, gifts. Also, you are pretty much guaranteed to please any picky palate. Hire a company or restaurant that has a great reputation, and book them months in advance. Do a tasting of the menu items that you want them to create, and go over details with them, such as plates and cleaning to make sure that you are on the same page about expectations and costs.
The best gatherings incorporate those small details that make your party unique and filled with that quintessential holiday spirit and a feeling of really being cared for. I remember one year, all of the napkins at my sister-in-law’s home had napkin rings with our names engraved on them. Another year, the wine rings that help tell the guests’ wine apart were also tree ornaments that we got to take home. Or it could be as simple as the perfect dessert, warm drink, amazing smells, or succulent hors d’oeuvres that make yours a night to remember.
Taking the party on the road by hosting it at a local restaurant is a great way to cure cabin fever. We all need to get out of our homes and enjoy being taken care of in these long, cold months.
Choose your restaurant according to the type of party you want. Eat dinner there beforehand to check out the food, atmosphere, clientele, and culture. Do you want a fancy party, where people wear formal attire and have room for dancing? A casual party, where people gather in wool turtlenecks and enjoy tall beers by the bar?
Whatever type of holiday party you are hoping to achieve, hiring the pros will only make it better. Food is always a central component of any party, and having that taken care of will make your party day a treat for you too. Not only that, it will create more good will and holiday cheer in your community, as you will be supporting a local business and promoting them as well.
This year, spend more time making those distinct holiday memories with your friends and family. Most of all, ENJOY this festive season!
