Entertaining: Planning a Holiday Open House

One of the easiest and least stressful ways to catch up with friends over the holidays is to have an Open House.

Think of an Open House as a hybrid between a cocktail party and a full-blown party, where guests can drop in whenever they want, through the course of an afternoon or evening. There are less presumptions with an Open House and it is a more relaxed and casual atmosphere to entertain in - a huge bonus during a busy time of the year.

What to drink

Rather than putting on a full bar, make one festive cocktail for guests when they first arrive and then serve beer and wine.

Don't be tempted into buying plastic drinkware. While plastic is cheap, easily accessible, and can be thrown away; glasses are easily rented through your local party supply or beverage supply stores, they are far nicer to drink from than plastic and you don't need to clean them before returning them, as the hiring company will sterilize the glasses when they are returned.

What to eat

Here are some suggestions to help you work out what to serve at your Open House:

• As it's an Open Home, people will come and go, so have plenty of snacks for guests to graze.
• Just like a dinner party, menu selection is key, have a variety of hot and cold dishes.
• Always choose dishes that can be prepared ahead of time.
• Limit the number of dishes you prepare - having many different dishes to prepare can be quite stressful, especially if you are pinched for time - it's a lot easier to make double or triple batches of a few key dishes.
• Use store-bought dishes and doctor them to give them a homemade feel.
• There is nothing worst for guests, than trying to balance a glass and a plate, so make sure that all dishes are bite sized and don't require a plate, merely a napkin. It will also mean you don't have as many dishes to clean. Make sure that you have plenty of napkins.
• Limit the "carnage", that is, toothpicks or bones, that way your guests aren't trying to find a place to put them.
• Choose dishes that aren't too messy to eat - you'll have less sticky finger marks to clean up.
• Think about when you are going to serve what dishes - you don't want to run out of food in the first 30 minutes

Check out our Holiday Open House Menu.

Traffic Flow

There is nothing worst than going to an Open Home and not being able to reach the food or drink, so make sure that you plan how you want things to flow before your guests arrive:

• Have several different food and beverage stations, all located in different areas so guests aren't all in one place and to make sure entry ways and hallways don't get too congested.
• If you do have a central location for food, try to situate the table in the center of the room so that guests can wander around either side of the table to get food.
• Provide trash receptacles in key locations so that guests aren't wandering trying to find where to put trash.
• Avoid placing food or beverage stations in corners, as they can be difficult to access.
• Place food and drinks stations in areas to draw guests out of traffic areas and into areas where they can easily mingle.
• People do get tired feet, so provide them with some seating but make sure not to block access ways.

Tablespaces

With everything that needs to be planned and prepared, tablescapes are often overlooked, but they provide a finishing polish to a celebration.

• Choose an underlying theme and work from there. It can be a particular item, a color or maybe even a particular decoration.
• Use lots of candles and muted lighting - everyone looks better in candlelight. Make sure that you position candles in places where they won't get knocked over or singe anything.
• Use festive paper napkins that compliment your theme - they're easy to find and make clean up easier.
• Elevate some of the dishes at your food stations to create visual interest. For example, try turning an unused serving dish upside down and using it as a platform for dishes.
• For a striking centerpiece, use "like" objects together such as fruit displays or large bunches of flowers that are the same type and color.

Drinks Stations

Drink Stations should be easily accessed so that people can help themselves. Check them frequently to ensure they are fully stocked.

Each Drinks Stations needs:

• Premixed Cocktail
• Chilled beer
• Chilled white wine
• Red wine
• Glasses
• Napkins
• A trash receptacle