Feature: Eye on Events

By Meera Jegathesan

Bring Home Some Summer Sizzle: The Art of the Cocktail Party

Have you ever wanted to entertain your friends in the comfort of your own home but haven’t because the thought of throwing a formal dinner party scares you to death? From the perfect orchestration of the courses, the long hours of cooking in the kitchen and the formality of the entire experience, is it just too complicated for your busy schedule?

A cocktail party is a fresh and easy alternative and does not have to cost a fortune. With the right amount of planning and creativity, you can turn your next cocktail party into an event your friends will never forget! Here are ten resourceful and creative tips to help you plan your next cocktail party without spending your entire paycheck:

1) Rome wasn’t built in a day. Pick a date for your cocktail party that gives you more than enough time to plan. The most popular times for cocktail parties are Friday and Saturday evenings, but Sunday is another option; it won’t cut into summer weekend plans and is a great way to start the next week.

2) Guest guidelines. The general objective of a cocktail party is to create an environment where guests can mingle and enjoy good conversation; thus, it does help to keep the event fairly intimate. Limit the number of guests attending to no more than 25 to 30 people; this size ensures that everyone will get a chance to work the room comfortably.

3) Get the word out. Invite your guests to attend the soiree three weeks before the party so that they have adequate time to respond. While Evite is a free and easy online approach, there is nothing like receiving a paper invitation in the mail. Try Rock Scissors Paper (set of 10, $14) or My Expression (set of 10, $7-$14) for creative and innovative invitation designs.

4) Unleash the theme! A theme is never an imperative but could be a nice touch for your next cocktail party. Beach and tropical themes are common for the summer, but as an alternative you could use color to set a visual theme. This summer’s hottest colors are black and white, coral, gold, bronze, and green.

5) Food for thought. Serve food buffet-style in appetizer or bite-sized portions. Serve at least four to five different appetizers (hot and cold) supplemented by party staples such as vegetable crudités (carrot sticks, celery and broccoli) with dip, cheese and crackers and nuts. Estimate that each guest will consume about 10 to 15 pieces of food on average and be sure to include some appetizers that are vegetarian. Save time by preparing your hotter food items ahead of time, storing them in the refrigerator, and then reheating them in the oven right before the party. Use disposable skewers or toothpicks so guests can easily pick up food without using their hands.

6) Cocktail craving. A summer cocktail party isn’t complete without a refreshing selection of drinks. I recommend that you either set up a full bar (with many different types of liquors and mixers) or stick to only beer and wine. Too much variety in liquor can be complicated to set up and expensive for you. My summer suggestion is to make one signature cocktail, as it brings a unique personality to the event. A signature drink is a specially blended concoction that you can even name after yourself. Popular summer cocktails include the mojito, daiquiri, and margarita. The benefits of having a signature cocktail is that the drink is usually easy to prepare, can be stored ahead of time in pitchers or a punch bowl and its ingredients can be purchased in bulk.

If you choose to make a signature cocktail, it is always wise to keep ample bottles of wine, beer, soda and water on hand to satisfy every guest’s preferences and to keep cocktails flowing even when your signature cocktail ingredients run out. Estimate that each guest will consume at least two to three drinks over the course of the evening. If your menu contains a large amount of salty foods, you can safely assume that guests will choose to drink more. For a party of 30 people with a signature cocktail, I suggest that you buy at least six bottles of wine and four cases of beer, in addition to the signature cocktail ingredients. I also recommend that you have three five-pound bags of ice on hand as well and enough fruit, such as lemons, limes, and mint, to use as garnish or key ingredients for your signature drink. For inexpensive cocktail ingredients, wine, and beer, visit stores like Trader Joe’s and BevMo which carry large selections of liquor at very reasonable prices.

7) Service essentials. Make sure that you have adequate amounts of cocktail plates, glasses (wine, martini, beer and water), tablecloth, silverware and napkins. Always set aside a number of glasses that is at least double the number of guests at the party so you won’t have to spend the party washing dishes in case of breakage. Party rental companies will rent out plates, glasses, linen, silverware and even tables and chairs to you for a nominal cost and will even deliver the products to you on the day of your party and then pick them up the next day unwashed. Consult your local yellow pages or the internet to find the nearest party rental store for convenience and less hassle.

8) Look, listen and feel! Everyone’s home has its own unique layout and charm, but here are some design tips to make your room cocktail party ready:

- Decide whether you would like to host your party inside or outside your home. If the party is outdoors, locate an area in your yard with easy access to the kitchen. Also keep any candles in covered hurricane candleholders in case of windy conditions and keep citronella candles on hand to repel mosquitoes. Be sure to have enough outdoor furniture and always have an indoor relocation plan, should your party get rained out.

- If your party is indoors, always contain the party site within one room or area in the house to maintain the intimacy of the event.

- Arrange chairs and sofas to create conversational areas around the party site, but do not create too many seating areas because your guests may choose to sit instead of walk around and thus will not mingle.

- Avoid placing the buffet table next to the bar so that guests will not crowd in one area. Scatter platters of food on tables around the party site so your guests circulate to access food rather than linger too long around one buffet area.

- Use your dining table as a main buffet station. Set out platters of different shapes and sizes to make the table stand out.

- Use flowers to brighten and accent the party site. Popular summer flowers include the rose, sunflower, calla lily, gerbera daisy, peony, and chrysanthemum. For an inexpensive and elegant touch, place the head of a gerbera daisy (available at your local florist) at the top of a martini glass filled with water and sparkling glass crystals ($5.95 per bag, Illuminations). Set scented votive candles (set of 6, $6.99, World Market) under the glasses and the candlelight should illuminate the sparkling crystals in the water. Scatter these glasses on the buffet table and the effect will be striking!

- Your coffee table is a focal point for your party and can be used for food or an attractive centerpiece.

- Music sets the mood at the party. Ask yourself if you want the party to be lively or mellow. Forgo the CDs and make a summer cocktail party mix for your iPod, connect it to your stereo and play it on shuffle.

9) Break the ice. An icebreaker is an effective way for guests to mingle, learn more about each other, and possibly even share common interests. A simple idea is to ask each guest to write one unique fact about him or herself on a slip of paper and mix the slips up in a bowl. Then walk around the room and have each guest pick out a random slip of paper and spend the evening trying to locate the person who wrote that particular fact. The effects could be interesting and amusing!

10) Often overlooked. We spend all of our time worrying about the main party site that we often forget to make the other rooms in our home party-friendly. The bathroom will probably be one of the most visited rooms during the evening. Make sure the bathroom is clean and there are enough toilet paper rolls, soap, and towels. Simple flowers in a small vase and a few votive candles on the countertop also add a nice touch. Keep your kitchen clean as well. Counter tops should be clean and clutter-free. Fresh flowers and candles will also create a warm atmosphere.

As you can see, a cocktail party is a fun, alternative way to entertain your guests this summer with limited hassle. With enough organization and planning, your job as party host should be relatively easy. Please keep in mind that the main purpose of any event is to bring people together, so the end result should be anything but stressful. Enlist the help of friends and family so you can mingle with your guests and take part in the great conversation. After all, you are the life of the party!

EVENT TIP OF THE MONTH: As party host, always send a brief thank you note to your guests the next day after your event via postal mail or email. It is the perfect touch of hospitality!

Meera Jegathesan works as a sales manager and event planner for a major hotel company in the San Francisco Bay Area. She always thinks outside the box and her next big idea is just around the corner.

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