My husband and I hosted a rather successful dinner party last night where everything went perfectly, except for the unnamed crazy male friend who got a little more than tipsy. Besides this minor detail, the biggest hit that night was the fully stocked buffet table and all the trimmings. People wre constantly asking me how I dressed my buffet table to suit so many guests.
The first thing you should know is the amount of people you are accomodating. If you know this number, you can prepare accordingly. With bigger parties, you will naturally have more people to serve and should create duplicates of everything and put them at either end so that people don’t have to reach around the table to get what they want. Also, if you want to go for ultimate class, use a wrinkle-free white linen tablecloth with linen napkin cloths. For optimal organization, roll your silverware settings in some napkin cloths and place them in a wicker basket on your buffet. Then stack a group of dishes of varying heights so that guests can easily serve themselves.
In terms of the food, you should put out small bowls of appetizers to start with. Try healthy alternatives like olives or crudites. For the main dish, you want to prepare a vegetarian variety in addition to a meat-lover’s plate because you are trying to feed as many people as your buffet sideboard can hold so allow as many options as possible. Take advantage of the size of your table by putting cold dishes like salad between the main course. Finally, you can add some garnish to your buffet table. Depending on the season and the occasion, you can buy fake foliage to put in the center (during Thanksgiving, you would put a cornicopia) or some simple vases with flowers in them. The little touches are what add the element of sophistication to your buffet.
