Party Menu Ideas

Stand Up or Sit Down

If you are having a sit down dinner party the menu will be drastically different than if you are having a stand up cocktail type of party. When trying to think of party menu ideas keep in mind food that needs a knife and fork to eat properly isn’t going to be very popular at a cocktail party. For cocktail parties the best kind of foods are finger foods and this could include:

• Mini or cut up quesadillas
• Chicken wings
• Mini Burgers
• French-fries either regular potatoes or sweet potatoes
• Cheese and crackers
• Antipasto trays
• Cantaloupe balls wrapped in Prosciutto
• Mini pizzas
• Brushetta
• Small Skewers of food like:
  • Satay
  • Kabobs
• Anything that can be enjoyed without oil or sauce dripping all over your guests and floor

For a sit down dinner party some party menu ideas would include:

• An Amuse-Buche
• Soup
• Appetizers
• Salad
• Entrees
• Dessert

Each served with a matching wine.

The real difference between the two is that you can mix and match a cocktail party’s food selection by offering foods from different parts of the globe, while a sit down dinner party has a menu with a food theme running through it. A good example of this would be a specific food like shrimp, or food from a specific region like the Mediterranean.

Inside or Outside

Another factor to consider when you think of party menu ideas is the location. Will it be indoors or outdoors? For a cocktail party, you may want to include dishes that avoid mayonnaise or cream as a major ingredient. You would want to look for food ideas that can safely kept in a warmer temperature or keep the food on ice so it doesn’t spoil. The idea here is try to keep from running into the kitchen to replenish the food.

For an outdoors sit down dinner the most natural party menu ideas focus on the barbecue. Grilling up a slab of ribs or a pile of burgers can be a fun and tasty idea. For a slightly more upscale grilling party you may want to look into using a homemade spice rub for some quails or fillet mignon.

Note: Although a barbecue is normally considered an outdoor event, dinner party guests that linger will eventually end up indoors. You may want to prepare some small snacks before hand for them when they do migrate inside. A tray of finger foods stashed in the refrigerator can be presented as your guests are finding seats and will give them something to nosh on as you refresh their drinks.

Party Menu Ideas

Although there are countless books packed with ideas for your party, the best place to start is by either talking to your friends or by contacting a party planner for help. A good way to pull a party menu together is to think of a theme for your party. Matching the food to the decorations will give your party a fun look. For example an 80’s themed party would have some 80’s Music and could have some Funyuns available, as well as little pizzas with barbecue sauce instead of marinara (Pizza Hut introduced “BarBQ Pizza” in the 80's and it was popular for a while) or a tub of ice filled with bottles of Bartles and James Wine Coolers.

For dinner parties working around a single ingredient can be challenging but you may be surprised with the ideas that you come up with. A party based on salmon and avocado could include a cold salmon mousse layered with avocado as your appetizer. An avocado soup with smoked lox garnish would be refreshing during a summer dinner party, and braised salmon with avocado cream sauce would be a very nice entrée.

A party menu's success depends on the amount of thought you put into it. Have fun, use your creativity and taste buds to come up with a delicious spread your guests will not forget.

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