Right before we have Thanksgiving with our family, we get together with our friends to jump into the holiday season. A successful Friendsgiving involves good food and a great friend group. The main event is obviously traditional bites like pumpkin pie, turkey and cranberry sauce. Typically, we like to have a potluck-style meal so everyone can have the opportunity to enjoy their favorite dishes. If you haven’t hosted dinner parties yet and this might be your first time, we are happy to share our top tips and tricks for hosting the Thanksgiving holiday. Make an excel spreadsheet with any dietary restrictions and let’s get started on planning!
Assign Recipes
Firstly, the potluck approach makes everything so much easier. It takes the pressure off yourself from having to cook a bunch of different dishes for an intimate gathering. You can even start a Google Docs for the holiday and everyone can pick what they want to bring and write it in there to stay organized. The categories are mains, sides, desserts, apps and drinks. One of the best tips is that you should know what everyone is bringing. This way, you can make sure to fill in any of the blanks with things that might be needed. Even adding veggies and fruits to snack on can make the night even better.
Add a Personal Touch
Secondly, I love making everything personalized. This is more than place cards for this time of year. Add your own personal flair and style to the space! This can be done in your recipes, on the table scape with a fun theme or even adding games to make the night more fun. Personally, I like to add my personal touch with decor. Bows on the chairs for my close friends are a small way to show my excitement for the night and add a touch of my own personality to add to the special event.
Put Together a Tablescape
You can never have enough plates! I like to lay everything out on the table ahead of time to make sure I don’t forget anything. This includes plates, bowls, silverware, napkins and serve ware. You never know if you are missing something like salad servers or a tray to keep the whole turkey in until it’s too late! Give yourself the perfect opportunity to plan ahead and this way you can even find a decor style you enjoy.
Leave Counter Space
I can’t stress this enough, give yourself as much counter space as possible! I take some counter top appliances and put them away for the night to give us more room. Whether you have a smaller group or larger Thanksgiving dinner, everyone will be bringing things. These bowls, platters and Friendsgiving food ideas need to have a place to sit for the night. It’s actually easier to make an assembly line with all the food if the counters are open for this.
Create an Invite List
Finally, all that’s left is to create your list of loved ones to invite! Don’t leave anyone out, the holiday season is for coming together. If this is your first Friendsgiving, try not to stress! This is a fun night and the company is the most important thing. We have plenty of time to perfect that turkey recipe, focus on the good company!
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