The nights have drawn in, George and Mariah are in a state of perpetual soundclash, and with them comes the unsettling urge to host a seasonal get-together.
If you’re an unsteady host, even an intimate dinner with a handful of friends can seem daunting, so when you chuck in the plus-ones, her next door and a cluster of colleagues, that “fun and festive” party can start to feel anything but.
But things don’t need to get all out of control and Abigail’s Party. We live in a time when fine dining and Michelin-starred chefs appear in the most casual of settings, and that informality extends to the at-home-host, too. Claude Bosi - head chef of Bibendum restaurant and Rémy Martin cognac bar – is one such Michelin-starred chef who advocates this relaxed approach when entertaining.
“The key to a great party,” he says, “is to ensure you are with your guests. There are so many dinner parties where you try to impress and find yourself spending more time in the kitchen than you spend with your guests. A great party is a balance between good food and good hospitality.”
Here’s how it’s done:
The dinner party
This casual mantra starts at the top – the formalities of the past have been dispensed with. Invites can go out on WhatsApp or email. Similarly, boy-girl seating plans at dinner are a relic of another time. Remember, too, if there are only two single guests at a dinner party, they don’t necessarily want to be seated together, lest they feel like show ponies being watched over by the other guests for signs of good chemistry. And unless you have a particular gift for crafting, there’s no need for place names.
That said, some small details done nicely can make a real difference. Take your dinner table, for example, as chef and caterer Stephanie Boote says: “I like a simple table, not too much fuss. A linen cloth can be lovely, napkins, if you have them. A couple of little vases or bottles with flowers or foliage. Candlelight is a must. You can have a pile of plates and cutlery on top of an undressed table, a water jug and a stack of glasses, and if you have candles lit it will all be just fine!”
There are lots of ways to make life easier as you prep your dinner-party meal, especially as your guests arrive and the heat rises in the kitchen. For Bosi, a neat trick is to go for a cold starter. He suggests getting a terrine from a local deli and serving it with a salad, all handily ready to go on plates ahead of time.
Food writer and author Killian Fox offers similar logic when feeding a crowd. “Simplify,” he says. “Instead of a starter, lay out a range of snacks – decent crisps and dips, olives, maybe some crostini – for people to eat when they come through the door. Use the time you’ve saved to make sure everyone has enough booze.”
Drinks are, of course, key to a great dinner party. Leave time at the beginning for an aperitif, which will give you more breathing room to prepare your food, take account of inevitable late arrivals (“our Uber kept cancelling”) and let appetites build.
Fox suggests a handy seasonal cocktail, too, named London Calling. “It was apparently devised at Milk & Honey in Soho. It’s citrussy, it contains sherry, and it gives you a chance to look classy with a cocktail shaker. A fine Christmas drink.”
Bosi suggests a drink can offer some surprises and lead to unexpected food pairings. He likes a Royal Sidecar, made with Rémy Martin 1738 Accord Royal cognac, Cointreau and lemon – and paired with oysters.
“Until recently, cognac was something you would have after a great lunch,” he says. “It’s not something you’re expecting to drink at the start of the meal, but I find it goes very well with seafood. It’s a nice surprise, a bit of creativity. At that moment, you’ve made people really relaxed and given your meal a stamp of quality.”
From then on, you can go with some classic dishes: a big joint of meat, a casserole that can be easily cooked in advance, a beautiful stew with game, or Bosi’s festive favourite: beef wellington.
When it comes to serving, Bosi tends to stick to sharing plates. “I put pots in the middle of the table and we start sharing,” he says. “I think dinner parties with people closer to each other are a better atmosphere.”
Boote adds a word of practical advice: “Preparation is key. Your guests are here to see you, not have you run about trying to do things. Keep it simple, with excellent ingredients that speak for themselves.”
Dinner party music has long been something of a slur, a byword for a pleasant but bland background soundtrack. But you don’t want to be sitting in silence accompanied only by the sound of mastication and scraping forks, so head to Spotify to put together some playlists.
For dinner, you want something that is eclectic but not too distracting – you don’t want to be continually flicking to the next song. However, you also don’t want to drift into nondescript tastefulness, either.
The drinks party
Interesting people, nice snacks, some decent tunes and plenty of booze is all that’s needed for a drinks party. Keep things loose – this means submitting to the inevitable and assuming a crowd will congregate in your kitchen. Be ready to push some seats away in the living room if a late dance party emerges.
When it comes to the drinks, try to be creative, says Boote: “This year, we have made a fig leaf syrup to go with lime juice, gin and soda. It’s delicious without the gin, too.” She follows that adding clementine flavours and fizz to spirits makes any drink feel “festive and delicious”.
Of course, guests will be looking for something to nibble on, so lay out some decent crisps, popcorn or olives.
You can also add some more expansive finger food into the mix. Boote goes for gougères, a French choux pastry filled with cheese, while Bosi will be serving up some intriguing offerings: Rémy Martin cognac, mixed with tonic (a Rémy Grand Tonic – the French spin on the British classic), served with his “pickled cockle popcorn”. The cockles are rolled in flour then deep-fried in hot oil, coming out as if popcorn. “It’s a fantastic pairing,” he says. To give it a seasonal twist, add some clove or orange to the cognac.
Fox offers a snack serving with a backstory: “The Gilda – a pintxo created in honour of Rita Hayworth, who starred in the film Gilda. It’s pretty easy: skewer a couple of green olives on a toothpick with guindilla peppers and an anchovy fillet.”
You want to keep the music equally eclectic but a little more upbeat. However, don’t feel the need to overload it with bangers and floor fillers. If the party goes late, you can bring out the hits. Remember to let a few people try out their music selections – it’s never fun to be overprotective of the music at a party, nor do you want one person hogging the speaker. Finally, if things take a particularly boozy turn, fire up some karaoke through YouTube.
And finally …
Really, there’s no set formula. Follow your instincts, embrace comfort and concentrate on having fun. And, if in doubt, remember some salient words from Bosi:
“Just don’t try too hard. Don’t try to impress is the wrong thing to say – you want to impress – but stay in your comfort zone. Stay comfortable, enjoy yourself, keep it simple – and have a good time.”
Make like Bosi and kick off that good time with a Royal Sidecar or Rémy Grand Tonic of your own – buy a bottle here
