An easy to follow step by step guide to planning a dinner party, for both the complete beginner or the savvy host or hostess.
PHILIPPINES Restaurant and Wine Bar:
3rd October, 2010
At Gourmet Food Revolution, we don’t cater for gourmet, eight course banquets for 25 guests and a team of hired staff to assist! No, this site is about you, your domestic kitchen, and the reality that you just don’t have a huge amount of time, limitless budget or professional culinary training!
So let’s start with the single most crucial element for successful entertaining, – PLANNING a dinner party. Get that wrong and you’re fighting a loosing battle. Get it right – and not only will the dinner party run like clockwork, but you will be able to relax and enjoy yourself too!
BASIC ESSENTIALS FOR PLANNING A DINNER PARTY
Well before the occasion, give yourself ample time to sit down with pen and paper and really start planning the dinner party. Consider essential points such as the following:
- What type of dinner party is this to be, casual or formal? Generally, casual or semi-formal dinner parties are better suited to the majority of domestic environments.
- What is the budget? Be realistic! Don’t try to impress by overspending – even with a fairly small budget and a little creativity, you can achieve fantastic results.
- How many guests? Again, be realistic! Never invite more than you are truly comfortable with. If you are hosting this on your own, or even with the help of a partner, keep it to a maximum 6 or 8 guests.
- Remember that YOU also want to enjoy this dinner party, so if necessary, be prepared to hire some help. If the budget allows, consider hiring a Personal Chef for the evening. Or if you prefer to do the cooking yourself, think about hiring a Butler who will discreetly take care of the entire service. But if you can’t afford to hire, and you are doing this alone, then enlist the help of a trusty friend or relative!
- PLAN THE MENU. Perhaps the most critical consideration when planning a dinner party is the Menu. Gourmet recipes do not have to be difficult or complicated…..check out the following link for menu planning advice and tips.
- Plan the wines and drinks. Give some special attention to matching the food and wine. Your local wine merchant is usually a great source for really good recommendations.
- Send out the invitations. For a more casual dinner party, a telephone call or email will suffice – but give your guests at least 2 weeks notice. Planning a dinner party successfully requires careful (and often tactful!) consideration of your guest list.
- Depending on how formal the dinner party is to be, it may be appropriate to specify a dress code for the evening.
- Make lists – one for shopping and one for jobs to do. Not only does this keep you on track, but it’s also very satisfying crossing things off!
- Visualise how you will serve each course and check to see that you have enough plates, dishes, bowls, cutlery etc.
- Consider the limitations of your kitchen & its equipment. Above all, take account of how much refrigeration space you have especially if you intend to do a lot of advance preparation.
- Plan ahead. Non-perishable foods can be purchased well in advance leaving only perishable foods to the last day. A great tip if you are short on time is to consider buying your groceries online and have them delivered.
You see, planning a dinner party is easy! With that completed, now let’s move to the last 24 hoursโฆ…..and hosting the dinner party.
Planning a dinner Party – THE DAY BEFORE…….
- Set the dinner table. That’s one less thing to think about while you are cooking!
- Carry out any last minute housework – you really don’t want to be cleaning on the day of the dinner party!
- Empty your fridge of unnecessary items.
- Buy all of the perishable foods. To save time, do your grocery shopping online, and have them delivered to your door.
- Separate & wash salad leaves & fresh herbs in cold water, shake dry & pop them into sealed polythene bags & refrigerate. This keeps them fresh, and crisp for up to 24 hours.
- Cover all foods to be refrigerated with clear film wrap, or kitchen foil to prevent flavours crossing over and the food from drying out.
- ALLWAYS keep raw meat, poultry and fish on the lowest shelves and properly wrapped to prevent contaminating other foods.
- Depending on your chosen menu, now do as much of the cooking & preparation as possible (all recipes on this site clearly indicate what can be done ahead of time). Many dishes, particularly those cooked slowly in liquid, actually benefit from pre-cooking as it enriches the flavours.
Planning a Dinner Party – THE DAY OF THE PARTY
Planning a dinner party for success, is all about TIMING! So plan this day carefully. Write down on a notepad the times at which the final preparation and cooking/reheating tasks MUST be performed. Use a kitchen timer, oven timer or alarm clock to keep you on track!
- Wash and prepare the vegetables. Pop into sealable polythene bags & refrigerate if space allows.
- Carry out all final preparations necessary prior to last minute cooking. Try to leave as little as possible to the last moment.
- Approximately an hour before your guests arrive, remove any food that should be served at room temperature (such as pรขtรฉs or savoury mousse, cold cooked meats, prepared fresh fruits, pasta or vegetable salads, cheeses etc) and leave somewhere cool. This allows the full flavours to develop.
- Any precooked dish that is to be reheated should also be taken from the fridge an hour or so before reheating. This reduces the cooking time and allows the food to cook more evenly.
Your Dinner Party Planning is running like clockwork………
Now go away, run yourself a nice hot bath……and relax!
Are these articles useful for enhancing your wine and dine experience in the Philippines.ย Do they also help you with travel, leisure, vacation, dining out, nightlife and other leisure activities plans in Philippines?ย Yats Restaurant hopes to provide you with ample information so you can plan your trips to Pampanga Angeles City Clark Freeport Zone whether you are travelling from Manila or other Asian countries such as Hong Kong, Shanghai, Singapore, Malaysia or Korea.
Restaurant reservations in Philippines, planning of menu, selection of wine for dinner and booking a private function and event in Angeles City Clark Freeport Zone can all be handled.ย Yats Restaurant and Wine Bar has been regarded by many to be the premier restaurant north of Manila Philippines.ย Its 3000-line award-winning restaurant wine list has kept many wine lovers happy dining in this restaurant in Angeles City Clark Philippines for over a decade.
Yats Restaurant and Wine Bar was built by Hong Kong-based Yats International in 2000 to provide a world-class fine dining restaurant, business meeting facilities and venues for private dinners and functions in Pampanga Angeles City Clark Freeport Zone.ย Pampanga Angeles City Clark Philippines was selected for this restaurant because of safety, clean air, absence of traffic and proximity to Manila and Subic.
For comments, inquiries and reservations, email Restaurant@Yats-International.com or call these numbers:
(045) 599-5600 0922-870-5178 0917-520-4401ย ย ask for Ernest or Pedro.
Getting to this fine dining restaurant of Angeles City Clark Freeport Zone Pampanga Philippines
How to get to this fine-dining restaurant in Clark Philippines?ย Once you get to Clark Freeport, go straight until you hit Mimosa.ย After you enter Mimosa, stay on the left on Mimosa Drive, go past the Holiday Inn and Yats Restaurant (green top, independent 1-storey structure) is on your left.ย Just past the Yats Restaurant is the London Pub.
Source:ย http://www.gourmet-food-revolution.com/planning-a-dinner-party.html
If this article about Clark is useful to you, please click here to contact us to tell us what more you wish to know about this article or Clark Philippines, which can be something about Clark investment, about Clark resorts, about Clark Swimming and Leisure or simply general news about Clark.
Please send questions to Editor@ClarkPhilippines.com. Leave your name, email address, contact numbers and we will get back to you as soon as possible. Information received will not be disclosed.
Random
Search
Contact Clark Philippines
Delectable Executive Meals
Philippine Peso Exchange Rate