Can you believe 2024 is almost here? We’ve decorated our homes, made wreaths, we’ve splurged on gifts, crafted cookies, and gathered with our friends and family to celebrate the biggest season of gatherings since 2019. My friends and I recently hosted a “progressive dinner” to celebrate the season. We started at my house for hors d’oeuvres, then to another friend’s house down the street for dinner, ending at another friend’s house for dessert. We titled it “Tinsel Tour” and everyone brought their best sparkles out.
It may sound like a lot, but it was perfect and festive, and oh-so-fun to see how each host decorated their homes and treated the guests to a luxurious night. The best part of a progressive dinner is that each host can really go all-out with food and drink, because they’re only hosting for one part of the dinner experience. I thought I’d share my stop: the hors d’oeuvres.
Here was our schedule: appetizers at my house at 5pm, leave for dinner at the next stop at 6:30, then head for our last destination: dessert at 8:30.
After not properly entertaining in my home for what seems like forever, I decided to do something decadent: a menu of Roe Caviar with blinis, mini scooped potatoes, potato chips, creme fraiche, chives and lemon wedges, briny Mayday oysters on ice with mignonette, a festive Sorella Collective cheese plate, a big mound of salty butter with warm bread and plenty of Landmark wine plus some bubbly champagne. I also hired one of our MatchBook Pros to help me out!
One of the first places I think of when entertaining is Crate and Barrel. They have the best selection of serveware and barware to make dinner parties feel elevated and modern. I went for a color palette of silver and white with touches of red. These coupes have an elongated stem that makes sipping champagne extra luxurious (as if it isn’t already). And of course, in keeping with the ubiquitous bow trend of 2023, I had to tie sweet little black bows on every stem.
Piles of crackers, tucking in some fruit bunches for extra color, and breaking out my grandmother’s embroidered napkin set mixed with a linen runner, added the perfect touches for a festive spread.
We sipped Landmark Vineyard Overlook and Rayford Pinot Noir, plus their Damaris Reserve Chardonnay.
This adorable scallop plate was the perfect landing spot for a big mound of salty butter, paired with the Aero butter knife. And our wine was nestled with ice in this luxurious silver bucket with a crisp napkin and black embroidered edge.
Ruffles are my love language, so I couldn’t resist this little bowl, on a towering nickel tiered stand, to showcase our caviar and accoutrements.
Silver and bows for the win!
What is a Progressive Dinner Party?
In case you haven’t heard of this fun foodie concept, a progressive dinner is a way for friends to each exercise their culinary and hosting skills by taking on a different course on the menu. The first stop (which I hosted here) is for drinks and appetizers. Guests enjoy a little cocktail hour-type gathering before moving onto the next stop, hosted by the next friend in the group. This next stop may be a proper first course with starters, or you can go straight to the main course. The last stop is of course dessert. This way each course gets its moment to shine… There are no after thoughts here.
Tips for a Successful Progressive Dinner
A progressive dinner party is best suited for intimate gatherings, where you don’t have too many people lined up to go from one place to the next, keeping things manageable for hosts and allowing them to really focus on bringing out the best in their “assigned” course. (Pro tip: renting a passenger van to transport our guests was key to making the travel to each home hassle-free.)
To ensure your dinner is a success, you and your group will want to decide on a theme or concept beforehand. Because ours took place during the holidays, we had our Tinsel Tour theme in mind with fancy holiday party vibes and lots of sparkle and bows. But you can host a progressive dinner party any time of year by narrowing your theme down to a specific occasion, type of food (such as Italian etc), or season. This is supposed to be a fun, festive way for you to connect over new food, welcome friends into your home, and share responsibilities—so as long as everyone is on board, you can’t go wrong!
It was such a perfect and festive night…just the way to celebrate the season and upcoming new year! Now, onto our next stop…
Shop The Party
gold cheese knives / scallop plate / linen cocktail napkins / ruffle bowl / silver champagne and wine bucket / coupe / flatware / tiered server / vase
Serveware and barware: Crate and Barrel / Wine: Landmark Vineyards / Caviar: Roe Caviar / Oysters: Mayday / Cheese board: Sorella Collective / Videography: Caitlin Confidential / Planning and design: 100 Layer Cake
