The perfect host? Is there really anything like that. May be not, but this post reads how to be the perfect host without trying too hard. We can always strive to perfection but it’s always better to aim for progress that way we remove the pressure and overwhelm.
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Most people who love to cook like to entertain. I mean there is no fun in cooking if you end up eating alone. C’mon you need to share your culinary expertise with the world ??. Besides if you are a good cook everyone would love to visit. Because they are confident that there will always be something delightful to eat.
But Being a good cook doesn’t necessarily translate to being a great host. Hosting requires a bit more than just whipping up your best Jollof Rice or the perfect Efo riro. Hosting requires a bit more planning.
Table of Contents
How to be the Perfect Host. 7 Tips
1. Create a plan.
Every successful endeavor starts with a plan.
- Decide What kind of get together do you intend to have? Is it a couples date night. An immediate family members gathering. A dinner party A children’s party etc.
- Decide how big your want your gathering to be by deciding how many people you want to invite. In other words have an idea of the number of people you will be expecting. This is an important aspect of hosting effectively. You need to know how many people you will be catering for.
- Deciding how big you want your get together to be will determine your venue. You can have it at home in your living. Out side in your home if you have the space or hire a venue. Hiring a venue needs a lot more planning because here in the US you will need to book a venue at least 6 months in advance. That’s actually beyond the scope of this post. This post is targeted for smaller get together you can host in your home.
- Send out your invite. These days text messaging with an e invitation card is sufficient but you could still go the traditional route of sending paper invites. Try to give your guest a two to three week window and an RSVP date. You can send a reminder to your invitees a week to your event
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2. Plan your Menu
This sounds like a no brainer but believe me. Failing to plan your menu can lead to a hosting disaster. Trust me I am speaking from experience lol. Don’t worry planning your menu is easier than you think. Just get out your paper and pen and put down what dishes you would love to serve your guests. Decide if you want to contract a caterer or cook yourself.
Contracting a Caterer.
Depending on the size of your guests, you can decide if you intend to cook up the whole menu by yourself or you may need to contract it out to a good caterer. If you are hosting a big party, my suggestion would be to delegate the major cooking to a caterer you know and trust or one that comes with a high recommendation from someone you trust. Even if you are the best cook, you need to realize that you can’t handle everything. Sometimes you need to sit back and let others take the wheel with your guidance so that you can focus on other things that matter.
Cooking yourself
If it’s a small get together of a few friends, You can make the dishes your self. But this isn’t the time to try a new recipe. Cook dishes that you have mastered and you are comfortable with. That way you can easily wow your guests’ tastebuds. You also need to manage your time effectively so you are not stuck cooking in the kitchen when your guests arrive. Prepare your meats ahead of time for instance season and freeze them up to a week before the event. Then thaw the meat the day before and cook your the meats the night before. That way you have your meat ready for the oven, deep fryer or Air fryer in the morning and some meat stock for your Jollof Rice etc
You need to have been through with cooking at least an hour thirty minutes before your guests arrive so you would have time to freshen up and be there to receive them when they arrive. Don’t be caught bathing when your guests arrive. Believe me I’ve been there several times and I have learned from my mistake and trust me you don’t want to be there ?.
3. Accept help from friends.
A friend may offer to come over to your place a few hours to the event, or offer to bring a side dish. Accept the offer you definitely need that help even if you don’t know it yet. You are not Super woman and nobody expects you to be. If you need help, never hesitate to ask a friend. Sometimes we all want to feel self sufficient or we don’t want to be refused a request. Ever heard of Ask and you shall receive? You can never know if you don’t ask. You can ask a friend to help out with the salads or cup cakes if they can. Always offer to fund the ingredients especially if you made the request because you don’t want to burden your friend financially. If they refuse your offer, insist but if they still refuse then let it go. Besides a good friend would always want to help out.
4. Make use of Disposables.
This is a life saver for me. If you plan on having a party, disposable cups, plates, napkins and cutlery are the way to go. I don’t have the energy to go washing when everyone is gone or in between when you run out of clean china ware. I usually stock up on these when they are on sale. We sometimes use them at home even when there is no party.
5. Delegate Housecleaning duties.
Like I said earlier you are not superwoman. You need help. Make it fun by involving your husband and kids in the house cleaning chores. Delegate chores before the D-day. That way everyone knows what is expected of them. Clean up your house especially the restroom.
Your restroom is a very important aspect of your get together, make sure you get it cleaned and smelling nice. In fact that should be your priority over food. A dirty restroom can easily translate to being a terrible host. Your guests would forget the delicious food and remember how dirty your restroom was. But if you have a clean and welcoming restroom your delicious food will be the talk of town. So don’t let a dirty restroom take your shine. SERIOUSLY. Absolutely NO EXCUSES on this one.
6. Keep the food where you want your guests to be.
Set up the food station where you want your guests to be. If you want your guests in the living room, setting up your food station in the kitchen is not such a good idea because your guests will keep having to head that direction when they need anything and may miss out on interesting gists, parts of a movie etc.
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7. Plan for the kids.
Carve out an area in the house where you want the kids to be. If they are older kids, try to keep them occupied with fun things like Board Games, or Card games. Limit video games as much as possible because kids easily get drawn into Video Games leaving less room for social interactions. Board games like Monopoly, Ludo, Snakes and Ladders, Chess, Scrabble are great board games to consider.
For toddlers you may need someone to watch them. Ask a friend to pitch in or plan to hire a nanny to watch them. It should be where they won’t be in the way and you can easily see them. It could be in your second living room if you have one or your dining area. Make sure wherever you choose is Child safe.
This is a list of what I have learned to do but it definitely isn’t an exhaustive list so more suggestions are welcome. Share your thoughts with me in the comments.
Did you enjoy this post? You will love these other posts
- How to be a good guest
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