That's entertainment

What is the recipe for a perfect party? As the season of festive cheer kicks off, Natalie Moore discovers how to entertain at home with panic-free panache. Illustration by Adrian Valencia

Cocktail sausages, Cosmopolitans, charades: if is your idea of a good party, your efforts this season could more likely catapult you off the Christmas-card list than up the social ladder. If you’re inviting friends and colleagues into your home for some festive fun, attention to detail and a healthy budget won’t go amiss.

Party-planning is a serious occupation today. From the quality of the wine to a carefully selected menu and, of course, the entertainment, the choices you make will have an effect on your image. “It’s incredibly important to get your party right, as entertaining is very much a reflection of your success,” says Johnny Roxburgh, party-planner to the rich and famous with his catering company The Admirable Crichton. First impressions are everything, he believes: if the decoration isn’t perfect and the staff aren’t pristine, consider the party doomed. “It can be a disaster if the look or feel of a party is wrong. Atmosphere is fundamental to the success of an event and how it’s dressed or lit can have a great effect. But decoration is a difficult area, as it obviously relates to the space available, preferred style and budget.”

So just what will winter’s classiest parties be wearing? “Plexiglas and industrial chic, mixed with colours like plum, violet and aquamarine, are great this season; the chichi style is dead,” says Roxburgh. “Mirrors, black and glitter are perfect for this Christmas.” For a more subtle approach, he suggests adorning the house with some seasonal flowers or foliage.

Good food and drink are essential to a successful party. But rather than cause yourself the stress of planning and cooking your own menu, let a caterer take the strain. There are hundreds of party caterers around the country to provide almost any type of refreshments you desire.

Cocktails are a popular choice, says Sophie Grey, founder of caterer and party-planning service Model Catering. “Bellinis and Martinis are really fashionable at the moment and Mojitos have been popular for a while. We also like exotic combinations these days such as a rhubarb or ginger Martini,” she says. “But for a winter party, why not serve a warm punch to kick everyone into gear?” If cocktails seem too extravagant, Grey’s advice is to limit the choice of drink. “Stick to one kind of champagne or white wine, one red wine and one soft drink, and that will keep the cost down.”

 To save your guests the potential embarrassment of one hot toddy too many, make sure there’s more food on offer than just a few nuts or olives. “Buffets and canapés are most popular in people’s homes but mini food is great for drinks parties. Our favourites are mini risottos, mini casserole portions or mini fish and chips that you can eat with just a fork,” says Grey. “This is sometimes a bit more expensive than a buffet but it’s cheaper to organise. You need fewer staff at your home to serve it and it’s easy to clean up.”

Depending on numbers, a sit-down dinner should probably be avoided. It is likely to double the staff required to prepare food on site, which means double the cost.

According to Roxburgh, there’s a growing trend for getting guests involved in what they’re eating: “We suggest interactive food served in such a way that guests can construct their own, perhaps even helping themselves from trays of growing organic herbs.”

Canapés can cost as little as £5 a head, while a slightly more substantial buffet might stretch to around £10 or £20 a head. If money is no object, you could always hire a celebrity chef. “If I could afford one, I would love to have Heston Blumenthal,” says Roxburgh. “It’s better to have fewer people and look after them properly within your budget than spread your resources too thinly,” says Roxburgh.

Arranging a good selection of food and drink is obviously paramount but it’s no good if the party’s host is left to administer it to 20 or 30 guests on their own. A helper or two —even just a barman—is essential if you take your role as host seriously. As business psychologist Ros Taylor says, “Your guests will judge your party by who they met and it’s your job to introduce people to others you think they would like to meet. So you have to free yourself up to make sure you can do your job.”

Khalid Aziz of communications consultancy The Aziz Corporation also stresses that a good party should provide good company. “Getting the mix of people right is so important,” he says. “Guests shouldn’t be bored or overawed. The host must put everyone at their ease. Take a professional approach to it, like you would a business meeting. The worst thing anyone can say about a party is that it was boring.”

That said, a host ought to be able to have some fun at their own party, and the entertainment you choose should reflect your own personal taste. If you want to be surrounded by beautiful people, Model Catering can provide professional models as meeters-and-greeters or waitresses. If you’re a bit more daring, Butlers in the Buff will provide you with a hunky doorman, waiter or cocktail barman in little more than an apron and dickie-bow for £60 an hour. Director Will Jones is quick to point out their practical use: “They’re not just good-looking guys, they are all very charming and chatty and will make sure both your male and female guests have got drinks and are looked after.”

Party entertainment can also give your guests a chance to learn something useful. A wine-tasting can keep them occupied for an hour or two, and by the end they might be able to blind-taste that Bordeaux. Taste-in is a new service that for £1,000 will arrange everything you need for a celebrity wine critic to lead a tasting at your home. Wine merchant H&H Bancroft Wines can provide all the wine your party needs as well as an expert to guide your guests through the world of wines, old and new. Director Piers German says, “You can choose if you want your tasting to be fun or more serious. We agree a theme, such as comparing wines from different countries, and maybe add an element of competition by including a secret wine for guests to guess.”
The cost for a party of around 20 people starts at £700 and depends on the types of wine you want to try; but as German says, “There’s no point having an event like this and tasting wines you could find for £5.99 in the supermarket. You want to try some that are different and special.”

Alternatively, if your aim is for your guests to really kick up their heels, why not show them how to make the perfect cocktail? Appleton V/X’s personalised Rumbar will install a bartender in your home who can give mini-tutoring sessions on rum, cocktail-making lessons and a cocktail tasting at the end of the evening for less than £100 per head.
For minimal effort on your guests’ part, let the entertainment come to them. Magicians or caricaturists wandering around your party make great ice-breakers, though according to top entertainment provider Gordon Poole, “It’s a bit 1990s. Today, it’s much better to get a good entertainer or speaker to keep your guests amused.” One of Poole’s favourite acts is The Three Waiters—smartly dressed gents who serve drinks all night before bursting into operatic song that has been endorsed by The Three Tenors themselves.

If in any doubt, err on the side of caution, advises Grey: “For a party in your home, just music might be best. I believe in keeping it simple, whether it’s food, drink, the decoration or entertainment. The most important thing about your party is to have a good time yourself.”

Havana ball

If you must theme your party, make it authentic

Floridita, the Cuban restaurant, bar and club in London’s Soho also brings its unique stamp to parties. Elena Del Pino, manager of Floridita Experiences, explains: “We help a lot of people with parties in their homes. They come to us knowing that they want a Cuban theme, but they don’t know how to go about it. I’m Cuban, so I can help. We can provide all the entertainment for a party.”

Particular favourites include a cocktail service—with expert mixologists making Mojitos and Daiquiris from the Floridita cocktail menu—and the cigar experience. “We provide a top-grade cigar roller from Cuba with a sommelier.”

Del Pino recently helped organise a surprise 50th birthday. “We provided a cigar roller, Cuban band, Cuban DJ, a dance couple, two girls as hostesses and dancers and a vintage 1950s roulette table. I also advised them on food and drink.” If it sounds like fun, it comes at a cost. Del Pino says the above party cost in excess of £4,000 and that there is a minimum charge of £1,000.