BY CHEF ERIC ARROUZÉ

ONLINECULINARYSCHOOL.NET

2 TABLE OF CONTENTS

PARTY PLANNING – HORS D'OEUVRES AND DRINKS ...... 3 How many hors d'oeuvres should be provided per person? ...... 3 For a two hour party plan for: ...... 3 When hors d’oeuvres are served before a meal plan for: ...... 3 How many different kinds of hors d'oeuvres should be served for an hors d’oeuvre only party? ...... 3 How do you figure how many of each type of hors d'oeuvres to prepare? ...... 4 Should hors d’oeuvres be served for breakfast or lunch? ...... 4 Room setting is important: ...... 4 Beverage Planning ...... 4 Stocking a Standard Cocktail Bar ...... 8 Stocking a Complete Cocktail Bar ...... 8

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3 PARTY PLANNING – HORS D'OEUVRES AND DRINKS

The terms hors d'oeuvres and appetizers are often used interchangeably, but there is a difference: hors d'oeuvres are the small savory bites, typically finger food, served before a meal, while appetizers appear as the first course served at the table. The name hors d'oeuvres comes from the French and is literally translated as "out of the work," but it's more logical to think of it as meaning "apart from (or before) the meal."

HOW MANY HORS D'OEUVRES SHOULD BE PROVIDED PER PERSON?

The number of hors d'oeuvres you need often depends on how long the cocktail "hour" is, the time of day, and if a meal will also be served following the cocktail hour.

For a two hour party plan for:

• 10 -12 bites per person • 20 bites per person if the hors d’oeuvres replace dinner (e.g. party starts at 7:00 pm)

When hors d’oeuvres are served before a meal plan for:

• 5-7 bites when served before a light meal • 3-4 bites when served before a full dinner meal

People eat more during the first 60 minutes. After two hours consumption picks up again, especially if hors d’oeuvres replace dinner.

Young people eat more than an older crowd and guests eat more at casual parties than formal functions.

HOW MANY DIFFERENT KINDS OF HORS D'OEUVRES SHOULD BE SERVED FOR AN HORS D’OEUVRE ONLY PARTY?

• For 25 guests plan for 6-7 different kinds of hors d'oeuvres • For 25-50 guests, plan for 10-12 different kinds of hors d'oeuvres • For more than 50 guests, plan for 10 or more different kinds of hors d'oeuvres

If hors d’oeuvres take the place of dinner, include some substantial meal type foods that can be served like hors d'oeuvres (for example a carving station).

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4 Remember to provide a variety of foods to please everyone. That means something for the vegetarian (20% of the items) as well as the meat eater. Having both hot and cold foods also helps to keep everyone nibbling happily.

If hors d’oeuvres take the place of dinner, also include several bites of sweets per person.

HOW DO YOU FIGURE HOW MANY OF EACH TYPE OF HORS D'OEUVRES TO PREPARE?

A fairly standard formula is used by caterers to figure out how many pieces should be prepared for each kind of hors d'oeuvres being served:

• Number of bites desired per person times the number of guests divided by the number of different hors d'oeuvres being served.

SHOULD HORS D’OEUVRES BE SERVED FOR BREAKFAST OR LUNCH?

Hors d’oeuvres are not needed for breakfast or brunch. However, 2-4 light hors d'oeuvres can be served per person for lunch, if desired.

Room setting is important:

Functions are much more enjoyable if you can create that perfect balance of personal space. When planning a party, remember to keep guests close enough to produce an energetic vibe, but with enough space for them not to worry about bumping into other guests. To ensure adequate space, here are some general guidelines:

• Cocktail parties (stand up): 5-6 sq. feet per person • Cocktail parties (some seated): 8 sq. feet per person • Reception, tea type (some seated): 8 sq. feet per person • Dinner (using banquet tables): 8 sq. feet per person • Dinner (using round tables of 10): 10 sq. feet per person • Cathedral Seating (seating in rows): 6 sq. feet per person • Dance Area: 2 to 4 sq. feet per person

Beverage Planning

The amount of punch or number of cocktails or beers a guest will drink varies. Allow for the length of the party, the strength of the beverage, the day of the week, the rowdiness of the crowd, or lack thereof, and adjust your figure accordingly. The rules-of-thumb are:

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5 Cocktails: Figure that your guests will consume 2 drinks per person per hour for the first 2 hours and 1 drink per person per hour after that. If you have the budget and inclination, you can stock a full bar. However, a more budget conscious idea is to offer a selection of cocktails that can be made from one or two primary types of liquor. To limit the choices of hard liquor, select vodka because it can be mixed with so many things. If your budget allows, add favorites such as scotch, rye, rum, tequila and one or more sweet drinks such as Amaretto, Grand Marnier or Malibu. Each 750-mil bottle of liquor contains 16 1.5 ounce shots.

Mixers: If you are serving cocktails, don’t forget mixers such as club soda, lime juice and other fruit juices, tonic water, and non-alcoholic beer. Buy them in small bottles so that unopened containers may be used in future.

Beer: Stock 5 six-packs of beer for ten people, based on a twelve-ounce serving.

Wine: Allow roughly half a bottle of wine per guest. The true number of bottles required will also depend upon whether your guests are heavy wine drinkers, or if there is a greater proportion of drivers attending. You should get roughly 5 servings per bottle. Fill glasses 2/3 of the way. White wine (Chablis or Chardonnay) used to be more popular, but lately more people are choosing red wine (Merlot or Cabernet). On the other hand, if you want to "split the difference," serve a white zinfandel or rosé.

Soft Drinks: If your guests will be dancing the night away make sure you provide plenty of soft drinks to quench their thirst. Providing iced tea, punch or lemonade may cut down on the amount of alcohol drunk, as guests who are thirsty from dancing prefer a refreshing soft drink to a dehydrating alcoholic one. There are about ten 8-ounce glasses of soda in a 2-liter bottle.

Punch: Figure 10 people to the gallon. That's a conservative estimate, assuming your guests will drink about three 4-ounce servings during the party. To avoid youngsters "accidentally" dipping into the "spiked" punch bowl, choose recipes that are two different colors and use see-through drinking glasses. This will tell you at a glance whether you need to make a substitution.

Coffee: Plan on an average of 1 1/2 cups of coffee per person (don't forget the sugar and cream).

Ice: Stock 1 pound of ice per person if the drinks need to be iced. More will be needed for an outdoor, warm- weather party, or if the party lasts a long time. Only about half that though, 1/2 pound of ice per person, is needed if the beverages are pre-chilled or the party is of short duration.

Cocktail Napkins: Figure about 4 cocktail napkins (or 2 linen napkins) per person per hour, less if your guests will be using small cocktail plates for food.

Glassware: Stock enough glasses that your guests can trade a dirty one for a clean one at least once, maybe more. Use plastic glasses near pool areas.

Minding the Budget: To reduce costs try to get as many bottles as possible on a sale or return basis. This way you will not run out of drink but you will only pay for the bottles that are used. Warehouse stores like Costco or Sam’s Club are usually open to taking back unopened bottles and six-packs. However, they do have some restrictions, so check with them first. To stay within a beverage budget, serve wine, beer and/or soft drinks alone. At large parties with many beer drinkers, a keg is a more cost-conscious way of serving, but it is

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6 also more labor-intensive and requires more space and ice. For the greatest savings, serve an alcoholic and plain punch.

Planning Guides: Use these handy guides to determine how much to order.

Drinks Per Bottle: Highballs, Cocktails, Mixed Drinks (1.5 oz. liquor servings)

Bottles 1 2 4 6 8 10 12

750 ML (25.4 oz.) 16 33 67 101 135 169 203

Liter (33.8 oz.) 22 45 90 135 180 225 270

1.75 L (59.2 oz.) 39 78 157 236 315 394 473

Drinks Per Bottle: Table Wines, Champagne, Sparkling Wines (5 oz. wine servings)

Bottles 1 2 4 6 8 10 12

750 ML (25.4 oz.) 5 10 20 30 40 50 60

Liter (33.8 oz.) 6 13 27 40 54 67 81

1.75 L (59.2 oz.) 10 20 30 40 54 67 81

3 Liter (101 oz.) 20 40 80 121 161 202 242

4 Liter (135 oz.) 27 54 108 162 216 270 324

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7 Bottles of Wine for Dinner: Table Wines, Champagne, Sparkling Wines (average 2 servings at 5 oz. per serving)

Bottles 4 6 8 10 12 20

750 ML (25.4 oz.) 2 2+ 3+ 4 5 8

1.75 L (59.2 oz.) 1 1+ 2 2 2+ 4

• Generally, bottle quantities recommended provide some small overages of wine from 10 oz. per guest formula. • "+" sign indicates somewhat less than formula and additional bottles may be desirable to have on hand.

Number of People 10 25 50 100

Increase amounts for events longer than 4 hours

Wine & Champagne 5 bottles 13 bottles 25 bottles 50 bottles

Beer 20 bottles 50 bottles 100 bottles 200 bottles per hour per hour per hour per hour

Liquor 1.5 bottles 3 bottles 6 bottles 12 bottles per hour per hour per hour per hour

Mixers 4 liters per 9 liters per 17 liters 33 liters Go heavy on tonic water hour hour per hour per hour

Limes 3 7 13 25

Olives and Maraschino Cherries 1 jar each 3 jars each 5 jars each 10 jars each

Ice 5lbs 13lbs 25lbs 50lbs

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8 Cocktail Napkins 40 per hour 100 per 200 per 400 per Reduce this number if you are hour hour hour offering plates for food

Stocking a Standard Cocktail Bar

If you do want to stock a full bar, most needs can be met by having the following on hand:

• Vodka • Rum • Tequila • Gin • Ricard • Scotch • Bourbon • Blended Whiskey

Stocking a Complete Cocktail Bar

If you want to offer more cocktail choices, in addition to the standard bar consider also stocking:

• Drambuie • Kahlua or other coffee flavored liqueur

• B&B (Brandy & Benedictine) • Crème de Menthe

• Triple Sec or Cointreau • Crème de Cacao

• Apple Pucker Schnapps • Amaretto

• Bailey's Irish Creme • Brandy and/or Cognac

• Southern Comfort • Grand Marnier

• Peach Schnapps • Grand Marnier

• Mixers and Garnishes • Frangelico

Depending on the cocktails you plan on offering, you may need any or all of the following:

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9 • Juices – orange juice, grapefruit juice, cranberry juice, tomato juice or V8, pineapple, lemon or lime juice, Pomegranate. • For fresh squeezed juices, you can estimate that the average lemon or lime will yield about an ounce of juice, an orange will yield between 1 1/2 - 3 oz. of juice depending on its size. • Mixes – Bloody Mary mix, Margarita mix • Carbonated beverages – club soda, tonic water, cola, 7-Up or Sprite, ginger ale. • Flavoring ingredients – Angostura bitters for drinks like Old Fashioneds, salt, pepper or horseradish for drinks like Bloody Marys, confectioner's sugar for fizzes and flips, grenadine, simple syrup, cream of coconut, etc. • Dry vermouth if you plan on making martinis. • Sweet vermouth if you plan on making Manhattans. • Grenadine • Sweet & Sour • Salt or sugar for rimming cocktail glasses (for Margaritas). • Milk, half and half, cream, whipped cream or possibly even ice cream. • Coffee – for hot drinks and last call, no alcohol. • Garnishes like lemon or lime peel or wedges, orange slices, Maraschino cherries, olives, cocktail onions or celery stalks.

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