What’s a better compliment when hosting a party than hearing people rave about their delicious meal? Of course, any host wants to know the food is so good everyone wants seconds, but preparing beautiful dishes for your next get-together doesn’t just mean taking that golden turkey out of the oven at the perfect temperature. If you want to impress your guests with your recipes beyond your seasoning skills, curating a stylish serving table is a great way to do it.

What You Need

Most of us have attended an event where we were ready to dive into the appetizers and drinks, but the serving setup was so disorderly that we didn’t know where to begin. Not only can this impact the overall mood, but sometimes it may ruin appetites, too. So, prioritizing a cohesive and organized presentation ensures a seamless and enjoyable experience. Generally, what you’ll need for your table design depends on what you’re serving, but these are the basics of every serving setup:

• Serving trays or tiered serving stands
• Ice buckets or drink dispensers
• Unbreakable glassware
• Napkin holders
• Risers
• Utensil holders
• Decor

Photo credit: Rene Asmussen

How To Style It

Glassware, Drinks, and Risers

You may not want to use risers if you’re worried about anything on your table getting knocked over. Otherwise, you want to place those first. These will act as the serving base for your drinks. Position your glassware and drink dispensers on them to give a little height for easy access. When using ice buckets, you can place those on the table without anything beneath.

Serving Trays and Stands

Use your serving trays or stands to display your food however you want. Arrange everything in a particular order for the most visual appeal.

Napkins and Utensils

Place your napkin and utensil station. You’ll want to keep these items together beside the plates. This station is best positioned on one end of the table to give guests an indication of which direction to serve themselves.

Decor

Position your decor within and around your setup. Make sure you don’t cover any of the food; you want to avoid having guests move anything to grab something to eat. Likewise, don’t place anything too close to the drinks, or you might have a few spills.

Luckily, H&T has compiled everything you need to make your next get-together your best one yet. Scroll below for our top picks.

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