I’m not one of those people who love throwing parties; I tend to get an anxious/tired response whenever I’m faced with the concept of interacting with more than three people at a time. Throw in the logistics associated with parties (menu decisions, set up/break down, decor), and you basically have a recipe for a very stressed-out me. But I wanted to start off my 29th year by giving a little back to the people who have helped me through a crazy few months…and an evening of delicious food and copious drink seemed like the perfect way to do that.
Goal: make things as easy and relaxed as possible.
(Above, Kendrick helping me with a little pre-party shopping.)
I’ve thrown those parties where I’ve spent days creating from-scratch hors d’oeuvres, pastel-y little cupcakes, and specialty drinks. This was not one of those; I wanted to spend my time with my friends, not with my stove. No bells, no whistles, and no highfalutin’ anything at all: just straightforward, fun food, simple decorations, enough beer for an army, and some of my favorite people in the world (including Dave and Stephen, pictured below).
Oh, and a gold bow bracelet never hurts.
The Food: Hot-off-the-grill White Castle (there’s one on 39th and 8th Avenue) and an assortment of Hostess goodies (Yodels, Funny Bones, Twinkies, Devil Dogs, etc), alongside a couple of totally out-of-place and yet totally delicious platters of Armenian string cheese and the aforementioned guacamole. If you’ve never had Armenian string cheese (pictured above right), you must try it: it’s basically a high-end version of Polly-O with a little extra kick, can be found in your local deli or grocery store, and is guaranteed to totally baffle your guests.
The Drinks: Inspired by my recent adventures at the Breslin, I served up pickle back shots…in Sesame Street-themed Dixie cups, of course. Scott and Bruce brought over some absolutely delicious Sledgehammer Zinfandel, and I filled a bucket with a totally high-class assortment of PBR, Schlitz, Schaefer’s, and Milwaukee’s Best.
Remember Given, the tequila that I raved about at the MTV Hired/She Finds party? They sent over a few bottles as a gift, which were quite the hit.
Given Bisou
What you need:
3 parts Given
1 part champagne
4 mint leaves
What you do:
1. Pour Given and mint leaves into a shaker filled with ice.
2. Shake vigorously and strain into champagne flute.
3. Slowly add champagne.
4. Garnish with a raspberry.
Clockwise from above: with Andrea; Jenn and Becca; with Casey of fabulous blog CaseyCulture and her boyfriend Joel; Sarah and Evelyn with some apres-party hot dogs at Rudy’s; with Jenn; Jose and Laura with some W.C.
(Yeah, I changed halfway through the party. The leopard-print started feeling a little tarty.)
Party Stress-Relief Tip: Write out a to-do list for each of the three days preceding the party, designating some tasks to grudgingly helpful husbands/friends, and get as much done in advance as possible. On the day of the party, all we had to do was hang the lights, make the guacamole, and get dressed.
