Life is a party

We all know that throwing a wonderful party, or even just a lovely dinner, is mainly about the guests. Ensuring they are comfortable in your home, having a good time and all. As a Mediterranean, my first interpretation of this is: people need to be able to eat enough to be able to sustain a month-long desert crossing without any food or drink. I have toned this down a bit over the years, seeing as we were constantly left with a fridge full of leftovers, but the habit remains: if you come to our home for a meal, bring a serious appetite, in fact the best approach is to fast for one full day before, just to be sure. What else is important? Let’s see: will guests who are meeting for the first time get along, have I cooked these dishes for them before, do they eat everything or are they a little picky, are there guests who don’t drink, do I have my friends’ favourite drinks, do they like chocolatey desserts or fruity ones, so on and so forth…

Next, planning. The bigger the do the longer you need to plan ahead, especially if you do have an everyday job. Typically I will plan a meal, anything from four people to twenty-five, three to five days in advance (in Johannesburg you sometimes have to go around a few shops to find all the groceries you need, because the stock levels for special ingredients such as quails or tahini can vary, so I make a list on Monday and Hubby Dearest and I go on a hunting party during the week), a party for the children’s birthdays takes a good four weeks (and you have to make sure you send those invites on time to secure that one week-end afternoon you want!), and our end of year holiday drinks is something I start thinking about in October.

I usually choose one theme from the tableware to the food, and when we’re having big parties I go all out with branches of finbos hanging from the ceiling or mini potted lemon trees. I love Mediterranean and Eastern European inspired food, and spend a lot of time peering down books by my favourites, Yotam Ottolenghi and Ina Garten, although I have had a River Cafe book for over ten years that always yields the most delicious food. I know there is a rule book somewhere that says don’t try new recipes for a party, I say where’s the fun in life if you’re not a little adventurous, plus there is always the nearest pizza joint if it’s a real disaster. But again, make sure you plan, plan, and plan some more. If you can make anything ahead of time, do: pastry bases for quiches are super easy to make, you can store them in the fridge until next morning and bake them on the day, also you can freeze mini canapes for when you need them. Whatever happens, when you’re hosting, cook up a storm if you enjoy it, or order in if it’s your thing. Someone once tried to explain to me how important it was for a good hostess to have a great catering company on hand, so she doesn’t disturb her hosting with menial kitchen tasks, … I am still trying to understand what wrongful impression I gave this lady that she thought to share this meshuga advice with me as if I was ever going to follow it. I like to cook, the more the better, period.

On the day of the party, I spend a lot of time setting up the table, or the decor if it’s a bigger thing. I love flowers that match the theme, glasses that go together but are not from the same set, and nothing sings to me as much as a gorgeous table lay, which is quite funny considering my mother had the same passion when I was growing up, and I used to sneer at how much effort she put into her tables and dinners… Full circle, I guess. In South Africa I have found a few brands that I love buying tablecloths from, such as Samesyn, Isobel Sippel, and I now buy fabric by the bulk to have our local tailor make into tablecloths. I also enjoy visiting antique shops for delft plates and old crystal glasses, however I can’t wait to go to London and visit the shop of The Edition 94, its Insta feed is so incredibly dreamy.

So, food is ready, the house looks amazing, sparkling and fabulous but not intimidating (we do not own any white sofas or Spanish inquisition style heavy dining chairs… and our kids and their toys own half of the kitchen – family room), time to relax, have a glass of bubbly, put on some make-up, although if your coq-au-vin is almost ready it’s best to stay with an eye on it than go apply lippy, you can always fix your face during aperitif, but you won’t be able to fix a burnt sauce.