{"id":517,"date":"2018-02-10T20:22:47","date_gmt":"2018-02-11T01:22:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/passionforwood.com\/cooking\/?page_id=517"},"modified":"2022-09-14T12:20:40","modified_gmt":"2022-09-14T16:20:40","slug":"dinner-parties","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/passionforwood.com\/cooking\/dinner-parties\/","title":{"rendered":"Dinner Parties"},"content":{"rendered":"

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[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.16″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” global_colors_info=”{}” column_structure=”1_3,2_3″][et_pb_column type=”1_3″ _builder_version=”4.16″ custom_padding=”|||” global_colors_info=”{}” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_sidebar area=”sidebar-1″ module_id=”sidebmenu” _builder_version=”4.16″ remove_border=”off” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_sidebar][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”2_3″ _builder_version=”4.16″ custom_padding=”|||” global_colors_info=”{}” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text admin_label=”Dinner Parties Title” _builder_version=”4.16″ use_border_color=”off” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n

Dinner Parties<\/h1>\n

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Sample
\nMexican Dinner Party Menu
\n(One Cocktail + 7 Dishes)<\/h2>\n

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Mexican dinner parties are so much fun because Mexican food is somehow automatically festive. Tortilla chips, salsa, guacamole and pico de gallo are party food, yet you can choose dishes that say “gourmet” at the same time. Above you’ll see a sample menu that includes 7 dishes plus a margarita at the start. In total, you have a great cocktail, two dishes to snack on with freshly fried tortilla chips as your guests arrive, then three appetizers, a main course and a dessert. This is a fairly elaborate meal and so delicious as the food is spread out over about 3 to 4 hours. Menus can be planned even more extensive than this, with two cocktails (margaritas and sangria), more pre-dinner snacks, another appetizer, a side dish to go with the main and two desserts. Your budget is the only limitation.<\/p>\n

[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_divider show_divider=”off” _builder_version=”4.16″ height=”30px” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_divider][et_pb_text admin_label=”Hungarian filmstrip” _builder_version=”4.16″ use_border_color=”off” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n

Sample
Hungarian Dinner Party Menu
(8 Dishes)<\/h2>\nngg_shortcode_1_placeholder\n

[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_divider show_divider=”off” _builder_version=”4.16″ height=”20px” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_divider][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.16″ use_border_color=”off” global_colors_info=”{}”]Hungarian dinner parties, to me, are perhaps a little less “festive” but offer some absolutely delicious home cooking in the European style. I’ve had many clients over the years who are Austrian, German or from other European countries and they crave the kind of home style cooking they grew up with. The particular menu above includes a soup course, two salads (one cold, one warm), two delicious appetizers, a main course, one side dish and a dessert. Again, the menu can be made smaller or can be extended with more appetizers or even two desserts. It all depends on your budget for the event.
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How Does a Dinner Party in My Home Work?<\/h2>\n

A dinner party in your home starts by selecting a menu, deciding on how many people will be attending and choosing a date that works for both of us.\u00a0 Then I will need to give you a quote based on a number of factors.\u00a0 Firstly, my fee has to include my travel time and mileage to get to your home and back.\u00a0 My fee also has to reflect the number of people who will attend the dinner, the number of dishes and courses to be served and so on.\u00a0 My fee also covers my time for meal planning, purchasing the groceries, travel, prep. time, service and clean-up.\u00a0 Some of my clients want “full service” in the sense that they don’t want to have to do anything other than provide the kitchen.\u00a0 Others are willing to take on some tasks such as grocery shopping (based on an ingredient list I provide) or even clean-up, which means that you’ll see some discounts.\u00a0 If you are planning a formal dinner for a special occasion, you’ll probably want me to do almost everything.\u00a0 However if you’re gathering up a group of friends for a “ladies night out” sort of event, you might be willing to do some of the work to bring the pricing down to some extent.\u00a0 Everything can be customized to your needs provided you have an appropriate budget.\u00a0 For example, for small dinner parties with 6 or 8 people I can handle the event on my own.\u00a0 But for a large event with 15 or 20 people I will need to hire an assistant or two unless the client wishes to take part and help out too.<\/p>\n

Also, some of my clients prefer for the dinner party to simply involve eating food and enjoying the evening, whereas I have other clients who wish to take part in some of the preparations in order to learn more about cooking, develop some new knife skills and so on.\u00a0 So an event can also be planned as some combination of both cooking class and dinner party.\u00a0 Sometimes I call it a “cooking party”, meaning that anyone who would like to can take part in the cooking and, of course, also enjoy the food as we go along.\u00a0 Anything goes, but we do need to agree on all the details so that I can estimate the number of hours the event will involve, how much planning on my part and also the total cost to you.<\/p>\n

Generally speaking, when I run an event like this in your home, you provide your kitchen with standard equipment (fridge, stove, oven) as well as typical pots, pans, serving utensils, etc. that most homeowner’s would have.\u00a0 You would also provide napkins, plates, bowls, drinking glasses and drinks (wine, juices, etc.).\u00a0 I would shop for the food and bring everything I need to cook the meal, as well as any specialized equipment you might not have (mortar & pestle, lime press, spice grinder, wok, spider, etc.).\u00a0 Should a client decide that they would like me to bring all equipment and even all dinner ware, glasses, etc., that can also be arranged but of course prices will escalate rather quickly.\u00a0 Everything depends on your budget.<\/p>\n

When I provide cocktails at events like this, I only provide non-alcoholic “mixes” and you provide your own liquor or wine to mix into it yourself so that a liquor permit is not required.\u00a0 So, for example, for a Mexican sangria I provide the strawberries, blueberries, apples, lime juice, sparkling water, etc. and you supply the red wine or white wine, as you wish. \u00a0A non-alcoholic version of sangria can also be supplied for children or others who do not drink alcohol using red or white grape juice.<\/p>\n

Another issue that needs to be discussed in advance is whether there are any food allergies or other dietary issues that might need to be addressed.\u00a0 That will also need to be reflected in the pricing, as providing special versions of some food items generally involves more time, effort and ingredients.<\/p>\n

For a dinner party with a smaller number of dishes, I would arrive about 3 to 3 1\/2 hours before the meal is to start.\u00a0 With more complex menus with a larger number of dishes (7 or more), I might need to arrive 6 or 7 hours in advance or even early morning.\u00a0 But 3 to 3 1\/2 hours would be typical for an average menu with perhaps a total of 5 dishes.\u00a0 If dinner is to start around 6:30 p.m., you might invite your guests to arrive closer to 5:30.\u00a0 When they arrive, they can start with a cocktail or glass of wine along with some of the pre-dinner snacks if it is a Mexican menu.\u00a0 Then the multi-course meal can start at 6:30 and run until sometime between 8:30 and 9:30, depending on the number of courses. When the meal is over, your guests can continue to chat, have more drinks, etc., as I clean up the kitchen.\u00a0 Then I’ll be on my way once all pots and pans have been cleaned and put away and all dishes placed in your dishwasher.<\/p>\n

If you wish to explore the possibilities for a private dinner party or even a “cooking party”, email me at info@passionforfood.ca<\/a>.\u00a0 I can give you a rough idea of pricing based on location, number of people and number of dishes or courses.\u00a0 But to give a very accurate final quotation, I need to really get into the details of specific dishes and ingredients, whether you wish to help out in any way with shopping or clean-up, whether you would like to take part in any of the prep. or cooking in order to learn cooking techniques, and so on.<\/p>\n

So if you’re looking to put on a dinner party that your friends and family will be talking about for a long time, contact me at Passion for Food and we’ll go over the details. I am willing to provide services as a personal chef or private chef, as needed.<\/p>\n

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  Dinner Parties Sample Mexican Dinner Party Menu (One Cocktail + 7 Dishes)