Crowd-Pleasing Fare

 

You can’t stop talking about how much you want everyone on the dance floor at your reception. You’ve booked a top-notch band and made sure there’s plenty of space for your cousin to do his bring-the-house-down breakdance sequence. How to keep everyone electric sliding until the wee small hours? Late night snacks will do the trick.

Grab And Geaux

The idea of the later-served snack is to provide some quick sustenance for your party people and get them back out on the dance floor. Colleen Page, Associate Director, Meetings & Special Events at The Ritz-Carlton, New Orleans, says to keep the concepts grabbable. “Things that are ‘popable’, and easy to eat quickly are best,” said Page, who recommends mini grilled cheeses, sliders and beignets.

Simple And Savory

Your party guests have been pillaging the bar, so they’ll need something to soak up the champagne. Katie Morris, Owner of Black Pearl Catering, says to lean towards savory bites. “Heartier or familiar items light up guests’ eyes and it gives them a little extra boost to extend the festivities.” In addition, Walker Geoffray, Executive Chef and Owner of Black Pearl Catering, recommends arranging for the rounds of snacks to be passed by waiters, not sectioned out at a station where guests need to leave to retrieve them. Said Geoffray, “Finishing items on-site is important to us so that the hot chicken biscuit and curry fries are coming to you warm and fresh!”

Relaxed Snacks

You’ve more than likely wowed earlier in the reception with layered fare, so here is an opportunity to make a fun statement, says Danielle Lee, partner and chief of experience operations at My House Events. “The late night snack is a great way to differentiate between the more formal wedding food and the party food,” says Lee, who has been known to arrange for crowd-pleasing, piping hot boxes of pizza in at the end of the night. “Unlike the more traditional, ‘fancier’ reception foods, the late night snack gives the couple an opportunity to showcase a casual favorite or regional snack and get people to let loose.”


 

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