Food & Libations

 As with décor, menu planning for the party can be as simple or elaborate as you wish. Whichever route you decide to go, choosing things that can be made ahead (or ordered out) is a great idea. On the day/evening of the event, there will be much to do and many last-minute tasks. Cooking a complete meal just before the guests arrive can be extremely challenging and keep you from being present with your guests. We recommend preparing your dishes, or at least the prep for them, the day before. That way you will just need to reheat or do a few final steps on a recipe before the guests arrive. Ordering food from a restaurant is not cheating and will allow you to relax and enjoy the party more. A combination of the two is ideal – order out for a complex entrée and make the appetizers and sides yourself.

Look again to your theme and location for culinary inspiration when planning your menu. Choose foods that you enjoy and that you feel confident preparing. One of our favorite parts of planning mystery parties is researching the culture, history and cuisine of our mystery locations and finding authentic recipes.

With regard to drinks, we like to set up a self-service bar on a small table, bookcase, on top of a piano, whatever you have available. Position the bar away from the food to ensure good traffic flow. This is a great opportunity for some eclectic glassware and decanters. Thrift shops are great places to find interesting items with character. We like to offer both alcoholic and non-alcoholic options, plus water. One fun idea is to plan make-your-own cocktails, providing an array of ingredients, a framed recipe, and extra garnishes such as fruit, salts, herbs, etc. A pre-mixed punch is another easy way to go. For larger parties, we go with nice quality plastic cups rather than glassware.

We choose between two routes as far as menu planning, usually based on the size of the party and the plot of the mystery. For smaller parties, we offer a sit-down meal. We may also do the same for even a bit larger party, if there is cause for a formal meal in the story line such as a holiday meal or a fictitious dinner party. Appetizers are offered near the bar as guests arrive, and the rest of the meal is then served at the dining table at the appointed time. In these scenarios, we frequently hold the dessert and coffee back until later in the evening, perhaps for when the mystery has been solved and guests are discussing the evening’s events.

The other option, which works particularly well with large parties, is to offer a buffet where all of your dishes are offered up at once, at the same table. This way, all of your food preparation takes place just prior to the start of the party, you put all of your dishes out, and then you are done with the cooking and serving. All that is needed is to keep an eye on supplies. Guests are invited at the appointed time to help themselves to dinner at the buffet and they can eat and graze as they wish throughout the party. Be sure to provide sufficient heat to keep hot foods hot and ice to keep cold foods cold. In this case, we put desserts out at the start of the party as well, although perhaps in a different location, with coffee and tea.

It’s also considerate to create signs for your dishes that describe what they are and list any possibly allergenic ingredients. You can also have fun naming them according to your theme.