Now that the weather is warm and the sun is shining, what is more fun than getting your girlfriends together for an afternoon soiree full of great food and refreshments? Not much! Read on to check out my table spread, learn why French fry bars are awesome, and drool over some gorgeous food photos! I originally featured this party over at my food only blog, but I loved it so much I wanted to share it here too!
You know that I’m passionate about food and great ingredients. I love experimenting, so I decided to go with a french fry and onion ring bar as the star of my soiree and it turned out to be a great idea! I think they both have untapped potential because people usually think of them as overindulgent, but guess what? They don’t have to be.
When brainstorming about my party menu, I decided to keep it light and focus on bold flavors, bright colors and easy preparation. I started with a base of Rosemary and Sea Salt fries, Sweet Potato fries, and onion rings.
For the toppings bar I wanted to make sure I had a nice variety, so I did a spread of veggies, dips and even some vegetarian chili to round it out. Since I wanted to keep this party easy, I chose foods that didn’t require a lot of prep, and all I really had to do was cut/mix and serve for the most part. Here is what else I included:
- Pico de gallo
- Chunky guacamole
- Sweet corn
- Black beans
- Sour cream
- Multiple shredded cheeses
- Salsa
- Vegetarian chili (from my favorite local restaurant)
- Jalapenos
- Cilantro
I painted some cheap fry baskets gold and set them out with parchment paper for people to dress up their fries on, and I think it was a great touch – the baskets are perfect for holding and munching without any spills!
Oh.my.goodness. Just look at those fries! Talk about delicious – I don’t know which one I like better, the loaded taco fries or the vegetarian chili cheese fries! (Okay you got me. It’s the taco fries. Check out how to make them at the end of this post.) To balance out the heartiness of them, I set out a few bowls full of fresh fruit. I normally only do strawberries, but since this party was a little more food focused than my others I wanted it a bit more involved.
I also served different flavors of sparkling juices in pretty glass bottles along with mint leaves and fresh blackberries for garnish. How’s that for refreshment? Yum!
I rounded out my spread with individual bags of homemade snack mix for guests to take home. You can find the recipe for these here, but it’s super simple and involves cereal, Goldfish crackers, and white chocolate chips.
For the decor I went simple and let my food be the star of the show. I am loving subtle, feminine hues right now so I went with a matte gold and rose color scheme that really complemented the brights of my toppings and the lush green backdrop. I think gold is such a trendy color right now – I’m seeing it everywhere and it seems like most people are pairing it with pink, black, or white which is a great modern look for parties. I found the cutest roses in just the right color the day of the party, so of course I had to display them!
Aren’t they beautiful? That’s it for my spread for the most part. I included a few other elements here and there, but I think I have the main things covered already. And just in case you aren’t tired of the photo explosion yet, here are some random shots for you.
