I've thrown a lot of parties in my time at Home House, the London members' club I co-founded, and Soho's L'Escargot, the restaurant and private club I co-own now. Everything depends on your budget but you can still throw a brilliant party whatever it is. The worst party is one where no one turns up. So if you have guests in the room, it's already a success.If it's a small party, it's more likely to be a sit-down dinner but for a larger party of say, 30 to 40 people or up to 100 people, it's better to have canapés. Then you need to decide how much you want to spend. Whether you want a limited number of canapés or what I call, substantial finger food. It doesn't meant eating your fingers but it means they can be things like mini hamburgers. Things that are filling rather than falling out of your hand.But you should be able to hold a glass in one hand.
The food
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People arrive to parties at different times so it's better to start serving food about an hour after you've invited people for. It's best to serve food for an hour or so, but if you've got lots of money, you have it going all night.If money was no object, I would most probably have caviar on little blinis. I would have a pâté de foie gras and prawns with a little bit of garlic. But not too much garlic because people want to get laid!
What to drink
… and later on?
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Food with a theme: yea or nay?
OTT Christmas or festive chic?
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