In scanning an article in a recent edition of FOOD & WINE, I learned that there are two things we should never bring to a dinner party. This is according to ultimate host and cook, Ina Garten.

The first thing Ina says we should never bring to a dinner party is any food item that the host feels obligated to serve. During an interview on Today’s Sunday Sit-Down podcast, the Barefoot Contessa explained that this common gesture inadvertently creates extra stress and work for the host.

 

 

As an example, bringing unexpected food (such as a Jell-O salad, chips and guacamole or salsa,) can completely disrupt the host's carefully planned menu and timeline. Garten notes that hosts often feel pressured to put it out immediately, even if it does not match the meal.

 

And the second thing Ina says we should never bring to a dinner party are flowers that are not already arranged and in a vase. Handing a host a loose bouquet forces them to abandon their guests right as people are arriving so they can hunt down a container, trim the stems, and find a place to display them.

 

 

While it’s always good, as a receiver, to remember “It’s the thought that counts,” it’s good as well to consider Ina’s counsel. She’s hosted many hundreds of parties over the years and has also gotten feedback from other prolific party-givers—so she knows wherewith she speaks.

 

Better choices, Garten recommends, would be gifts the host can enjoy in the near future, such as

·         high-quality coffee beans

·         beautifully packaged herbal teas

·         specialty chocolates

·         homemade granola

·         a jar of vanilla paste

·         a jar of special jam wrapped in a tea towel

·         a basket of fresh fruit

·         specialty pancake/waffle mix and/or syrup

 

 

In conclusion to Ina’s advice, I would add my own 2 cents to this conversation: I suggest we also avoid bringing anything that needs assembling on the spot. It’s much more helpful to the host (if we’re asked to bring anything) to have our assignment pre-assembled, ready to grace the table.

I confess I’ve made the fresh flowers mistake more than once. Going forward, I’ll be sure they’re already arranged in in a vase. Funny how some things just don’t occur to us, right?