Some weekends call for making your own fun, especially after so many organized holiday events that occur between November and December. What are the key ingredients that play a part in having fun and being entertained? This is a broad question that I aim to answer with every aspect of this blog. But, a simple answer would be: food, people, and music. If you find yourself with a free night and the desire to have some low-maintenance, relaxed fun, I Rebeccammend a solution that includes these key elements, if you’re up for hosting in your home, and are in the mood to be a little espontáneo. Terminology and concept courtesy of Halley Claire Bass: A Petit Soirée.
What is a soirée? you might ask, as did some of our guests upon receiving last minute text and phone call invitations. According to Merriam-Webster, a soirée is simply an evening party. About 24 hours prior to the petit (small) gathering, the concept of a Petit Soirée was born by Halley, and about 6 hours before the first guests arrived, the desire to host one that evening arose, upon which invitations were sent out. Key to making the Petit Soirée successful were the impromptu nature of it, and the no-stress, no-hassle way it came together. The last minute rounding up of good company and good food (we ran through Central Market in about 20 minutes) made the evening unlike other parties we’ve hosted at home. We even had one guest who drove 10 hours to attend the soirée that was planned after he left the city he came from!
And the result didn’t disappoint. For simplicity’s sake, wine and beer were served, and guests were told to bring a drink, snack, or musical instrument of their choice to supplement our in-house goodies. Contributions included Jesse’s Smoky Chipotle Hummus and Emily’s Baked Brie. For the pseudo-planned jam session, our friend Alex who has 6 (?) guitars brought two of them, and special guest Daniel Mordecai Trub came with a guitar, a drum, a maraca, and his natural beat-boxing talents (he’s a high achiever and a very good wingman if you need one), all of which provided for a very energetic musical evening.
Halley and I dished up the following appetizers: Homemade Pita Chips for the hummus, No Fret-ta Bruschetta (made with a mulitgrain ficelle), pasta salad, and homemade guacamole (blended in the food processor with avocado, lime, garlic powder, tomatos, and habañero peppers –the hotter the better at TheRebeccammendations!). Almost every recipe called for 5 ingredients or less, which is recommended for such an impromtu mini-event.
In a nutshell, to throw a Petit Soirée of your own:
- Find a free night
- Give guests a 12-6 hour notice of the event (this helps keep it petit and enhances spontaneity)
- Think of quick and easy appetizers (or refer to TheRebeccammendations for ideas!)
- Make a grocery-store run to round up ingredients and beverages of choice
- Ask guests to bring favorite musical albums, burned CD’s, or for the full experience, any musical instruments they have in their collection.
- Light some candles and let the fun begin!
- Master the é accent symbol when writing (or typing) about your event.
See photos below of the fun that can be had at a petit soirée!
8 thoughts on “How to Host a Petit Soiree”
Susan January 10, 2010 at 7:45 pm
food looks good! i’ll try to make the next soiree;-)
Marcos January 10, 2010 at 8:47 pm
You forgot to mention that in order to enhance the mood, it’s always helpful to play muted raunchy comedies in the background projected onto the wall, such as Eurotrip or Borat. Delightful! Thanks for a nice time.
TheRebecca January 10, 2010 at 10:32 pm
Thanks, Marcos. Yes, I failed to mention the projector that displayed funny movies on our wall–muted of course, as to not disturb the jam session and great conversation.
Jenny D January 10, 2010 at 11:44 pm
So bummed I missed this- surely hope that ya’ll have another really soon!
Janee January 12, 2010 at 11:33 pm
I and my fear of commitment love this. We should all strive to soirée more and stress out less. BTW, I copied & pasted the accent. Does that count as mastery?
TheRebecca January 13, 2010 at 7:45 am
Jane!
Thank you for your comment! Yes, you have mastered the accent and are now fully equipped to throw a delightful soirée.
Erik January 16, 2010 at 3:06 pm
It was definitely worth the drive! 10 hours is a small price to pay for tasty food and warm company.
Queso-ra, Sera March 2, 2010 at 8:32 am
[…] for a compliment to round out the flavors I was experiencing. I may have to serve it at my next Petit Soiree. The shop sells several other culinary compliments, cheese cookbooks, and gifts such as […]