Advocates of the local food scene and host of SLCmixer events, Josh and Becky Rosenthal share some easy-to-execute entertaining tips.
There’s a good chance you’ve never heard of Josh and Becky Rosenthal until now.
There’s an equally good chance, however, you’ve stirred up their thevintagemixer.com recipes, studied their food features on theSLCfoodie.com, sipped their Charming Beard coffee at a Salt Lake eatery or attended one of the SLCmixer events for which they are professional hosts. Clearly this dynamic duo is crazed for anything culinary—if it’s Utah born, that is.
“If we can drive more people to buy local ingredients or eat at locally owned places, then we are successful,” says Josh. We asked this couple for a few tips on turning food-related get-togethers into memorable experiences.
Interact
Shared interests, objects and foods instantly connect people. Gather guests around a communal table, serve family style and involve them in the making of the meal. Create a party around local food including Utah cheeses, farmer’s market produce and specialty cocktails. Encourage guests to bring a piece of their favorite china or glassware for the tabletop, or to contribute their favorite pinot noirs or garden tomatoes to share and compare.
Decorate
Engage guests with unique table settings. Line a table with toasters for use during a Utah jam tasting. For a wine party, create place card holders from corks and use wine-region maps as tablecloths. Short on unique tableware? Serve water in empty High West Distillery whiskey bottles from Park City and rent dinnerware pieces from a local antique or secondhand store. For about 10 percent of the cost of the items, you can borrow them for the day.
Move It
Give your dining room a break. Host a picnic in the living room with a blanket on the floor. Dine perched on pillows around a cocktail table or gather around a farm table set in the middle of your yard. And move your guests by serving appetizers, entrees and desserts in different spots in your home and gardens.
Take Away
Send guests home with something special that extends the experience. Homemade cookie dough for the freezer, local pastries for tomorrow morning’s breakfast or herb plants for an upcoming culinary adventure make memories of your party live on.
Josh and Becky Rosenthal
Enjoy
Relax. An at-ease host makes all the difference in giving a get-together a comfortable, calm vibe.
For a listing of upcoming SLCmixer events, log on to slcmixers.bigcartel.com
