The Appetizer Rule To Remember For Better Dinner Parties

The most stressful part of hosting a dinner party isn't getting your space prim and proper before guests arrive, or deciding how to cook multiple things in your oven and on your stove for maximum efficiency. Really, all of the stress starts when you're deciding on your menu and trying to do the math for how much food to buy based on the number of people coming to your celebration. Certainly, you don't want to leave anyone hungry, but you also need to ensure that you're not spoiling the literal and figurative "meat" of the evening: The main course. 

The key to quantifying the number of appetizers you'll need to make or purchase is to first consider what else you're serving at your event. If you're serving a hearty meal, you don't need to load up on the spicy little smokies or the homemade crab rangoon (no matter how delicious they may be). Rather, your appetizers can serve as an introduction to the evening and something to tide your guests over before the real meal starts.

If you're serving a whole meal, expect that people will eat anywhere between 2 to 4 ounces of appetizers while they're milling about. This might look like a couple of shrimps, a little bit of crudité with dip, or maybe a few slices of cheese and crackers. You can assume about five to six light bite items in total — which should be easy to do the math for if you're shopping for pre-made apps. However, if you're skipping the sit-down meal altogether, you should double the amount of apps and assume each guest will eat between 10 to 12 bites. But then, that begs the question — is it really a dinner party, or a snack party? And if it's a snack party, can we get an invite? 

Not only will this tip ensure that your guests are satiated until the meal starts, but it will prevent you from having too much food and having to repurpose your leftovers. So next time you throw a dinner party, remember this: Your appetizers are only the beginning of a wonderful evening.