How to be a Great Host/Hostess

1. Make your barbecue stress-free! Aside from the food that you will be grilling, prepare all the food before your guests arrive. That way, you won’t be busy chopping and dicing in the kitchen; instead, you’ll be able to devote your time to grilling and mingling with your guests. Enjoy yourself! A stressed out host/hostess makes guests uncomfortable. If you’re relaxed and having fun, you’re guests will be relaxed and have fun.

2. Mingle. If you feel that grilling and mingling at the same time is too much on your plate (no pun intended J) then have someone else be responsible for grilling the food. Perhaps someone in your family loves to cook outdoors over an open fire. Ask that person if he/she would like to grill. That way, you can devote your time to solely being the host/hostess of the barbecue.

3. Mi casa es su casa. As the popular saying goes, translated from Spanish to English, “my home/house is your home/house.” In other words, the phrase means that what is mine is yours. Remember this saying when you cater to the needs of your invited guests. Treat your guests as you would want to be treated. Provide extra towels if you are allowing the use of your pool at your barbecue event; offer sunscreen; supply bug spray; allow easy access to the guest bathroom; provide plenty of parking; etc.

4. Be gracious. If you are not hosting a potluck-style barbecue, but one or more of your guests brings a pie, his or her favorite side dish, or beverages to share, thank them graciously. The more food and drink, the merrier!

At the end of your event, if there’s plenty of leftover food, wrap up a plate for each of your guests to take home. It’s a nice gesture, and they’ll appreciate it. (In this case, if you’ve been using china dinnerware for your barbeque, having paper plates handy and aluminum foil and/or Glad^® clear plastic wrap to cover up the food for your guests to take home would be ideal. Zip-loc^® plastic bags and plastic Tupperware^® containers may also be useful).

Finally, thank your guests for coming!