Elite Partners
Read More ›
Entertaining Like a Pro: Holiday Hosting Tips from Herban Feast’s Culinary Director
Holiday season means one thing for hosts: pressure. Whether you’re planning a corporate client appreciation party or an intimate gathering at home, the goal is the same: you want people talking about it well into January. Herban Feast, the Seattle-based farm-to-table catering company and award-winning creative force behind some of the region’s most memorable events since 1999, has a few ideas on how to get there.
We sat down with newly appointed Culinary Director Brian Doherty for his take on hosting smarter this season, whether you’re leading a boardroom toast or a living room full of friends and family.
Prep as much as you possibly can, in advance.
“The hosts who enjoy their own party are the ones who did the work two days earlier, not two hours earlier,” Doherty says. His advice: build a timeline that front- loads everything that can be made ahead: sauces, doughs, garnishes, even fully assembled apps that just need a final bake. For corporate events, that means walking into the venue with a checklist instead of a to-do list. For at-home entertaining, it means actually being in the room with your guests instead of stuck at the stove.
Pre-mix a signature mocktail and let guests make it their own.
One of Doherty’s favorite moves for mixed crowds is a build-your-own cocktail bar anchored by a pre-batched, non-alcoholic base. Mix a signature mocktail ahead of time, something bright and seasonal, like a spiced cranberry-ginger shrub and set it out with a small selection of spirits alongside it. Guests who want a cocktail add their own pour; guests who don’t, don’t. It’s inclusive, it’s low-lift for the host, and it still feels like a “signature drink” moment.
Know when to outsource.
Doherty is candid about the biggest lever hosts can pull: catering. “There’s a real difference between a gathering and an event people remember,” he says. Offering a curated spread of heavy apps, the kind that let guests build a full plate without ever needing a fork, instantly elevates the room, whether that’s an office holiday party or a private gathering for thirty. It also frees the host to actually enjoy the party.
That philosophy: hospitality that feels elevated and effortless, is what’s earned Herban Feast its reputation across Seattle’s corporate and private event scene for over two decades. This holiday season, it might be worth outsourcing the stress and keeping the fun.
Learn more about Herban Feast quick consultation for your holiday catering with Herban Feast today: https://landmarkeventco.com/herban-feast-catering
Follow Us
Mountain Bar Gets a Nutty Update
Brown & Haley introduces its first new Mountain Bar flavor in more than 50 years.
Tacoma confectioner Brown & Haley is raising the bar. Earlier this summer, the century-old candy maker rolled out a new Mountain Bar featuring rich milk chocolate and pieces of Oregon-grown hazelnuts. Developed in partnership with Oregon Hazelnut Growers, the release celebrates a crop with deep regional roots. Oregon produces 99% of the hazelnuts grown in…
Onigiri on the Rise
Japan’s iconic snack is all the rage from baseball games to Seattle boardrooms, thanks to Onigiri Sen.
Anyone who’s been lucky enough to visit Japan has almost certainly made a pit stop at a 7-Eleven—and left with enough onigiri to feed a bus full of tourists. For the uninitiated, onigiri are rice balls stuffed with seafood or veggies and often wrapped in seaweed. It’s a culinary tradition that’s endured for centuries. Samurai…
Restaurant Roundup: Thick Burgers and Local Island Eats
Here’s what was served up recently in the Emerald City.
Have you heard? Wallingford is home to one of the best new restaurants in the country, at least according to a recent ranking from Bon Appétit. The Wayland Mill is known for its yoshoku Americana cuisine—foods like biscuits and gravy or Buffalo chicken prepared with a Japanese influence—and continues to enamor Pacific Northwest diners with…
Opening Night: Sea’d In Tries Something a Little Different With Seafood
The new Chophouse Row restaurant dry-ages fish and cooks them over an open flame—old-school techniques that feel refreshing.
Seattle is full of seafood restaurants, for good reason—the water’s right there, and the city is home to several marine-focused culinary cultures—but sometimes eating yet another piece of salmon or black cod can feel stale, no matter how fresh the fish is. So why have I been seeing Sea’d In, a new seafood restaurant inside…