Traditionally, Thanksgiving is a time for appreciating the things we have in life, sharing moments with friends and family, eating till you're fit to burst, and - if you're responsible for hosting the party - stressing or downright panicking over how to serve all those people and get all that food on the table without losing your sanity or spending a fortune. (I won't even go into the separate stress over cooking. That's a whole book's worth of articles unto itself... )
However, there are creative ways to get around all those things. If you're hosting a holiday party (or any event, for that matter), perhaps the best advice I can offer is this: think like a caterer. Caterers generally put out a spread of phenomenal food (but don't worry about that part yet) that is laid out beautifully. People walk into catered events and ask "Who did the catering?" because it looks so good. Loads of food, all displayed to perfection and, especially at buffet-style or even family-style events, easy to get to. That is the key.
If you've ever waited five minutes at one end of the table for Uncle Harvey to finish telling Second Cousin Martha the story about "The Time He Met The Vice President While In the Hospital to Have That Mole Removed" so you could ask her to pass the green bean salad, you know what I mean. No matter how big your table is, or even if you have a separate table for food, chances are it's going to be jam-packed with every single serving dish you own (and a few you borrowed), and someone will still manage to dunk their sleeve in the cranberry sauce.
There are alternatives. Caterers deal with this kind of thing all the time, and on larger scales to boot. So do restaurants. It's not an unknown problem, just one that non-hospitality industry folks don't generally have to think about. How do you increase the amount of space you have for food, when you only have limited space? How can you make sure that the food at the back of the table is as easily accessible as that at the front? (Except for maybe Great Aunt Edna's Okra-and-Anchovy Dip. That might be best forgotten in the kitchen.)
Risers, my friend. Food risers, to be exact. Caterers understand the importance, both logistically and esthetically, of having different levels, sizes, colors and shapes in food displays. Food risers take care of that wonderfully, and unlike an empty cardboard box with a decorative towel or napkin over it, they won't collapse from the weight of the mashed potatoes. Over the years, the hospitality industry has created numerous handy products that deal with just these issues.
No, your Friendly Neighborhood Superstore isn't going to have a "catering products" aisle, nor is the Mini Market down the street. In order to get the products that foodservice industry professionals use, you're going to have to shop where they do.
Stop panicking, it's easy. They shop at specialty stores or, even easier, online. All you need to do is check the yellow pages or the Internet for "food risers" or "hospitality displays" (or something similar) and, boom, you will have a very long list of places that can help you. Online stores are generally going to be easier, as they will (hopefully) have pictures of everything, as well as detailed descriptions of what they do, how they're used, etc.
Back to risers. They come in all shapes, sizes, and finishes, or at least all the shapes and sizes and finishes you're probably going to need for a holiday party. Black, white, wood, metal, you get the picture. Small to tall, wide to thin, long to short. The products are out there. And even better, most online sites will show pictures of them in use, which may give you even more ideas. They're not ridiculously expensive, and by shopping at specialty outlets you will get a much better price than at a "regular" store who probably a) has never heard of what you're looking for and b) will have to special order it.
And it's not just food risers that can make your food-display-and-serving problems disappear faster than Grandma's 100-Proof Chocolate Rum Balls. Specialty food service stores have lots of nifty products, like multi-gallon drink dispensers that actually look attractive. Sick of getting up every five minutes when someone needs a refill of their sweet tea? Dump the whole batch into a dispenser and let them serve themselves. And it's almost a certain guarantee that someone will say, "Wow, what a super idea! Where did you find it?" Whether you smile secretively and shrug or give the idea away is up to you.
Specialty products from the foodservice arena can make a world of difference in your entertaining, especially as far as presentation is concerned. For everything from cake stands, food risers, drink dispensers, even decorator toothpicks, there are industry-specific shops out there that will have something to make your holiday entertaining easier. The best part is, the choice of whether to have things end up looking like they were catered by a pro or still looking like a perfect relaxed and low-key family party is purely in how you use them. The presentation is up to you; all these products will do is make it feel like less of a "production number." Which, hopefully, means less stress for you!
