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7 Showstopping Dishes to Make for Your Guests This Holiday Season

7 Showstopping Dishes to Make for Your Guests This Holiday Season

7 Showstopping Dishes to Make for Your Guests This Holiday Season

In many restaurants dining has become more than just eating an enjoyable meal. It’s now akin to a live stage show. As they famously did in the mid-20th century, chefs are leaving the kitchen to carve prime rib and light fluffy meringue on fire tableside, engaging all your senses in the preparation and plating of your food. 

This holiday season, invite your private chef or caterer to do the same, finishing off showstopping dishes in full view of guests and bringing the excitement and extravagance of a white-tablecloth experience to your dining room. “People don’t want to just be served,” says Angus McIntosh, a private chef in New York City who works with DM Estate Staffing. “They want to be involved in the entirety of the meal—they want to know what’s going on.”

That said, don’t go overboard. The key is choosing one or two courses to receive the theatrical treatment, which keeps things less complicated for your kitchen and more special for your guests, according to New York City–based private chef Maddy DeVita

“You don’t want your guests to say, ‘Oh, here we go again…’ ” she says. “When people are at a dinner party, they’re there to enjoy good food, but they’re also there to talk with company, and you don’t want to take up their attention for too long.” 

And for holiday dinners especially, the table can be cramped with the centerpieces, napkins, plates, glasses, and an often-staggering array of silverware. If you have plans for a few big presentations, you’ll want to invest in a Garrison cart, which can be wheeled to the table with all the ingredients and paraphernalia necessary for your show. 

If you’re an experienced home cook and want to have a go at it but aren’t sure where to start, try incorporating small tableside acts into the meal, such as shaving white truffles over warm bowls of tagliolini or ladling Bordelaise sauce over plates of filet mignon à la minute. Just make sure you prep your ingredients ahead of time, stay organized, and practice a few times before the big event so you don’t leave your guests bored or hungry. And starting or ending with a bang is always a good idea. An impressive appetizer sets the tone for the rest of the meal, and a dessert with fireworks will leave them with a story to tell. “Everyone’s excited,” DeVita says. “It’s a nice way to wrap it all up.” 




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