You’ve booked the holiday cottage, and you’ve planned some amazing days in the Cotswolds.
If you’re going away with family, or have friends in the area, you could also throw a dinner party to make the most of the beautiful country cottage.
If you’ve never thrown a full blown dinner party before, or your cookery repertoire is a little limited, you may be scratching your head wondering where to start.
Not to worry, our pro chef has got you covered. From tips, hacks, and tasty meal suggestions we’ve got the ultimate guide to hosting a dinner party in your holiday let.
Let’s dive in!
Planning Your Cotswolds Dinner Party
First of all you’ll need to set a perfect date and time for your dinner party. You’ll already have the dates booked for your holiday cottage, but when do you want to host dinner for everyone? At the end of the holiday, or a few days into your stay?
It’s best to give yourself and your guests a few days to settle in. This will give you time to figure out where the best shops are to pick up all your ingredients and plan for any dietary restrictions..
Picking a time for your dinner party will depend on what kind of ambiance you want to create and what will be most comfortable for your guests. Younger visitors will likely get bored with a dinner that lasts long into the night, but adults might enjoy a long dinner with wine, cheese, and port to finish.
When deciding on a theme, the dates of your holiday will help you choose. Are you away for a Christmas or New Year holiday? Then light candles, string fairy lights, and add holly table settings. Finally, a roaring fire will set the perfect ambiance. A winter menu will likely involve warming soups, hearty roasts, or spicy tagines.
For a summer party, you could move the whole thing outside and do a barbecue or a grazing platter. To set the scene, bring some outdoor cushions, and rugs and hang paper lanterns of fabric bunting. You could even hire some outdoor games to keep the kids entertained.
To make things go with a bang, why not try making your own homemade cocktail?
Preparing Your Holiday Cottage
Cooking in a holiday let is very different from cooking in your own kitchen. Before you arrive, it’s sensible to check what kitchen equipment is included in the cottage. This may be listed on the website you booked with, or you can call the letting agent or host directly.
Once you’ve arrived at your holiday cottage, check out the dining room and dinner table. Is it large enough for everyone and are there enough chairs for your guest list? A good dinner party host will ensure that all their guests are comfortable. As well as amazing food, you’ll need to provide somewhere comfortable to sit. If there aren’t enough chairs, and it’s a warm day, you could take some outdoor cushions and picnic blankets outside instead. Dinner parties outside in the British weather can involve dodging the odd raincloud, but they have a great atmosphere!
You’ll need to give yourself plenty of time to set up. You can prep the table, place settings, and decorations the night before. This means that you can spend the day enjoying the local area – you didn’t come on holiday to the Cotswolds to spend all day working and cleaning!
To decorate, why not get some inspiration from Carole Bamford’s Instagram. The founder of Daylesford Organic has some beautiful table-scaping ideas. When staying in the countryside, there are plenty of things you can pick up for free to help set the atmosphere. You can pick some wild holly and ivy to give your cottage a Christmas feel. Or you could head to one of the many Cotswolds farmers’ markets and pick up some flowers to bring a touch of spring to your table.
Crafting the Perfect Cotswolds Dinner Party Menu
To create your perfect Cotswold menu, first think about some local ingredients you would like to showcase.
Menu planning needn’t be a headache. First, consider the time of year and what sort of ambiance you want to create. Is it a relaxed affair, or a special occasion?
If you’re cooking in the warmer months, a lovely starter could come from the Salt Pig Curing Company. A selection of deli meats means that you don’t have to spend a lot of time prepping and can still wow your guests with your local food knowledge.
A simple salad with some smoked meat or fish is also a good choice if don’t want to spend too much time in the kitchen. Smoked duck from Upton Smokery with a salad of carrot, mangetout, and orange works especially well and can be tweaked with different types of salad leaves to suit your own taste.
For a summery main course, if you’re feeling adventurous, you could barbecue a whole shoulder of lamb. There are plenty of local butchers in the towns and villages who can source one for you. The night before rub the shoulder with ras al hanout spice, salt, and pepper. On the day, slow cook over a low heat, and spend time with your dinner party guests.
For summer desserts, bavoirs, possets or mousses are a great choice as they can be made in advance and stored in the fridge.
If you’re hosting an autumn or wintery dinner party, a hearty soup can easily be prepared in advance and embellished on the day with some micro herbs and green oil to give a restaurant feel.
For the main, try a chicken, chorizo and chickpea cassoulet. If you have any vegetarians in your party, simply substitute the meat for butternut squash.
A great wintery dessert to wow your guests is a chocolate torte, sticky toffee pudding for a crowd pleaser.
Shopping and Ingredient Sourcing
If it’s your first time visiting the Cotswolds, you may not know where to go for the best ingredients. There are plenty of weekly markets in the area, or you could take advantage of one of the many farm shops in the area.
For cheese lovers, The Cotswold Cheese Co has more than 100 local artisan cheeses. If you want to make a big impression at your dinner party they even do cheese wedding cakes!
The Upton Smokery near Burford is the perfect place to pick up smoked meats, fish and cheese. If you’re hosting a summer barbecue party, they also have seasonings that will take your food to the next level
The Market Garden in Cirencester is packed full of fresh produce, the perfect place to pick up fresh fruit and veggies for your dinner party.
Aside from the independent shops and markets, many supermarkets also stock local produce, so you can find what you’re looking for whatever your budget
Cooking in Your Holiday Cottage Kitchen
Once you know what equipment is provided in your holiday cottage you’ll have a better idea of what you can cook once you arrive and what you need to prepare in advance. Some cottages won’t have specialist equipment so check if you need to bring something like a blender or a large roasting pan.
There are several dishes that you can prepare at home in advance and either freeze or leave in the fridge until you head off on your holidays. Dishes that hold well include stews and braises. Classic lasagne will also do fine in the freezer and travel well.
Some things are better made on site or on the day like salads and fresh cream desserts which may wilt and suffer in the car.
To give yourself plenty of time to cook and spend time with your guests, choose dishes that you’ve cooked a couple of times before. That way, you’ll have a rough idea of bhow long things should take, when guests should sit down and how long you have between each course.
To keep track of multiple dish timings in an unfamiliar kitchen make life easy for yourself with an app called Thyme, a timer that allows you to set times for multiple dishes. If you’re worried about losing time creating multiple dishes, then stick to one pot meals. Stews and casseroles served family style can make for a lively and informal dinner party, and help minimise the time spent on clean-up.
Finally, make sure to factor in time to spend with your guests. After all, this is your holiday too!
Cleaning Up and Farewell
After everyone has eaten, you’ll be faced with the least fun part-cleaning up. Holiday lets will typically charge you extra if you leave dirty dishes after your stay, so, as tempting as it may be, don’t ignore it. Load everything you can in the dishwasher and put it on before going to bed
If you have time, clear the table between courses and wash up small plates and cutlery quickly so you don’t have a huge pile of washing up to deal with at the end of the party. Once everyone has left the table, wipe down the surface so you’re not confronted with a sticky table for breakfast.
Put any leftover food in the fridge. This will be great for a late lunch the next day, or you can snack on it during the journey home.
If you want to send your guests home with a little something, there are many sweet shops in the area, like the Cotswold Sweet Shop where you could pick up some gifts. A small chocolate truffle makes an elegant gift and your guests will remember your dinner party after they’ve gone home.
Hiring a private chef
If you’re stuck for recipe ideas or you don’t fancy doing any of the cooking yourself and want to relax and enjoy the meal, you can always hire a private chef.
Private dining isn’t just for the rich and famous. There are many private chefs in the Cotswolds who cater to a range of budgets. If you’d rather soak up the atmosphere while your guests arrive and enjoy the delicious food, then we’ve got you covered.
And there you have it! Our ultimate guide to throwing the perfect dinner party in your holiday let. If you’re planning a dinner party and want to hire us to handle it, do get in touch.