Last New Year’s Eve, fairly last minute, while speaking to one of our couple friends (who also happen to be the parents of our daughter’s BFF), we decided to have NYE at our house to keep things low key with the kids. Turns out, this was also our friends’ anniversary. So…Miss Fancy Pants decided to glam up our typical relaxed BBQ. Nothing over the top, just decided to go the extra mile.
We did a more traditional “anniversary” meal so I busted out the china! Whoo hoo! I get a tad too excited at the mere thought of pulling out that china. What’s wrong with me? It’s a hassle to pull out, a hassle to put away. But… it makes everything seem oooooh so fancy….Plus, I need something to justify that stuff taking up valuable real estate in our home, right?
On the menu
My apologies for the lack of yummy food photos but none of them turned out very well. 🙁
Citrus & Avocado Salad w/ Tex-Mex Dressing (b/c my friend loves it) from Southern Living
Filet Mignon w/ Mushrooms in a red wine reduction cream sauce (something I could drink…and live on…)
Lobster Tails
Grilled Asparagus w/ My favorite Hollandaise Sauce
Roasted Baby Carrots (purple, yellow and orange carrots make such a pretty dish!)
Loaded Baked Potatoes
Our favorite Cherry Pie
Aside from buying the food and wine (the steak and lobster were both on sale for the holiday), the only additional expense was to add fresh flowers…and you guessed it…also on sale. We spent just about $120 (for food, wine and flowers) to feed super fancy food to 7 people and we had leftovers. A lot. We would have easily spent well over that for one couple to go out for the evening (and the food wouldn’t have been as good! :))
My husband and I make a great team when it comes to preparing meals (we just need a bigger kitchen) so this was a fun way for us to ring in the new year and to give our friends a fancy restaurant vibe for their anniversary! The kids got to do their thing while the adults conversed and everyone was safe, at home, off the roads.
I’m not sure if we’ll do the stay at home fancy feast this year or if we’ll go with something more casual but stay tuned. What do you and your family do for New Years Eve?
Kara is a self-proclaimed Martha Stewart wannabe with the taste of an aristocrat and (thankfully) a penchant for bargains. She hopes to inspire you to live life beautifully and affordably while laughing at her expense along the way.
Love your china, can you link to it? I may have to do this for New Year’s this year!
I’m not sure if they still make this pattern but I will check!
Looks like it’s a gonner. LOL Here is a link to what’s left on the manufacturer’s site…
http://www.mikasa.com/patterns-and-collections/palatial-platinum/
This was absolutely amazing, and one of my favorite events that you did (maybe because it was intimate) We loved everything that you did to celebrate our anniversary. You pulled it off in the traditional “Kara elegant” way even though it was quasi last minute. We thoroughly enjoyed the company, the decor and the food. Bravo as always and hats off to you!
It was a great evening for all! We truly enjoyed hosting!