4 steps to throwing a successful dinner party, according to the CEO of a foodie site with 8 million readers

pulse

March 14, 2017 4:57 PM

The Tasting Table CEO has been cooking since he was just nine and throwing fantastic parties for decades.

Geoff Bartakovics in his home.

Before launching Tasting Table, a foodie site with an audience of 8 million readers, CEO Geoff Bartakovics worked in the world of finance as a business manager in fixed income trading at UBS.

Author of the upcoming book "

We recently visited Bartakovics' New York City home, a delightful two-story, one-bedroom apartment that's situated in an old carriage house in Soho. We learned a lot about one of his favorite hobbies: hosting dinner and cocktail parties.

Here are his best hosting tips.

Overshare on the details beforehand.

Be politely bossy until the evening gets going.

While people generally don't like being told what to do, there is an exception for when they've first arrived at a dinner event that has unfamiliar faces.

Do the heavy lifting.

When it comes to serving the food, even the simplest preparation can help encourage guests to dive into a dish.

For the appetizers, such as a meat and cheese platter be sure they're already cut. "

Play "social engineer" at your party.

As host, it's your job to help create connections between guests who don't know each other. "B

pulse