Skip to content

Top Navigation

Food & Wine Food & Wine
  • Recipes & Cooking
  • Drinks
  • Travel
  • Holidays & Events
  • News
  • F&W Classic
  • Video
  • Kitchen & Home
  • F&W Pro

Profile Menu

Your Profile

Your Profile

  • Join Now
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Give a Gift Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Wine Club
  • Podcast
  • Food & Wine Books this link opens in a new tab
  • Logout
Login
Subscribe Subscribe
Pin FB

Explore Food & Wine

Food & Wine Food & Wine
  • Explore

    Explore

    • F&W Cooks

      F&W Cooks

      Food and Wine presents a new network of food pros delivering the most cookable recipes and delicious ideas online. Read More Next
    • Our 22 Best Crock Pot and Slow-Cooker Recipes

      Our 22 Best Crock Pot and Slow-Cooker Recipes

      Looking to amp up your beef stew but unsure where to start? A slow cooker can can take your comfort food to the next level. Read More Next
    • 50 Affordable Wines You Can Always Trust

      50 Affordable Wines You Can Always Trust

      We’ve assembled a list of 50 of the world’s most reliable, inexpensive wines – bottles that offer amazing quality for their price year in and year out. Read More Next
  • Recipes & Cooking

    Recipes & Cooking

    See All Recipes & Cooking
    • Chicken Recipes
    • Comfort Food Recipes
    • Breakfast & Brunch Recipes
    • Salad Recipes
    • Dessert Recipes
    • Vegetable Recipes
    • Pasta & Noodle Recipes
    • Chefs
    • Meat & Poultry Recipes
    • Soup Recipes
    • Appetizer Recipes
    • Side Dishes
    • Fruit Recipes
    • Seafood Recipes
    • Special Diets
    • Cooking Techniques
    • Steal This Trick
  • Drinks

    Drinks

    See All Drinks
    • Wine
    • Cocktails & Spirits
    • Coffee Drinks & Recipes
    • Juices
    • Beer & Brews
    • Champagne & Sparkling Wine
    • Tea Recipes & Ideas
  • Travel

    Travel

    See All Travel
    • Wine Regions
    • Restaurants
  • Holidays & Events

    Holidays & Events

    See All Holidays & Events
    • Valentine's Day
    • Halloween
    • Passover
    • Hanukkah
    • Christmas
    • Gifts
    • Super Bowl
    • Easter
    • Thanksgiving
    • New Year's Eve
    • Holiday Entertaining
  • News
  • F&W Classic
  • Video
  • Kitchen & Home
  • F&W Pro

Profile Menu

Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
Your Profile

Your Profile

  • Join Now
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Give a Gift Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Wine Club
  • Podcast
  • Food & Wine Books this link opens in a new tab
  • Logout
Login
Sweepstakes

Follow Us

  1. Home Chevron Right
  2. Travel Chevron Right
  3. How to Throw the Perfect Summer Party

How to Throw the Perfect Summer Party

By Food & Wine
Updated June 17, 2016
Skip gallery slides
Save FB Tweet
september-party-soffer26-XL-SS0416.jpg
Credit: Sasha Israel
When my longtime partner and I were deciding how to spend our ten year anniversary, we wanted to keep things small and personal. A wedding didn’t feel like us. Alex and I have small families; and while we love our friends and we love good food, we shy away from big, epochal moments. We live on the Eastern End of Long Island, where I’m a novelist and food writer and Alex fishes the Montauk waters as often as he can. We’re part of a CSA and a CSF. I’m part of a soup club. Our happiest moments are at our house (which Alex built), feeding our friends from the local bounty. And so, in commemorating our decade together, we decided against a big wedding—we got married at Town Hall and then had takeout with my mom—and instead hosted a big weekend of festivities. The first was a tiny gathering on a boat, with just a few of our closest friends and family members. We followed that up with a big party for forty of our nearest and dearest friends. We celebrated with the people and things who make us who we are, and we had the time of our lives. Here's how we did it. —Jessica Soffer
Start Slideshow

1 of 26

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print
Tent Party
Credit: Sasha Israel

The plan was to have the party on our lawn to take advantage of summer’s final days: the warmth, the local produce, the peepers, the stars.

1 of 26

Advertisement
Advertisement

2 of 26

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print
Tent Party
Credit: Sasha Israel

Our friend and event planner, McKenna Young, covered old picnic tables with cloths and used dropper bottles for vases.

2 of 26

3 of 26

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print
Tent Party
Credit: Sasha Israel

Earlier in the day, Alex and a bunch of his friends went and picked flowers from our local farm, where all-you-can-pick flowers are included in the summer’s CSA.

3 of 26

Advertisement

4 of 26

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print
Tent Party
Credit: Sasha Israel

We wanted to support as many local farmers and businesses as we could. So, instead of doing a big bar with all kinds of liquors whose ingredients and makers we didn't really know, we kept things simple: beer from Montauk Brewing Co. and sparkling wine from Sparkling Pointe in Southold. After dinner, we served coffee from North Fork Roasting Co.

4 of 26

5 of 26

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print
Tent Party
Credit: Sasha Israel

Tall friends strung lights across the lawn for warmth and pizzazz.

5 of 26

6 of 26

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print
Tent Party
Credit: Sasha Israel

My father, Sasson Soffer, was a monumental sculptor. Many of his pieces are in our yard, which added to the significance of having our party at home, among the things we know and love the most.

6 of 26

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

7 of 26

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print
Tent Party
Credit: Sasha Israel

Last year, Alex built an outdoor pizza oven, which has become as much a part of our culinary routine as our social one. Vegetables, chicken, stews, fish and pies are made instantly delicious by the 900-degree heat. Turns out, you can caramelize almost anything, and it will taste better for it.

7 of 26

8 of 26

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print
Tent Party
Credit: Sasha Israel

An hour before the party was set to begin, the sky went suddenly dark; there were flash flood alerts popping up on our phones. Everyone pitched in to set up for a last-minute storm. Alex looks like the picture of calm, but he is scrambling to put on the sides of the tent so we could move everything inside before it was too late.

8 of 26

9 of 26

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print
Tent Party
Credit: Sasha Israel

Safely inside, we served beer, sparkling wine, and vodka lemonade infused with local lavender and honey.

9 of 26

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

10 of 26

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print
Tent Party
Credit: Sasha Israel

We knew the chef, Megan Huylo, from our local farm, Amber Waves. She was often around, giving advice on what to do with an abundance of eggplant or Lambs’ Quarters. Needless to say, we couldn’t imagine anyone better to cater our party. Her staff, apprentices from the farm, know and care as much about the ingredients as anyone possibly could. When the weather changed, they gamely set up in our garage and began plating.

10 of 26

11 of 26

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print
Tent Party
Credit: Sasha Israel

Chilled sweet corn bisque was made with local corn from Sep’s Farm on the North Fork and vegan cashew cream, and we garnished it with local microkale from Good Water Farms.

11 of 26

12 of 26

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print
Tent Party
Credit: Sasha Israel

A salad appetizer used apples from Briermere Farms, Kaleidscope Kale (a hybrid of kale and Brussels sprouts) from Bhumi Farms, walnuts, light-as-air goat cheese from Catapano Dairy Farm in Peconic, and was plated in easy-to-eat endive.

12 of 26

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

13 of 26

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print
Tent Party
Credit: Sasha Israel

Tartlets were the perfect combination of earthy and sweet. Green Thumb oven-roasted beets were mized with goat cheese and set in a hazelnut, lemon zest and Amagansett Sea Salt crust.

13 of 26

14 of 26

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print
Tent Party
Credit: Sasha Israel

We told people not to fill up too quickly, but we couldn’t keep them away from the cheese plates, which we sourced from Mecox Bay Dairy and Carissa’s Breads’ sourdough and beer bread. At the end of the night, I found two spoons in the honey jars from Mary Woltz’s bees in Bridgehampton—and wasn’t the least bit surprised. I got a spoon myself and went to town.

14 of 26

15 of 26

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print
Tent Party
Credit: Sasha Israel

Chef Hyulo hones her knife in the garage as Farmer Frank of Bhumi Farms has a down moment between roasting proteins in the outdoor wood-fired oven.

15 of 26

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

16 of 26

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print
Tent Party
Credit: Sasha Israel

Chef Hyulo’s notes reveal just how much work goes into planning an event. Even simple food requires a whole lot of oversight and meticulous planning.

16 of 26

17 of 26

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print
Tent Party
Credit: Sasha Israel

After appetizers, dinner was served family-style: everything at once. We didn’t want to deal with the fussiness of being served and we didn’t have room for a buffet table. We wanted people to interact as they ate, and passing bowls and plates seemed like the way to do it. I kept hoping there would be leftovers of this take on pesto risotto, which used Amber Waves’ wheatberries, cream, butter, and Iacinato kale and garlic scape pesto. But no dice.

17 of 26

18 of 26

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print
Tent Party
Credit: Sasha Israel

Local chickens from Iacono Farm were brined for 24 hours in buttermilk, mesquite, salt and cooking liquid reserved from the wheatberries. They were roasted in the outdoor oven and plated alongside Peruvian mustard sauce using tons of local garlic and parsley. The final product was as juicy and sweet as any chicken I’ve ever tasted.

18 of 26

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

19 of 26

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print
Tent Party
Credit: Sasha Israel

Yellowfin Tuna from our local CSF, Dock to Dish, was salt rubbed, flash-seared and plated with a roasted red pepper and olive compound butter and Good Water Farms arugula microgreens. I’m not a red meat-eater, but a lot of our friends are—and I worried that they’d be unsatisfied without it. This, they said, did the trick.

19 of 26

20 of 26

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print
Tent Party
Credit: Sasha Israel

We barely spoke during dinner. We shoveled.

20 of 26

21 of 26

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print
Tent Party
Credit: Sasha Israel

We had this crazy idea to have a men’s table and a women’s table, which turned out to be a real hit, too. Whoever said that men have bigger appetites than women have not met my friends.

21 of 26

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

22 of 26

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print
Tent Party
Credit: Sasha Israel

It rained like it hadn’t rained in months—which, ultimately, made the experience all the more cozy. It felt like our dear friends really were brought together—and there was nothing to do but eat and drink and be merry within inches of each other.

22 of 26

23 of 26

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print
Tent Party
Credit: Sasha Israel

Somehow, we had room for dessert. Carissa’s Breads’ key lime pie used whole wheat flour and egg whites from Amber Waves and was so bright and light that it almost felt cleansing. Almost.

23 of 26

24 of 26

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print
Tent Party
Credit: Sasha Israel

Chef Hyulo made two crisps: plum anise and ginger peach, using stone fruit from from Briermere. She topped them with homemade Joe & Liza’s ice cream from our favorite burger place, Bay Burger.

24 of 26

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

25 of 26

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print
september-party-soffer25-XL-SS0416.jpg
Credit: Sasha Israel

Keep your friends close and their dinners closer, said Scout Finch the lady dog.

25 of 26

26 of 26

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print
september-party-soffer26-XL-SS0416.jpg
Credit: Sasha Israel

The only time I stopped eating was to listen to our friends’ speeches, which were as delicious as anything I’d ever heard. “I’m keeping this short and sweet,” said one, “not because I don’t have a lot to say but because I don’t want anyone to eat my dessert.”

26 of 26

Replay gallery

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook

Up Next

By Food & Wine

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook
Trending Videos
Advertisement
Skip slide summaries

Everything in This Slideshow

Advertisement

View All

1 of 26
2 of 26
3 of 26
4 of 26
5 of 26
6 of 26
7 of 26
8 of 26
9 of 26
10 of 26
11 of 26
12 of 26
13 of 26
14 of 26
15 of 26
16 of 26
17 of 26
18 of 26
19 of 26
20 of 26
21 of 26
22 of 26
23 of 26
24 of 26
25 of 26
26 of 26

Share options

Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Login

Food & Wine

Magazines & More

Learn More

  • Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
  • Books from Food & Wine
  • Contact Us
  • Media Kit
  • Content Licensing

Connect

Follow Us
Subscribe to Our Newsletter
Other Meredith Sites

Other Meredith Sites

  • 4 Your Health this link opens in a new tab
  • Allrecipes this link opens in a new tab
  • All People Quilt this link opens in a new tab
  • Better Homes & Gardens this link opens in a new tab
  • Bizrate Insights this link opens in a new tab
  • Bizrate Surveys this link opens in a new tab
  • Cooking Light this link opens in a new tab
  • Daily Paws this link opens in a new tab
  • EatingWell this link opens in a new tab
  • Eat This, Not That this link opens in a new tab
  • Entertainment Weekly this link opens in a new tab
  • Health this link opens in a new tab
  • Hello Giggles this link opens in a new tab
  • Instyle this link opens in a new tab
  • Martha Stewart this link opens in a new tab
  • Midwest Living this link opens in a new tab
  • More this link opens in a new tab
  • MyRecipes this link opens in a new tab
  • MyWedding this link opens in a new tab
  • My Food and Family this link opens in a new tab
  • MyLife this link opens in a new tab
  • Parenting this link opens in a new tab
  • Parents this link opens in a new tab
  • People this link opens in a new tab
  • People en EspaƱol this link opens in a new tab
  • Rachael Ray Magazine this link opens in a new tab
  • Real Simple this link opens in a new tab
  • Ser Padres this link opens in a new tab
  • Shape this link opens in a new tab
  • Siempre Mujer this link opens in a new tab
  • Southern Living this link opens in a new tab
  • SwearBy this link opens in a new tab
  • Travel & Leisure this link opens in a new tab
Meredith Food & Wine is part of the Meredith Corporation Allrecipes Food Group. © Copyright 2021 Meredith Corporation. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policythis link opens in a new tab Terms of Servicethis link opens in a new tab Ad Choicesthis link opens in a new tab California Do Not Sellthis link opens a modal window Web Accessibilitythis link opens in a new tab
© Copyright . All rights reserved. Printed from https://www.foodandwine.com

View image

How to Throw the Perfect Summer Party
this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines.