Fully Assemble Your Brunch Bar a Week Before

If you’re not bringing in a full catering staff with a bartender, then it’s essential you set up the bar yourself, and do it at least a week in advance. That way you can have plenty of time for those “oh no I forgot to chill the champagne” or “did I get enough bubbly” moments.

Either Bloody Marys or Mimosas are an absolute must. If you’re not in the mood for making adult decisions, go ahead and plan on serving both. Make sure you have plenty of accouterments for each. Plate them on a beautiful serving platter the day before and pop them in the fridge. You’ll also want to make your fresh squeezed oj the day before. But everything else can be kept on the bar until brunch day.

Prep What You Can Before Brunch Day

Get as much done beforehand as possible. It always sounds like a great idea until life happens and you’re still prepping the day of. Give yourself plenty of time for all of the last minute to do’s so you’re not left frazzled when guests begin to arrive. A few key reminders include:

• Lock in a caterer, chef, or decide on a menu. Provide the professionals with a headcount or factor that into your own menu planning.
• Just as soon as you lock in the food… schedule your house cleaner to come two days before your event.
• Also, about two weeks before, visit your favorite decor hot spots to source your tablescape and other decorations. Fresh flowers are a must, so order those now. Delivery is the only option here, trust us here.
• The night before your brunch, use sticky notes either on your serveware or just the counter to assign a place to each and every item that will be out. Like literally, every item. From the napkins to the actual food items, condiments to silverware, make a spot for it.

Saving the Best for Last… Decor

And now for the fun! You’ve already put in the effort with the food, so now it’s time to let your inner creative soul out. Or, if you’re not feeling craft, you can fake it with a few easy tips.

Give yourself at least two days to decorate for your brunch. Again, this will give you ample time to let it all sink in but also allow for last minute hiccups.

Here are some functional hosting tips to help you choose just the right decor for your chic, Dallas brunch party event:

• You absolutely must have fresh florals. You really can’t have too many, especially if your brunch is an indoor/outdoor event- you’re decorating two spaces! Just be sure to choose a mix of flowers and greenery that work in your conditions- not all flowers do well in direct sun even if they’re in a vase, so check in with your florist to let them know where your arrangements are going.
• Point your guests in the right direction and label your food with beautiful signage. You can always purchase editable signage templates on Etsy to go with your color story, or if you’re feeling creative, you can design your own sign suite on Canva. Print out your signs and put them in lovely frames. Now you don’t have to hear “what’s in the potatoes?” or “what kind of bread is this?” a million times.
• There’s no way to avoid using the caterers serving dishes for the warm dishes, but wherever possible, swap out the stock containers provided by the restaurant or caterer for your favorite serving pieces. Brunch food tends to be more casual, so you can make it seem more upscale with fancy serving trays. And always remember to have enough spoons, tongs, and spatulas for serving- if you have extras, lay a few out in between dishes.
• Add a little something extra to the powder rooms that guests will use. Of course you’ll want to make sure they’re stocked with plenty of hand soap and disposable towels, but add a few fun decorations, too. Spruce up the space with an extra sign or two.
• If you’re using candles, make sure they’re unscented. Mixing any smells with what’s already going on with the brunch aromas can be unpleasant for a lot of people. Just let the natural smells of whatever you’ve got cooking happen throughout your home.
• To balloon… or not to balloon, that is the question. We say, yes! But there are conditions. If it’s a celebration, like a baby shower or bridal shower, then you can do a classy balloon arch or two. But, if you’re just hosting a friendly brunch gathering in Dallas for the sake of brunching, we say skip the balloons (invest in more florals!).

Final Thoughts

So now you’re hopefully feeling extremely confident in hosting a beautiful, stylish and sophisticated brunch. But, if you don’t quite feel like your space is the reflection of your style that it could be, we know some ladies who specialize in making design dreams come true.

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