Grid of appetizer and dessert photos for a New Years Eve party.

Table of Contents

How do you organize a New Year’s Eve Party?

Skip the printing and send pretty and free online invitations. Here are two great sources:

  1. paperlesspost.com
  2. evite.com

Music: set the mood with a perfect playlist.

  • Be sure to include a mix of lively, soft, and nostalgic songs. (Like this New Years Eve 2024 Spotify playlist)
  • Ask your party guests for a few of their favorite songs and add them to the mix.

Party Decor: it doesn’t have to be expensive.

  • Think sparkle: white lights, mirrors under dishes, low lights, candles (LED or traditional).

Finger Foods (skip the silverware!): the mix and the quantity.

  • Include savory and sweet finger-food appetizers.
  • Assume that your guests will eat two or three of each of the finger foods.
  • Determine the number of finger food varieties based on the number of guests:
    • 10 to 15 guests = 3 or 4 varieties
    • 15 to 20 guests = 4 or 5 varieties
    • 25 or more guests = 5 or more varieties

Cocktail (and mocktail!) quantities: better safe than sorry.

  • A general rule is 3 drinks per person for every 2 hours of the party. But it doesn’t hurt to have extra on hand.
  • Don’t forget your teetotaler friends and designated drivers – there are lots of fun, non-alcoholic cocktail recipes, like these: Virgin Mojito recipe, Virgin Margarita recipe and Non Alcoholic Sangria.
  • Equivalents:
    • 1 liter of a distilled spirit yields about 22 mixed drinks
    • 1 750-milliliter bottle of wine or champagne yields 6 to 8 glasses

Essential Bar Tools

Use the Right Glassware for your Cocktails

  • Old Fashioned or “Rocks” Glasses – for drinks served with ice
  • Martini Glasses – use for any ‘up’ cocktails that are stirred or shaken and strained
  • Champagne Glasses, either Coupe or Flute – for Champagne (or sparkling wine) and Champagne Cocktails

Savory Finger Foods

Appetizers

Bacon Wrapped Pineapple

You need just one word to describe succulent bites of Bacon Wrapped Pineapple: Irresistible. Fresh chunks of pineapple are dipped…

Festive Foods with a Little More Substance

Mexican Appetizers

Shrimp Nachos

Shrimp Nachos are a great way to add a festive touch to gatherings or simply spice up dinner time. Seafood…

Dips, Sauces and Spreads

Mexican Appetizers

Fire Roasted Salsa

Fire Roasted Salsa combines smoky, fire-roasted tomatoes and green chiles with fresh ingredients and a blend of zesty seasonings like…

Elegant Salads

Salad Dressing

Champagne Vinaigrette

Ever notice how a great salad dressing can transform a pile of greens from an obligation to a craving? That’s…

Crackers

Crackers

Lavosh Crackers

Lavosh Crackers (or Lavash) are thin, crunchy flatbread crackers that some say originated in Armenia, and others say began in…

Mouthwatering Crostini Recipes

Perfect New Year’s Eve Party Sweets

Cookies and Brownies

World Peace Cookies

World Peace Cookies became a holiday tradition in our house more than a decade ago. We make them at Christmas…

New Year’s Eve Cocktails + My Favorite Mocktail!

Cocktail Recipes

French 75 Cocktail

If you’ve ever wondered about the French 75 Cocktail history, it was first poured in 1915 at a bar in Paris, a mixture…

All New Year’s Eve Recipes