5 Steps to a Brilliant Brunch Party
February 13, 2020
Brunch, in my mind, is more than just a meal — it’s a holiday. You plan, decorate, build a menu, and celebrate whatever recent accomplishments and joys you wish. You surround yourself with family, friends, and conversation. And you indulge in fruity, bubbly drinks, and sweet, gooey treats. It’s time for you to put together a brunch party, and here’s how to make it happen in five simple steps.
Download the free eBook "A Brilliant Brunch Party," which includes detailed examples for each of the five steps in this post, including themed menus, party games, and more. Download Now!
Atmosphere
The first thing to think about when planning a brunch party is the theme or feeling. This choice will impact all the other decisions you make when thinking about your brunch party, so it’s a good thing to settle on early in the process.
When thinking about atmosphere, you will want to immerse your guests into the whole motif with details like place settings, music, and even the menu choices. Let’s say you are going with a spring flower theme. You’ll want to decorate with seasonal blooms and soft pastel tableware.

Guest List
Who you invite to your brunch party can have a real impact on the outcome. For many parties, sending out invitations to all of your friends can work well, but brunch is a more curated event. Think about who you really want there, who would enjoy the event, and don’t forget to consider the size of your space.
Once you have a guest list settled, you can determine how to send invitations. These will set a precedent for formality: mailed invites appear much fancier than a Facebook event. You can also determine if you want to have assigned or open seating. With assigned seating, you can create new connections and guide conversations. Whereas open seating can be more casual and comfortable for guests who know each other well.

Menu
The food you serve should reflect the atmosphere. Going back to the spring floral theme I mentioned earlier, you may want a menu of dishes that feature early season produce. Ingredients like asparagus, strawberries, and ham tend to have a very spring feel. You can also consider the color of your dishes when building your menu, if you’re going for a certain visual effect.
Another option that takes some of the stress of you is to have a potluck. For this, I recommend that you assign each person or couple a type of dish to bring, and do the main entree yourself. For example, tell one guest to bring a fruity breakfast cocktail punch, and another to bring something for a muffin basket. Leaving the details up to your guests gives them a chance to show off their own creativity.

Activities
The main event of brunch is the meal, but there are a few times when it could be fun to have some planned activities. A quick ice breaker when guests first arrive can be a fun way for strangers to make friends. Social games between courses can make everything feel less formal.
Another activity to consider is table conversation. For a group of good friends, the chatter might flow easily. However, if you are inviting guests from different parts of your life, they may need help getting started. Have a few ideas for open ended questions to ask around the table. The answers may spark some tangents!

Timeline
Planning and staying organized is key when hosting any sort of event (check out my series on hosting a holiday dinner for more on that). When planning a brunch, you’ll want to consider when you should send invitations and expect responses, when to go grocery shopping, and what you may need to cook or prep in advance.
When it comes to your day-of timeline, you will want to think about your guest arrival time and what time you are serving each course of the meal, plus any activities in between. Since it’s brunch, your start time can range considerably. However, you’ll want to give a more formal three-course brunch more time than a casual gathering.

The eBook
In A Brilliant Brunch Party, I break down the decorations, place settings, music needed, and sample menus for five fun themed brunches your guests are sure to love! Plus, get tips and tricks for who to invite, how to arrange seating, and what to do in the weeks ahead.
When it comes to the day of your brunch, A Brilliant Brunch Party, has fun conversation starters, the full rules to three completely free party games, and a sample day-off schedule to keep you on track. Get ready to throw the best brunch ever!
The eBook is an exclusive gift for Slumber & Scones email list subscribers. Sign up now to receive it! If you are already on the list, you should have received your eBook yesterday, but if you didn’t please reach out and I’ll send it your way.
Throwing a party this Saturday for my daughter and will definitely be applying some of these tips! Thanks for sharing
That sounds so fun! I hope your daughter’s party was amazing.
These tips are so awesome! I love having brunch parties!!
Kileen
cute & little
Thank you! Brunch is definitely the best meal of the day.
Congrats on writing an ebook on this topic! That’s amazing! Such a fun way to enjoy the little things in life.
Thanks! It was a lot of fun to put together, and a lot of work. I hope people love it.
I love this! I love hosting intimate get togethers with friends and your posts has some great tips!
Thank you! Getting together with friends is so much fun.
These are some great tips! I love a brunch party, especially in winter – it always feels easier to assemble my family & friends during the day this time of year (and booze is acceptable at brunch so it’s a win-win)!
Thanks! Around here it’s the opposite, with many more get togethers in the spring and summer. But I totally agree that the brunch cocktails are one of the best parts.
Hosting a brunch is so fun! I love the idea of having activities planned and a timeline in mind.
Agreed! I always like having things planned out, even if it doesn’t always go to plan.
These are such great tips. Brunch is my favorite meal of the day!! Love the idea of setting a timeline.
Thanks, I totally agree! A timeline is super important when you’re trying to cook and host a group of people.
I would love to have the space (and friends, haha) to host a brunch party! I always liked this type of gatherings in films and I really want to try this once.
You could have just one or two people over. I used to invite individual friends over and I’d cook for them. Then when you have more space you can expand!
Love all these great tips for the perfect brunch.
Thanks so much! I hope you get a chance to try them out.
These are great ideas for hosting a brunch! I love throwing get together and this is on my list!
Thank you! Brunch is always a cause for celebration, so you may as well have fun with it.