How to host a great office potluck: Tips for keeping everyone happy and well fed
The holidays are, of course, a time when parties seem to be around every corner, and gatherings at the office are no exception. The last thing you want is for an office potluck to feel like an obligation or a burden, especially with all the other parties going on. So, it’s important that you keep everything running smoothly so you can get the potluck accomplished in the time allotted and make sure everyone has fun – and great food. With a little planning ahead of time, however, it’s pretty easy to make sure everyone ends up happy, well fed and full of holiday spirit.
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Get clear instructions from your contributors
Make sure you tell everyone to include instructions with the dish they’re bringing. Have them write down whether the dish needs to be kept refrigerated or frozen before the event, or, if it needs to be heated, how, for how long, and at what temperature. A Post-it® Super Sticky Note for each dish should do the job.
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Plan the banquet table
In addition to instructions, have each of your chefs write down the name of their dish and whether it’s vegetarian, vegan or gluten-free (or any other relevant dietary restrictions). Once you’ve got all the info, use Post-it® Notes to plan out the space on the buffet table, making sure to save enough room for each dish. Then, get the rest of the table ready – decorations, napkins, dishware and utensils.
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Help everyone find what they want
After all the dishes are on the table, put a Post-it® Full Adhesive Super Sticky Note on the table in front of each dish and label it with the name of the recipe. Color code the notes for the appropriate dietary restrictions and create a key at the starting end of the table, so that vegans know they should look out for yellow notes, vegetarians for blue, and so on.
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Make sure people mingle
If you’ve got a large group, you can also make place cards out of Post-it® Notes to make sure that people from different departments or areas of the office get to know each other better. If you color code these notes by department, you can have everyone switch seats before dessert, and sit next to someone with a different colored note than their previous neighbor.
With the right planning and, of course, delicious food, your office holiday potluck will be a tradition everyone looks forward to.
