How To Host A Tea Party: Tips & Tricks To Wow Your Guests

3. Select your tea service ware

Now that you know what style of tea party you’re hosting, it’s time to purchase, rent, or borrow a tea service. You’ll need an approximate headcount of guests before you acquire your mugs, plates, teaspoons, and all the other accouterments you might need. Don’t forget that you’ll need a milk pitcher and a sugar bowl with tongs for cubes or a spoon for granulated sugar. Plus, it’s advisable to provide non-dairy “milk” and alternative sweeteners like agave, honey, and stevia to accommodate all the guests’ mix-in preferences.

If you’ve rented a Peerspace venue to host a tea party, check into Peerspace’s Concierge service, which can source needed items from local vendors and get them delivered straight to the rental. They can find you everything from extra tables and chairs to dishes and linens to audio-visual equipment, so there’s a good chance they might be able to secure a tea service for 16 or however many guests you have coming.

4. Select your tea and learn to brew it

It’s simply impossible to host a tea party if you don’t have tea or know how to brew it. This element will require some research, including a trip to a local tea shop. The proprietors there will be able to assist you with every aspect of how to host a tea party. Ask them what tea to pour, how much of it you’ll need, what temperature you should serve it, and all the other little details regarding the art of the beverage. Prioritize quality over quantity because tea is central in answering how to host a tea party.

5. Source your noshes

Generally, the contemporary tea party host will serve a combination of savory and sweet selections in equal amounts. Scones, crumpets, biscotti, canapés, and tiny cucumber and radish sandwiches – all of these are typical fare found at a British-style tea party. Feel free to branch out into the realms of mini quiches, Japanese food, and other unexpected finger foods. Soup is a people-pleasing menu item, but it requires a set of bowls and spoons that you’d have to acquire just for that one component. You could either cook the foods yourself or have them catered – which might be a better idea if you still need to source a tea set.

Note to the wise – some online and brick-and-mortar purveyors sell tea party kits in a box, complete with bakery item mixes and even the tea itself.