Who doesn’t love a great brunch? It’s probably my favourite meal, the perfect combination of fancy breakfast foods with all the best lunch foods wrapped into one. It would also make a fantastic theme for a party, if only you knew how to host a mimosa brunch. Aspiring Winos to the rescue!
How to host a mimosa brunch
Here’s everything you need to know to throw a boozy morning affair. This would make a great theme for a birthday party, anniversary, wedding-related get together, Mother’s Day, or whatever excuse you invent to throw one. Yeah, your dog does need a mimosa brunch birthday party, I agree.
Start with the guest list
The first step to throwing any great party is who you invite. Is this a small, private occasion, a group party, or something with paid admission? For the former, make sure you decide well in advance who you plan on inviting and take some time before sending out the invitations to make sure you haven’t forgotten anyone.
Who you invite will also affect how you plan your party including venue size, what you serve, and what kind of budget you need.
Establish a budget for yourself
Too many of us are guilty of planning even the smallest parties without a budget and spending way too much. Give yourself a budget! A good place to start is by loosely pricing out how much things will cost. Don’t forget to include: the venue, food, seating, decorations, any licenses you need, and of course, the champagne or other wine.
Plan the perfect menu
When selecting a menu for a mimosa brunch it’s important to take the alcohol you’re serving into consideration. Choose dishes that pair well with mimosas like eggs, cheese, pasta, risotto, and seafood.
You could also plan a potluck and have everyone bring a dish – then all you have to do is provide the mimosas! Check out our Brunch Recipes to Serve at a Mimosa Party for more menu ideas.
Set the mood
No matter how large or small your mimosas brunch is, you should still set the mood with some well placed decor. This is a great time to bring out the good linens or indulge your guests with some fresh flowers on the table. You should also plan to have some music playing so it’s not too quiet!
Choose the right time (and invite your guests)
Brunch is normally served between 10am and 2pm. Depending on your group, 11am is a great time to serve a sit down brunch and you can asks your guests to arrive at 10:30am. For a buffet style, plan to have food served when guests arrive.
Unless it’s a special occasion brunch, like Mother’s Day, try to host your mimosa brunch on a day that has the least potential conflict with your guests. If they attend church sunday mornings they likely won’t attend your Sunday am brunch, for example.
When you invite your guests ask for an RSVP with deadline so you know how much to purchase and who will be attending. Plan to have a bit extra, just in case.
The night before
This is where you plan to do as much ahead as possible! If you are able to, get the venue decorated and set up. The more you accomplish the night before the easier your morning will be.
If you’re doing the cooking, consider make ahead recipes and prep them the night before as well. It will save a lot of time and effort cooking the next morning!
Seating and day of
For a formal brunch you can opt to pre-seat your guests. Pick up some cute place cards (or DIY your own) and assign seating where you feel it’s best. Try not to start any fights with your seating chart.
The day of, make sure you’re ready for guests a few minutes before your brunch start time. Sometimes guests arrive early which can really throw you off so be prepared!
Now that you’ve figured out the basics of the party let’s narrow down the actual mimosa brunch part of these festivities.
How to host a mimosa brunch:
- Make sure you have enough glasses for all your guests! Mimosas are served in champagne flutes so stock up early and make sure to have a few extra, just in case.
- Have enough drinks on hand. A bottle of champagne is 25 oz and mimosas usually use 2.5 oz, so you can typically get 10 glasses out of one bottle. Depending on your guests you should plan to have between 1.5 and 3 mimosa per person.
- Don’t cheap out on the OJ! You’re mixing it with champagne, get the good stuff. Make sure to have enough on hand! Or even better, freshly squeeze your own – nothing beats it!
- Have some alternative drinks available. Not everyone is going to want to drink (or drink a lot) so make sure you have regular juice, coffee and tea, and water on hand at minimum.
- You can serve mixed mimosas in a pitcher to make it easier for your guests! Make sure all your ingredients are super cold before mixing so they taste better. A tip on this: Freeze some orange juice instead of using ice so your drinks don’t get watered down.
- Keep it simple! Choose make ahead recipes for your brunch offerings and set up beforehand.
- If hosting outdoors plan for the weather! The perfect mimosa brunch happens on a warm summer morning outside, but the weather doesn’t always think so. Have a back up plan in case of rain, make sure you have ample bug repellant around, and store food properly if it’s warm (that means not leaving it sitting out too long).
- Ask for help (or pay for it). You can’t do everything yourself! Enlist some helpful family or friends to help with the set up, cooking, and serving or consider hiring help. Some popular hired help for mimosa brunches include: chef, waiter, decorator, events planner, and cleaning service.
- Rent what you need. If you’re having 50 people over but don’t want to buy all those tables and chairs consider renting. Many events places have all kinds of great furniture and decor that can be rented for a fraction of buying. Some even have set up and tear down services too!
- Relax and have fun! If it’s a private event then your guests are going to be there to spend time with each other – and you! Don’t spend the entire morning stressing over food and drinks when you could be socializing instead.
Now you should be ready to host a mimosa brunch! You probably should make yourself a few samples, you know, to prepare.
