SMALL PLATES, BIG NIGHT

Keep the food coming all through New Year’s Eve—with small-portion courses guests can take turns prepping in the kitchen, perfectly matched wine in hand.

Quizzes and a prepared list of amusing conversation starters can really keep a lengthy party moving along. In honour of New Year’s Eve, the host could devise a quiz based on events of the year gone by, with plenty of in-jokes about the guests. If the party is mostly family, include lots of family history and lore.