Holiday-party planning is in full swing, and venues across the country are readying for the coming season of twinkling lights, decadent desserts, and cranberry cocktails. Whether you’re in the thick of organizing the big event, or just getting your bearings, check out these Florida venues with intriguing offerings for groups.
Along the panhandle, The Pensacola Beach Resort, sitting on over 800 feet of Gulf-front property, is including a lineup of interactive catering concepts for its holiday parties. Highlights include shrimp platters, prime-rib carving stations, macaroni-and-cheese bars, and nacho bars. For cocktail receptions, mini crab cakes, ahi tuna canapes, and custom craft cocktails and mocktails provide an elevated experience.
SkyBeach Resort in St. Petersburg’s holiday catering involves seafood platters, charcuterie boards, meat-carving stations, and miniature holiday desserts that pair with seasonal cocktails. Its team notes that this year, indoor/outdoor formats are especially popular, with groups opting to begin with outdoor cocktail receptions and then move indoors for dinners with live entertainment and interactive chef stations.
Across the state, the Norton Museum of Art in West Palm Beach is amping up holiday cheer at its restaurant by including menu items such as Frosted Mistletoe Punch—a blend of tequila, cranberry juice, orange liqueur, and lime juice, garnished with sugared cranberries—and the Gingerbread Cheesecake Verrine, layered with pumpkin-pie-spice cheesecake filling and gingerbread. Museum staff say this year planners are selecting more weeknight times for their end-of-year celebrations than they have in the past and are opting for reception-style events with passed hors d’oeuvres.
In Miami, Arlo Wynwood and The Elser Hotel & Residences are joining in on the festivities. Arlo Wynwood provides interactive chef stations featuring fresh pasta and grilled meats on the catering menu, and group mixology classes also are available for engaging event add-ons. Staff say holiday gatherings are trending toward wrapping up earlier in the night than they have in the past, with many planners opting for end times circa 10 p.m. At The Elser Hotel, distinctive spaces like its rooftop deck are popular choices, and seasonal cocktails like spiced rum punch and cranberry-rosemary spritzers round out the offerings.
Cadillac Hotel & Beach Club, Autograph Collection, in Miami Beach features a European approach to holiday-party bites, with its on-site restaurant Donna Mare Italian Chophouse highlighting elevated Italian classics. Dishes well suited to holiday functions include handcrafted pasta, seasonal seafood, and chef-curated antipasti boards paired with festive cocktails featuring notes of rosemary, cranberry, and spiced citrus.
arlohotels.com/wynwood
theelserhotel.com
marriott.com
norton.org
thepensacolabeachresort.com
skybeach-resort.com
