Editorial Review

Lauren Bacall gets cranky when Barefoot Contessa, an East Hampton specialty food store/institution for more than 20 years, is sold out of Indonesian Ginger Chicken. She can now thank her lucky stars that exuberant owner Ina Garten has written Read more

Reviews (192)

Great Book
This book has some great recipes, very easy and yet the food tastes very sophisticated.The BBQ chicken and potato salad are the best I've ever had.The only negative is that there aren't many beef or pork options and seems a bit more female oriented but overall a good buy.

A classic!
This book has it all--so beautiful, great recipes and Ina's friendly voice. I love cookbooks with photos and this is one of the best! All the recipes that I have tried are wonderful. This is one of my favorite books to give as a gift.

Beautiful cookbook/Easy to use
This book is beautiful to look at; the full-size photos of the dish, the thick, glossy pages, and the additional notes next to the recipes make this a useful addition to any cook's collection.(It would make a perfect gift, too!)Yes, the recipes do call for extra-large eggs but, so what?! Buy a dozen!!I also especially liked the source lists at the end of the book.The recipes I've made all came out really well; there is something for everyone here. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Barefoot Contessa (Store)    2. Cookery    3. Cooking    4. Cooking / Wine    5. Entertaining - Party Planning    6. General    7. Cooking / Entertaining    8. General cookery   

Reviews (11)

Very Inspiring
This book is certainly not a how to book. It is most definately a coffee table book showing off the talents of Mr. Bailey & his design team.
preston
the book is quite illustrative, however there is a lot of overlap with his other book on Fantasy Weddings, which has better theme pictures.

Preston Bailey's Design for Entertaining: Inspiration for Creating the Party of Your Dreams
Gread ideas book - wonderful, stimulating pictures.Interesting reading - provides what I would term an overview of how to achieve a good design for an event.It is NOT a how to book however and there realy are no specifics on creating a specific look. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Cooking    2. Cooking / Wine    3. Decorating    4. Decorating - General    5. Entertaining    6. Entertaining - General    7. Entertaining - Party Planning    8. Interior decoration    9. Parties    10. Planning    11. Table setting and decoration    12. Cooking / Entertaining   

Reviews (7)

Loaded with help for your parties!
This book is loaded with help and ideas, and will save even the most clueless host/hostess. You get tips for setting up your bar, decorations, and invitations. You get information about wines and beers. But the best part are the individual party ideas. There are cocktail parties and dinner parties. Holiday parties and unique theme parties. Each party comes with a schedule for planning ahead, so you don't have to do any mad scrambling around the day of the party. Each party comes with a unique "signature drink", so you can cut costs by just offering a signature drink, wine, and beer. There are recipies for each party and shortcut ideas if you don't have time or don't want to cook. There are also music ideas and decor ideas, in good detail, to really help you. No other entertaining book I've ever seen includes help with so many aspects of your party so well. And unlike most entertaining books, there's a resource section so you know where you can actually find the items featured in the parties (food, decor, etc.), so you don't see something you love but can't copy. (There is one problem, however, I've found some of their resources only sell wholesale and won't sell to you unless you have a reseller ID, which is really disappointing. They should have only included retail resources anyone can use.) Everyone who either entertains or likes to daydream about it should have this book - the ideas are unique and fabulous. I bought this book because I needed an idea for our wedding rehearsal dinner. Within 20 minutes of looking through the book I had a brilliant idea (there is no "rehearsal dinner", but I found a perfect theme party to use). I have many party and entertaining books, and this one is definitely my favorite. I love it.

A must have
Perfect. Everything I was looking for and plenty moore. Very helpful and easy to follow. Thanks InStyle

Great book with many helpful hints
Leave it to an entertaining powerhouse like In Style to deliver time and time again. This book gives great hints that come from celebrity party planners. Tips on invitations, menu, decor, music and much more. The book even goes on and tells you what to do two months before the party, one month, two weeks, one week, day before, etc. Definately a great gift book. Many delicious beautiful quick recipes. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Art & Art Instruction    2. Cookery    3. Cooking    4. Cooking / Wine    5. Entertaining - General    6. Entertaining - Party Planning    7. General    8. Art / General    9. Parties   

Subjects:  1. Cooking / Wine    2. Crafts & Hobbies    3. Flower Arranging    4. Hobbies/Crafts    5. Parties    6. Party decorations    7. Planning    8. Tablesetting    9. Crafts & Hobbies / Flower Arranging    10. General cookery   

Reviews (8)

Wow!A book that will give you confidence and make entertaining simple, yet sifisticated.
A great book, I loved how she organized the recipes according to what type of party you will be having. She also has entire party menu suggestions at the back. My party is in exactly one month, so I've already started trying the recipes out on my family. Everything I've tried so far has been wonderful. This book was such a score for me. I highly recommend. 5 BIG STARS!

The complete party planning guide
If what you are looking for is just a cookbook, then Perfect Party Food definitely provides that, with between 5-600 scrumptious recipes from which to choose. However, this is much more than just a cookbook!
ONE OF THE BEST COOKBOOKS IN MY COLLECTION!
Spending my time in the kitchen while entertaining is not my idea of a good time.So when I saw this cookbook, I was anxious to purchase it and try the recipes!I have made several recipes in this book and they have all been excellent. The recipes are easy to follow, delicious and creative, with ingredients that I usually have in my pantry or are easily found at the store. The recipes feature a lot of fresh veggies, herbs and quality ingredients making the recipes fresh and healthy.There are not a lot of high fat, high salt ingredients called for. I love the fact that all of the recipes have steps that can be done in advance that will allow me to have most everything prepped and ready to go before company comes.I find myself referring to it over and over.Great find! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Cookery    2. Cooking    3. Cooking / Wine    4. Entertaining    5. Entertaining - General    6. Entertaining - Party Planning    7. Make-ahead cookery    8. Tablesetting   

Editorial Review

"A good party is not about the food," says Ina Garten, "it's about the people." That may be true, but her Read more

Reviews (73)

The Best Cookbook!
This cookbook is absolutely fantastic.As are all of Ina Garten's books.I have cooked at least half of the recipes and they never fail to get rave reviews.The recipes use common ingredients which are easy to find and no fancy techniques are required.It is also nicely illustrated.Watch out though if you are "fat" conscious!Low-fat is not her style!

Not as good as her other books, but a good addition
I wouldn't start with this book -- I actually 'inherited' it from someone who didn't care for it. I like the recipes, but the book is laid out as a series of party menus, rather than desserts in one section, main dish in one section, etc. While I appreciate the menu suggestions (they are a big help, as I am sometimes stymied as to what to serve with what), I would rather see them listed in the back of the book, rather than have the book organized this way. Otherwise, the book is stellar.

Something out of the ordinary
I must disagree with some of the reviews that have placed this book at par or below. Ina hits it out of the park yet again with Barefoot Parties! It is true that you will not find your run of the mill "holiday" parties in here, but who needs more books on those types of parties? We need ideas and recipes for all of the months in between! Parties! delivers just that. First of all, the recipes work; every time. Secondly, Ina chooses menues that one might not associate with that particular get together. It's a refreshing book that you will use over and over again not only for parties but for every night of the week. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Cookery    2. Cooking    3. Cooking / Wine    4. Entertaining    5. Entertaining - General    6. Entertaining - Party Planning    7. Parties    8. Regional & Ethnic - American - General    9. Cooking / Entertaining    10. Etiquette & entertaining    11. General cookery   

Reviews (8)

The Party Planner
This book is a definite must have! Mr. Tutera covers everthing from invitations, to atmosphere and everything in between. His hints and tips can even make a novice look like an expert. It is easy to see why his parties are so memorable. He gives you everything you need to make your party a smashing sucess!

Can't wait to plan a party
The book's great and the idea's behind each party are wonderful. I love that a scent is included to enhance the atmosphere of the party.
Grain of salt
My questions on reading this book were, "who GOES to these parties?" and "who THROWS these parties?"If you can get your mind around those questions, the book is useful.
Read more

Subjects:  1. Cookery    2. Cooking    3. Cooking / Wine    4. Decorating - General    5. Do-It-Yourself    6. Entertaining - General    7. Entertaining - Party Planning    8. General    9. Home Improvement / Construction    10. Home Management    11. Parties    12. Etiquette & entertaining    13. House & Home / Decorating   

Reviews (13)

Excellent Book
I was impressed by this book.I struggle with casseroles, but long workdays necessitate the need for me to master them.If you are familiar with Cook's Illustrated, there's nothing new here in terms of format.I do applaud them for approaching casseroles in a new way by including one-pot meals, slow-cooker meals, skillet versions and more exotic casseroles.
a great cookbook!
I love that the authors did multiple tests on every recipe to come up with the best final version AND told us why, what went wrong and the reason for each process.
A Rare Disappointment from the Cooks Illustrated Series
I usually rave about Cooks Illustrated books because they are the best all-around cookbooks out there, but I have to rant a little about this one.The idea behind Cover and Bake is to improve on classic casseroles by getting rid of sub-par ingredients like cream of mushroom soup and pre-packaged bread crumbs, and simplifying cooking procedures so as to allow as much one-pot cooking as possible.The people at Cooks Illustrated make a lot of references to "Tuesday night dishes," i.e., main courses that can be prepared, cooked and served quickly and don't result in a lot of clean-up.
Read more

Subjects:  1. Casserole cookery    2. Cooking    3. Cooking / Wine    4. Courses & Dishes - General    5. Entertaining - Party Planning    6. Holiday - General    7. Methods - Baking    8. Methods - Quantity    9. One-dish meals    10. Main courses   

Reviews (9)

Spooktacular finds and helpful hints
i found this book to be helpful for decorating and having the scavenger hunt which i hope is a hit at my party. the foods were okay, because i think when you're having an adult halloween party, you need to have less sugary foods and more grown-up foods so to speak. otherwise, it was fine. thank you

101 Spooktacular Party Ideas
I love Halloween and had looked FOREVER to find a book to help with some ideas in the celebration and this book is it!This book gives ideas and step by step how to's in playing games, making recipes and creating props. Straightforward, easy, non-crafty and fun.Age limits are put on the games so you know which ones to use, or not to use.I have bought so many Halloween how to books that just sit on the shelf.This one does not!I have dog eared and paper clipped this one into tatters! This IS the book to buy!

Best Halloween Book for Kid's Halloween Party!
This year I purchased a number of books on Halloween in order to get more ideas for my annual Halloween party for children ages 2 to 8. This book is a gem, best of the batch. I was able to use at least 10 ideas from this book, including "Stick the Nose on the Pumpkin", "Bopping for Apples", "Halloween Hunt" "Witches Brew" punch, etc. These ideas are easy to use, and not time consuming, unlike the ones I found in other books... where the prime requirement seems to be having a lot of spare time to carry out their ideas. I will use this book over and over again in years to come! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Activities    2. Cooking / Entertaining    3. Cooking / Wine    4. Crafts for Children    5. Dance    6. Entertaining - Party Planning    7. Family & Relationships    8. Family/Marriage    9. Seasonal    10. Social Science / Holidays (non-religious)    11. Entertaining    12. Halloween    13. Holidays (non-religious)    14. Parties    15. Planning    16. Social Sciences   

Reviews (11)

Absolutely charming!!
You know how you wonder if a book is as good on the inside as it looks on the outside? The old cliche of "don't judge a book......"? Well, go ahead and judge this book because the cover is definitely a peek into what is on the inside!!
Best cake decorating book I've ever seen
I have a vast array of cake decorating books in my collection and I've never come across one that I liked anywhere near as much as this book.With such a beautiful cover, I assumed that this would be the highlight of the book and then there would be a few other nice ones that I might try as well.I was not prepared to want to try about 90% of the ideas in this book.In fact, there are about 10 in here that could have easily been the cover recipe.The Romantic Rose Tower (although VERY intimidating) has got to be the most beautiful and original cake I've ever seen.I highly recommend this book - if just for the artwork!I can't wait to get started.

Excellent
This book is more than I expected... it's just great for ideas and quick tips. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Baking - Confectionery    2. Cooking    3. Cooking / Wine    4. Courses & Dishes - Cakes    5. Courses & Dishes - Cookies    6. Entertaining - Party Planning    7. Cooking / Cakes   

Reviews (5)

Party Planning 101, 201 and the Graduate Course
This is the most creative, realistic, inspiring party planning book I have seen! It covers all sorts of parties from Baby showers to retirement banquets and everything in between.
Party Planning!
Great book filled with cost effective ideas for throwing a great party! Pleanty of variety in the book to suit everyone's taste and budget!

Very helpful when it comes to organizing!
This book offered many tips on many different themes in parties. Although, it seems that Diane is more oriented with weddings, she tends to have quite a few chapters on weddings in this book. She does, however, have good ideas for barbeques, post-prom parties and random special events.Read more

Subjects:  1. Cookery    2. Cooking    3. Cooking / Wine    4. Entertaining    5. Entertaining - General    6. Entertaining - Party Planning    7. Parties    8. Tablesetting    9. Etiquette & entertaining   

Reviews (4)

An Especially Good book for Entertaining. Great ideas!
`Rose's Celebrations' by noted author of authoritative `Bibles' on baking cakes, pastries, and bread, Rose Levy Beranbaum has all the appearances of a `throwaway book, given its picture laden cover, oversized format, and the author's aforementioned expertise in baking rather than in savory cooking.
Roses Celebrations
The photography is spectacular as always with Roses books. I just made my first recipe from the book: Lavender Ice Cream on pg93 and came across a discrepancy that I hope does not echo throughout the entire tome. The firstone is the fact that you're to use a SMALL saucepan and stir the yolks(5.25 ozs), part of the sugar and salt and add 32 ozs. of hot cream/milk tothis mixture. A small saucepan is usually 1 qt to 1-1/2 qts and too smallfor a recipe this size. In addition, the lavender does not get strained asis shown in the photo.In terms of visuals and texture, it doesn't gethigh marks,although the flavor is absolutely heavenly.I would suggeststeeping the lavender in the hot cream/milk, making the creme anglaise andthen straining the entire thing. Since this is my first recipe, it would beunfair to rate all the recipes as problematic. The recipes do seem verygood.

one of my favorite cookbooks
This is a colorful, well-illustrated cookbook with recipes for many kinds of celebrations.The recipes I've tried work well and are delicious, and the author's obsessively detailed style makes it easy to follow herrecipes.It is worth trying to find this book. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Cookery    2. Cooking    3. Cooking / Wine    4. Entertaining - Party Planning    5. Holiday    6. Holiday cookery   

Reviews (4)

A focus on 'milestone' birthdays from one to one hundred
BIG BIRTHDAYS: THE PARTY PLANNER CELEBRATES LIFE'S MILESTONES isn't just another birthday book for parents: it's a focus on 'milestone' birthdays from one to one hundred and provides a party planner's experience gained from planning such for famous stars and personalities. You may recognize him from his TV appearances: a fair for elegance, humor, and design lend to a party planner that pairs delicious food recipes with decorating tips. Color photos throughout capture the finished products and excitement of his approach.
a MUST read
Having a summer birthday has never been much fun, it somehow always goes uncelebrated. This year I was inspired to throw my own festivities. What was supposed to be a quick search for party ideas turned into a total body experience after delving into David Tutera's book Big Birthdays. In his book he executed and fabulously captured five birthday parties exploring the five senses (look, scent, texture, sound and taste) through each event. His tips ('Tutera Tips') were the most helpful; it was almost as if he could hear my questions and answer my thoughts concerning each party scenario. After my celebration they will have to reprint the book, Tutera's ideas were truly an inspiration. This book is a must-have for any status of event planner.

Highly Recommended
This year my grandmother ceebrated her 80th birthday, and with that, I wanted to surprise her with an elgant dinner party for some of her closest family and friends. Having never embarked on such a thing before, I set out to Amazon to find a book that would help me from beginning to end. David Tutera's latest book, Big Birthdays, gave me many great ideas. I immediately fell in love with the sophisticated White-On-White dinner party. The instructions and focus on details allowed me to easily recreate the atmosphere and ultimately throw a spectacular party!! I highly recommend this book to anyone looking to host such an event and will definately look to David Tutera in the future for inspiration for another great get together! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Birthday parties    2. Cookery    3. Cooking    4. Cooking / Wine    5. Entertaining - General    6. Entertaining - Party Planning    7. Games / Gamebooks / Crosswords    8. General    9. Handicraft    10. Social Situations And Conditions    11. Etiquette & entertaining    12. House & Home / Decorating   

Subjects:  1. Arts And Crafts    2. Christmas    3. Christmas cookery    4. Christmas decorations    5. Cookery    6. Cooking / Wine    7. Crafts & Hobbies    8. Entertaining - Party Planning    9. Hobbies/Crafts    10. Holiday - Christmas/Hanukkah    11. Seasonal    12. Crafts & Hobbies / Seasonal   

Reviews (2)

Bon Appetit does it again--a great resource for entertaining
With my busy schedule, I dont have the luxury to test new dishes before I entertain. I know I can always count on recipes from Bon Appetit cookbooks and this one is no exception. This book is not only a cookbook but a menu planner and resource guide. Last weekend I had 10 people over and served the following from the book:spicy shrimp in snow peas, deviled eggs with smoked salmon and green onions, spinach bacon spirals, and layered enchilada casserole.All got rave reviews. In the fall I used dishes from the barbecue menu.This book gives menus and planning tips for a number of entertaining ideas--from Saturday potluck to help yourself brunch to drinks and eats. Entertaining can be easy!
This cookbook really does make entertaining easy. Not only does it offer delicious recipes that we've come to expect from Bon Appetit but it organizes them in such a way that your menu and time easilymanaged.Read more

Subjects:  1. Cooking    2. Cooking / Wine    3. Entertaining    4. Entertaining - General    5. Entertaining - Party Planning    6. Regional & Ethnic - American - General    7. Tablesetting    8. Cooking / American / General   

Reviews (3)

The best of the best!
This is the best entertaining book I have ever seen.Not to mention the gorgeous photography.Each section goes thru the most important aspects of having a party and the things that must go into it.You will love this book!

The Art of the Party; Design Ideas for Successful Entertaini
Great Book with lots of great ideas. Also gives insight to the core principles of event planning.

The Bible for creative party/event planning and entertaining
This book not only is stuffed full of breathtaking pictures of unusual and creative parties of all kinds but it actually gives the reader instruction in creating concepts on ones own by following very simple formulas.Rennyis a genius at what he does and a generous spirit to teach others whatcomes naturally for him.If you have a wedding or ever are in charge ofany kind of event, this book is a worthy investment. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Cooking    2. Entertaining    3. Entertaining - Party Planning    4. General    5. Home Improvement / Construction    6. Methods - General    7. Tablesetting    8. Cooking / General    9. General cookery   

Reviews (8)

Great Book
This book was great for helping plan my son's kindergarten valentine party.The snack ideas were super and pretty easy to assemble.The highlight of the book is the valentine bingo game where everyone wins at the same time.The children just loved the game as they all shouted "bingo" at the same time.We also did the ice cube game and the cupid game.Both were also big hits with the children!I would highly recommend this book for any class parent needing some creative ideas for kids from 5+.

Valentine's Daywill never be the same.
With all the crafts, snacks, and games, you will have everyone entertained for years to come. This book is great for classrooms, parents, day cares, work, & more. Perfect paired with Valentine Boxes.

Valentine School Parties: What Do I Do?
Wonderful Book - Pleae make more like this!! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Activities    2. Arts And Crafts    3. Children's parties    4. Crafts & Hobbies    5. Crafts for Children    6. Entertaining - Party Planning    7. Family / Parenting / Childbirth    8. General    9. Hobbies/Crafts    10. Seasonal    11. Valentine's Day    12. Handicrafts    13. Juvenile Nonfiction / Holidays & Festivals / Valentine's Day    14. Vocational Subjects & Skills   

Subjects:  1. Cooking    2. Cooking / Wine    3. Entertaining    4. Entertaining - General    5. Parties    6. Party decorations    7. Planning    8. Tablesetting    9. Cooking / Entertaining    10. Etiquette & entertaining   

Reviews (5)

Great book
I bought this book hoping that it would have some fresh ideas for my kids' class parties instead of the same old games and crafts we've been doing it seems year after year.I was worried that even if it had new ideas they might be too invovled/time-consuming for the hour and a half we typically have for the whole party.I was pleasantly surprised that this book had so many ideas to choose from that were original and fit into our limited time frame.I highly recommend this book.

Wonderful Book for Anyone Planning A Christmas Party
So you're planning a Christmas party, one where there will be fun and games, and lots and lots of kids. But where do you start? Well, first of all, purchase CHRISTMAS PARTIES...WHAT DO I DO? Wilhelminia Ripple has created the perfect book for anyone planning a Christmas party. Filled with over 125 wonderful ideas for crafts, games, and holiday snacks. Wilhelminia teaches you everything you need to know to throw the most fantastic Christmas party of the season, complete with instructions on how to create Elf Handprints, how to build an Edible Snowman, make a Human Christmas Tree, and much, much more. Whether you've thrown Christmas parties before or not, CHRISTMAS PARTIES...WHAT DO I DO? is the one thing you'll need to make your Christmas party better than anyone else's. A wonderful book that absolutely must be a part of your book collection.
Christmas Parties What Do I Do?Buy This Book!!
This book has Christmas Spirit on every page, with holiday games,crafts, and goodies from all around the world. It really brings out the child inside us all. With an added bonus of 13 pages for New Years Eve. I am a Parent and Day Care Provider, to me this book is as much a part of Christmas as the Tree. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Arts And Crafts    2. Children's parties    3. Christmas    4. Cookery    5. Cooking / Wine    6. Entertaining - Party Planning    7. Hobbies/Crafts    8. Holiday - Christmas/Hanukkah    9. Holiday - General    10. Holidays - Christmas    11. New Year    12. Religion    13. Seasonal    14. Christmas books    15. Parties   

Reviews (5)

This cookbook exists to make you look good
Although I have never done an entire menu from this book, every recipe I've tried from here has been delicious, super-easy and perfect, and I've tried several for my dinner parties. The desserts, especially, are delicious, impressive and simple.
i love this book
Simple Soirees is my new favorite cookbook. In December I lugged it to New Zealand to bring as gift to our hostess. After she opened it; I snuck it off to my room to read at night.It distinguishes itself by being the first cookbook that I have read cover to cover.It read like a novel. We spent the rest of our stay making many of the dishes.Our favorite was the whole fish wrapped in herbs for Christmas Eve...it was extraordinary.My daughter and I have made several of the sweet things together like the heavenly fragrant geranium ice cream and the lavander and cardamom cookies.Everything we have made has turned out delicious.
Great ideas--delicious food
Lovely ideas, encouraging, and full of do-able advice.
Read more

Subjects:  1. Cookery    2. Cooking    3. Cooking / Wine    4. Dinners and dining    5. Entertaining    6. Entertaining - General    7. Entertaining - Party Planning    8. Menus    9. Tablesetting    10. Cooking / Entertaining    11. General cookery