Our 29 Must-Have Serving Dishes for Hosting a Memorable Holiday Gathering 1

If you have been here for a while, you know the c2s crew loves to host our friends & families, and this time of the year is the perfect opportunity to pull out our favorite serving dishes, bowls & trays to get ready.

As we dive into the season of hosting Friendsgiving events, cookie exchanges & all the small gatherings in between, we felt the need to share our top 24 favorite trays, platters, dishes, and bowls with you to ensure you’re all set for your next get together.

Table of Contents

Platters

One tip from my grandma – make sure you have one platter big enough for a decent sized turkey, and scale down from there – haha.

We find it helpful to have a few, different size platters for various items like cooked vegetables, skewers, and options to create your own veggie or fruit displays.

Another item to keep in mind with platters is having different shapes & color options, depending on the holiday you’re hosting for. We like to stick to neutrals for dishes in the fall/winter time – whites, creams, grays, and blacks – and add color in with herbs, seasonings, etc. on the platters.

It’s also important to have options that mesh well together – hence why we stick to neutrals. That way no matter what you’re serving, you’ll feel set up with many options to mix and match!

1. Astoria Rectangular Trays | 2. Marin White Serving Platters | 3. Mason Modern Melamine Serving Platter – Charcoal | 4. French Serving Tray

Bowls

For your bowls, you’ll again want to have a variety of size options and finishes. Think about what salads you’ll be prepping, or any pasta-type dishes that could be best dished out of a bowl.

Another thing to keep in mind when planning out your bowl sizes is if you’ll be having chips, dips, or other snacks that you’ll want to put into a bowl for grab and go.

One of our favorite bowls is the Carson Acacia Serving Bowl, paired with some fun wooden spoons. This is an easy way to add warmth to the table if the rest of your platters and dinnerware are mainly neutrals.

Trays

If you’ll be serving in a traditional manner versus a buffet-style meal, you will also want to ensure you have a few trays for serving things such as drinks and desserts.

These trays can also be used to make snack boards that may need to migrate with you as the party goes from room to room – since they have handles & sides, you won’t be making a trail of crackers when you try to move it from room to room.

12. Octavia Small Wood Serving Board | 13. Rectangle Black Walnut Wood Ottoman Tray | 14. Rustic Wood Serving Tray | 15. Iron Serving Tray

Oven-to-Table Set

My personal favorite and one of the other two c2s ladies hadn’t heard of (and now are on their wishlists) is the Crate and Barrel oven-to-table set.

These are platters/bowls that are oven safe, so once you have cooked your dish – you can transfer it to the oven-safe platter and keep it in the oven so it is hot until you’re ready to serve.

And, once you’re ready to dish up, it has a trivet piece that comes with it – so you can set the trivet down on your table or countertop, and the platter settles into the wooden trivet perfectly.

This is also extremely important in countertop safety, as any source of direct heat can create stress and cracking on your countertop.

Other Favorite Serving Supplies

A few other items that we find helpful in having for hosting gatherings:

Chip & dip bowls – either in bowl form with a smaller bowl in the middle for the dip, or if you are like me and like to give all the options – this chip/three-dip holder is a fun addition to any appetizer setup.
Chutney tray – this is perfect to have next to your charcuterie set up with any mustards or jams, or even as a dipping sauce tray for veggies.
Nibble bowls – these are perfect for nuts, seeds, or small candies.
Tiered serving trays – a great way to add dimension to your setup and also distinguish between different flavors or options available.
Modular set – this modular set helps if you have any allergies or picky eaters. You can set up different items on each separate tray to ensure they aren’t touching one another.

Now you’re ready…

It’s time to get yourself ready for hosting! If you purchase any of the items in the blog – keep us posted on your favorites. Don’t forget to get your items early to avoid any shipping delays.