Summer Parties: How to Build a Hydration Station for Your Guests! by Chef Gigi

Summertime offers so many fun outdoor activities, and it’s really important to keep your family and guests hydrated. With a hydration station, your friends will stay cool when the party starts heating up! Here's how:

• Start with a shaded location for your hydration station. Line a table with a fun themed tablecloth and use small boxes covered with additional material and place around the table to create a balanced tablescape. This will create “risers” in areas of the table to perch plates of snacks onto. Doing so gives the same illusion you see when you go to restaurant buffets. 

• Offer single-serving drinks that don’t contain lots of sugar, like Hint or Vitamin Water. These nutrient-enhanced water beverages are guaranteed to be a hit.

• Serve up pitchers of water and make it extra fancy with fruit and herbs – or make cucumber water. I love the combo of sliced peaches and mint for a unique flavor combination.

• Steep teas and serve them up in a pitcher without ice so they won’t dilute. Allow your guests to add their own ice by placing an ice bucket close by.

• Put out trays or bowls of fresh fruit. For summer, I love the idea of offering a variety of melons – from cantaloupe and honeydew to watermelon. Serve grapes, berries and sliced pineapple, too!

• Another fun way to cool down your guests is to have delicious fresh fruit ice pops midway through the event!