PUT A STYLISH TWIST ON THE BASIC BEVERAGES: No need to rethink the classic drink menu. There's a reason ice-cold beer, sparkling water, and premium sodas have a permanent place at the barbecue table: They are terrifically tasty thirst quenchers. Instead package them to impress. Serve an array of your favorites inside a trash-bag-lined, ice-filled trunk from a secondhand store or present each guest with a customized drink cozy on which you've penned his or her name.
ADD THOUGHTFUL BARBECUE AMENITIES: Distribute a few baskets of essentials such as sunscreen, bug spray, and wet wipes as well as more playful additions such as water guns, trashy magazines, and mints.
OFFER AN INTERACTIVE MENU: Variety is the spice of life and of a barbecue. Give guests access to skewers and any variation of sliced pieces of beef, chicken, fish, pineapple, bell pepper, red onion, and mushroom. Provide an array of glazes and sauces and, if you're ambi-
tious, their own personalized basting brush (a.k.a. a cheap paintbrush). Point guests toward the grill and remind them that basting is best done toward the end of grilling so that the sugars in the sauce don't burn. Embellish the table with a slaw with Caesar dressing, cornbread, and a devilishly decadent potato gratin.
DESIGN A BUILD-YOUR-OWN-DESSERT BUFFET:
'Tis the season for fabulous berries, so celebrate with a customizable take on the classic strawberry shortcake. Make basic sweet-cream biscuits, stack them on a cake or other decorative plate, and serve them with bowls of sliced fresh strawberries, peaches, apricots, and plums sprinkled with sugar. Add a bowl of fresh sweetened whipped cream, plates, and forks, and invite guests to slice, fill, and devour their
own shortcake.
