Charcuterie boards have long been a hit with home entertaining, but now we've taken them one step further with "grazing tables"... turning an entire table into a giant charcuterie board!
I've always been a big believer in making one impactful visual statement, whether that is a central decor installation or a fantastic food table setup, and a grazing table definitely gets the job done! Besides being visually impressive, guests love the assortment and options of snacks available to them! I've created a few different sizes and styles of grazing tables so far; I used my buffet table for this one because it was for a smaller group. Here's a quick time lapse of the actual build, then I'll break down the steps to show you how easy it is!
This build took about 30-40 minutes, but if you're making one for the first time, you may want to allow a little longer for yourself to see what works best for you. First things first: how many people are you expecting? Select your table and decide if you want to cover the entire surface like I did here or create a "table runner" down the center of the table.
Depending on your crowd, you may only need 2-3 cheeses, minimal meat, and a lot of fruit. Or you might need 5-6 cheeses, assorted protein, and a ton of bread and crackers! For this event, it was relatively small and mostly women, so I used a lot of fruit and not as much meat. Here is the order of assembly broken down for you:
The Build:
1. Butcher Paper - I always cover my surface with regular or white butcher paper. I have a gift-wrap sized roll, and for smaller tables, I fold it in half to double it so nothing seeps through and damages my tables.
2. Place Cheeses - the centerpieces! I spread out the cheeses across the board so there is a cheese every 12 inches or so.
3. Place Dips - I like to put a few dips, pickles, or others items in small bowls to break up the table. Once you place your larger items and space them out evenly, you can fill in with smaller items.
4. Lay Your Rows - There are piles and there are rows. Always do the rows first. aka crackers, bread, and meat. Your meats can be folded or rolled to take up more or less space. Ex: I like to fold pepperonis in half! Smaller items can be "piled" to fill in holes at the end.
4. Place Your Garnishes - Any larger garnishes can be used to break up items and create focal points in empty spaces. I use orange halves to add some color and fill space when I want a large presentation.
5. Add Your Piles - Piles are the best way to fill your remaining holes on the board! Fruit, nuts, some types of crackers... all good items to pile!
For this game night party, I had just received a late Christmas gift in the mail- this amethyst cheeseboard from Anthropologie, so I wanted to use that too! I made a mini charcuterie board for the den coffee table, and it was great to have a smaller snacking station in another room.
