Poker Night

Hosting a poker night is an excellent way to incorporate your love of gambling into a fun night in with friends. Follow these tips for hosting a poker night that will leave all of your friends (even the losers) satisfied.

Step 1: Set the date
Poker night is not a formal affair and therefore doesn’t require formal invitations. Still you should call your friends up at least a couple of days beforehand so that they save the date.

Better yet, plan a weekly or monthly poker night. Poker players tend to be diehard and by setting aside a day or two a month in advance (say every other Tuesday), you can guarantee a high attendance rate.

Step 2: Buy some cards
You can’t play poker without playing cards so make sure that you have some on hand before you host your party. In addition to cards you will need chips, and, if you or any of your guests are new to the game, or aren’t familiar with the specific version of the game that you’ll be playing, make sure to print out a extra copies of the game’s instructions online to use as reference.

Step 3: Prepare food
There is no specific kind of food that needs to be served at a poker party, just keep in mind the guests who will be attending and plan your food selection accordingly. For example, if you’re hosting an informal get together with friends, you can keep the food selection informal as well. Think sliders (our kobe-style wagyu beef patties lends itself beautifully to bite-sized sliders), or try our super pig-in-a-blanket recipe. If you’re looking to class things up a little bit, try serving some saucisson sec, cucumber and tapenade tartines or some wild boar prosciutto crostini with drunken fruits and seasonal herbs.

Since you’ll be playing with your hands, you will want to avoid any foods that are extremely messy or will take up too much room on the table. Cold cuts like our dry-cured and wild boar saucisson sec served with some cheese and crusty bread or crackers are always a good choice regardless of who your guests are.

Step 4: Have drinks on hand
Drinks are a great way to make your poker party interesting. Once again, this is an area where you can choose what you serve according to your guests. If you’re playing poker with work colleagues or anyone else that requires you class things up a little bit, think dirty martinis a la James Bond (shaken, not stirred) or even a couple of bottles of wine. For an otherwise informal affair, throw some canned beer in the refrigerator a couple of hours beforehand to allow them time to chill.

Step 5: Play to win
Concentrate on the game and on having fun with your guests. If you’ve followed the steps outlined above, whether or not you win, you’ll be sure to end the night in high spirits.