Christmas buffet must haves?

[Bowling4soup]

Just that really, Christmas Day evening buffet, only feeding 4 adults 2 DC so don’t need masses of stuff I’d rather just have less stuff but nicer. Allergies are fish, shellfish and nuts so will avoid those. 🎅🏻 my first time hosting it at my house :)

Leftover cold meat sandwiches, crisps, Waldorf salad, lettuce tomato Cucumber, mince pies and Xmas cake

Will people have eaten christmas lunch before coming to you? Or are you the main food of their day? Will make a big difference to what you offer

Think about if someone in the group has hosted similar before, what they did that you liked/was popular

A cheeseboard and crusty bread could be worth considering, and a trifle either home made or bought from a shop to save time.

Green salad if people have already eaten a big Xmas dinner. Mini quiche, pringles, cocktail sausages, cherry tomatoes, cheese board, part baked bread rolls, sliced cold turkey and gammon (which I always cook on Xmas Eve). Raspberry Pavlova or Lemon cheesecake.

Honey-glazed shredded ham hock or pulled pork, next-level coleslaw, apple sauce, crusty bread rolls, cheesy potato skins, green salad
Yule log, winter fruit salad and Christmas cake

Left over cold meat, salad,cheese,pork pie, pickles and nice rolls/bread.

Trifle and mince pies with cream for afters.

If this is a follow on to a full-on Christmas dinner, then I would say what is most important is that it's all cold and all food that will sit all evening so people can go up again and again rather than have to fill a plate full and eat it all in one go. So mini versions of food are good - little Florentine biscuits, mini mince pies (with varied toppings, like crumble, icing,etc), bite-sized savoury scones - cheese, pesto, small rounds of French bread.

So people can pile it on a plate and then go back for more when it's all gone down a bit. After a huge Christmas dinner it's easy to say 'oh, I'm so full, I can't eat another thing,' but give it a few hours and morsels suddenly start to look attractive.

Nice bread, pate.
Cheeseboard
Leftover meat from Xmas dinner/ cold cuts from supermarket
Carrot sticks/breadsticks/sliced pepper and hummus/other dip
Olives
Chopped fruit (strawberries/raspberries/melon/kiwi/watermelon/pineapple - or get a fruit platter from the supermarket). Maybe some coulis or caramel/chocolate sauce for dipping for those that want?
1-2 packs of the frozen prebaked pain au chocolat/croissants heated up

Iceland Prawn Ring and you're done OP! Kidding.. I think I might love Christmas tea more than Christmas lunch lol Gammon, turkey, a million cheeses, crackers, pickles, nice bread, Baileys x done x

Sausage rolls

Seconding the honey glazed ham...

Hot honey and mustard glazed ham, that just pulls apart - I'd run to that on any buffet table

Sausage rolls

Pickles, olices, some sort of green salad.

Pickles, olices, some sort of green salad.

Make far too many roast potatoes earlier on and the same if you have Yorkshire pudding. Cold roast potatoes are tasty.

Cheese board / cheese selection, cooked meats, crusty bread, pickles and you could do a 1970s hedgehog.