What is the best way to host a small house party hassle free? Do you order from a deli counter? How expensive would it get to hire a catering company to do the setup and cleaning as well as food? Any recommendations?
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Depends on how expensive you want it to be, and how much work you’re willing to do, of course.
I know some people go to Costco and get a bunch of stuff for casual/easy, but it sounds like you’re looking to go more upscale.
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I remember my parents used to get catering and hire a server/cleaner through them, so much nicer for the hosts. We had my dads repast at his house and I went that route, I don’t remember the cost but it was well worth it.
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Do you remember the name of the caterer? It sounds perfect.
How many people? Do you want hot or cold food? How fancy (ex. paper plates or china)? Sit down dinner or buffet?
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Reminder that CC is not a referral service.
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IMO, this is not that much different than “need restaurants recs for Portland” or similar questions often posed in the cafe. Also, are posters prohibited from sending recommendations by PMs? Genuine question.
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Unfortunately we are in NJ, but I’ve found many business through local Facebook pages (literally just bought a used car an hour ago from someone here in town). I think most caterers either can supply folks employed by them, or recommend independent servers who they have had experience with. So great to have no dishes, leftovers packed up, garbage emptied etc. at the end of the night.
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15-20 people, paper plates are ok. Hot food will be nice, buffet.
Are you near a Whole Foods? They’ve got a catering menu where you can make selections and everything is set up and ready to serve. You could also just go into Whole Foods and buy prepared foods and set it up yourself. Unless I’m having a large group (over 25), I would just go to Whole Foods and pick out the prepared foods that I want to serve and set it up myself. I would use a caterer if I really didn’t want to do much of anything to prepare or cleanup. I generally like to do stuff like this myself, but I like it and I’m good at it (at least that’s what people tell me).
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If I lived in NYC, I would be tempted to throw caution to the winds and just order from Zabars. Or Wegmans. That wouldn’t solve the actual issue of setting up and cleaning up, though. You might want to post on City Data for specific recommendations.
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Sometimes places that cater (not a grocery store probably - but a restaurant or something) can recommend a server.
When I have a large party at home I get someone to help with serving/heating food etc. – otherwise I find that I am in the kitchen instead of enjoying my guests.
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Budget, number of people and size of your kitchen will drive the direction and the menu. 15 to 20 people and hot food will require a good amount of work to prep, serve and clean up, unless you just have pre-prepared items that you only need to reheat (then there is the question of oven capacity). It will hard to be a host and the caterer. If your budget precludes hiring a caterer, I’d stick with cold items which can still be can be upscale and easily purchased from Costco/Trader Joes or a higher end grocer. Items to consider, cheese and charcuterie boards, smoked salmon or other fish, dips like hummus and guacamole, cold pre-sliced tenderloin, shrimp cocktail, caprese salad (I’ve even seen it on a stick using grape tomatoes and mozzarella balls). Plenty of samples to look at at the grocer or on-line.
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Don’t be afraid to accept offers to “bring something”. Maybe delegate dessert to make things simpler. If you go with cold items, you could do one hot thing kept warm in crockpot.
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Our usual caterer will bring warming trays with Bunsen burners which they pick up the next day. I actually have warming trays somewhere in the basement. Somewhere…
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I’ve seen caterers use induction hot plates to set up buffets. 
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Our neighbor has an annual party. She hires college and high school students to keep things tidy, food out, etc. they are terrific. The neighbor is there, but these kids do the work.
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