Halloween costume cocktail party

What it is

Halloween for grown-ups. Everyone comes in costume, the drinks are dark and smoky, the food is spooky but good, and the night features a horror quiz and a costume contest.

Plan ahead

• Three weeks before: send invitations. A costume theme (horror films, “dead celebrities”, or “anything but a cat”) helps people plan.
• One week before: plan three cocktails and one mocktail. Buy decorations and contest prizes.
• The day before: make food that keeps: dips, sausage rolls, brownies. Set up the room.

Set the scene

Dim the lights and use lots of candles (LED near costumes). Black and orange tablecloths, cobwebs in corners, plastic spiders, a skeleton sitting at the bar. Use dry ice in a cauldron for fog (handle with gloves). A photo booth with a gothic frame.

Activities

Signature cocktails

• Black Widow: vodka, blackberry liqueur, lime and a splash of cranberry.
• Witches’ Brew: gin, apple juice, elderflower and lime; add a drop of green colouring.
• Bloody Mary bar: let guests garnish their own.
• Mocktail: “Poison Apple” (red apple juice, ginger beer, lime).

Horror quiz

4 rounds of 5 questions: famous quotes, screams and soundtrack clips, villains’ names, and pictures of props.

Costume contest

Categories: scariest, funniest, best couple or group, and most creative. Guests vote with tokens in labelled jars.

Food and drink

• Black bean dip and blue corn chips
• Sausage roll “mummies”
• Devilled eggs with olive spiders
• Graveyard brownies
• A cheese board shaped like a skull

Tips

• Dry ice must never be eaten or touched with bare skin. Put it only in the decoration cauldron, not in drinks guests will drink, unless you use a dry-ice-safe cocktail cup.
• Keep a tidy coat area and a spare chair for bulky costumes.