At Home in Hoboken: 5 Holiday Hosting Essentials

Baby it's Cold Outside...

The City has been hit with some of the coldest weather of the Season this December, so why not host a Holiday party with your closest friends in your swanky Hoboken Pad! It's not too late to RING IN THE SEASON with the perfect at-home Holiday Party!

So, here's your To-Do List, make sure to CHECK IT TWICE!

1. Send out the Invites

Spice up the guest list with a diverse group of friends. Don't invite existing friends who already know each other. Invite people who you think might be interested in meeting the others in your inner circle, because nothing feels better than creating new friendships!

Paperlessport.com allows you to send unique and individually designed graphics to send out to your esteemed guest list online!

2. Spice up the Entertainment

Whether you hire a professional DJ, a three-string quartet, or score the ultimate Holiday Soundtrack, the right music is CRUCIAL! Some sound advice for my Hoboken collegetes, don't forget to send out an homage to Hoboken's, Frank Sinatra. "The Voice" is sure to set the mood for all of your guests.

3. Stock the Bar

There's nothing better than ringing in the Holiday Season with some superior Bubbly!

Sparrow Wine and Liquors, located at convenient downtown and uptown Hoboken locations, are stocked with some of the best and most interesting spirits in town.

Don't forget to spike the egg nog and garnish your martini's with some green.

For more hints, check out including the egg-white cocktail featured at Details.com with expert advice from some of the most affluent bartenders in the country.

And FYI, in case I'm invited to the party, I love a tall glass of bubbly Veuve Champagne, please!

4. Hire the Help

Your Holiday Party isn't the time to showcase your culinary genius! Don't get stuck in the kitchen and miss out on all the fun! If you have the funding to hire the white-glove service, it's ideal to hire a bartender and a catering team to serve your highly esteemed guests!

Here's a List of the Best Caterers in Town:

The Hoboken Gourmet Company

The catering company has created delicious Christmas and New Year's catering menus filled with delicious bites!

Located at 423 Washington Street

Anthony David's Gourmet Specialties

This cozy hole in the wall, located at 953 Bloomfield street, hosts a unique, but ever so enticing menu of traditional samplings- and their crab cakes are out of this world!

Cucharamama

Unbeknown to many Hoboken residents, Cucharamama is a South American eatery located at 233 Clinton Street, but its also one of my favorite spots to dine in Hoboken. Get South American cooking straight from their wood-burning ovens to the comfort of your home this Holiday Season. The restaurant can also supply a full service staff for you and your guests.

5. Don't Forget to Decorate!

Trim the tree, take out the white linen, light the votive candles, and turn on the LED Christmas lights. Nothing is more essential than treating your guests to some sparkling eye candy this Holiday Season. Whether you are going for a chic Winter Wonderland look with silver and white tones or a heartwarming home with warm wreaths and mistletoe, nothing is more important than creating a memorable atmosphere that your guests will never forget!

For more tips on Holiday decorating check out Colin Cowie's essential guide to preparing your home this Holiday Season.

This isn't your mandatory office holiday party, this is a Hoboken house party! So, when preparing your Holiday Party this Season, be sure to make it an event your loved ones will never forget. Good luck and let's ring the Holiday Season in with some style!

"My Little Town Blues, They are Melting Away"

While taking my traditional Saturday morning jog, one sun-swept September morning along Hoboken's astounding waterfront trail, I stop on the Frank Sinatra pier in downtown Hoboken as I ask myself, how much of this momentous city have I truly experienced?

In the precious sight that we pay extra rent each month to view from our simple brownstones, the city appears particularly manageable, but when we enter the city five days a week for our daily commutes, the gridlock streets and the bustling crowds become a bit overwhelming for the simple Hoboken resident to handle.

At the end of a busy workday, there's nothing we'd rather do than call up a few friends to meet at a local bar to watch some Monday Night Football. Engaging in a similar mentality myself, there's nothing I'd rather do than hop right on the PATH after classes and work in search of some much needed relief from the big city.

Yet, after three years of living in Hoboken, while attending school on the Upper West Side, my sense of New York's cultural and historical necessities are quite narrow. Over the past few months, I realized that my time in college is almost at an end and I may not have the city in my backyard for much longer. Although I might be exhausted after a busy day, I have made it a goal to discover as much of New York as possible with the convenience of the PATH.

My Mission: to create a New York Bucket List for Hoboken commuters that will engage them to participate in convenient, cheap and easy things to do in the big city. Whether it be a weekend adventure or a new place to get your mid-day coffee fix. (I'm talking to you, Starbucks drinkers!), come with me to discover what Hoboken's backyard really has to offer! I look to share a wealth of information and experiences I have had in this beautiful city, along with new exciting things to discover together.

As the Hoboken legend, Frank Sinatra, once sang, "I'm about to make a brand new start of it, right there in old New York"