Beautiful, lovely photos! It's always disappointing when the recipe photos aren't up to par with the recipes and overall feel of the cookbook, but this book definitely succeeded!

For the most novice of hosts to the very experienced, this book acts as a handy guide for all things entertaining.

Shelly Worcel goes beyond the traditional cheese & charcuterie board in this book (but definitely does not glaze over them either) by providing every element necessary for hosting a get together. Worcel is extremely thorough in how to plan and organize your "tables" or "spreads" by offering checklists and timelines with plenty of extensive information on serveware, utensils, glassware, centerpieces – just to name a few.

The second part of the book includes a plethora of spread ideas along with recipes to help lead you in the right direction. This is a book that I will find myself referring to for inspiration for my next get-together, or even just a date night where I'd rather set up a grazing board than cook a meal.

OMG! Tables & Spreads is such a fun cookbook/party planning/coffee table book! We were already fans of Platters & Boards and have used it as a model our charcuterie boards. But Tables & Spreads takes it to a new level. The photos are gorgeous and the recipes don't require experts. Some will challenge you but others will make you feel like you went to culinary school. This book would make a great gift to those who love to host.

PS - our first post-vaccination-pandemic-is-over party is themed "Limeade and Nachos" using two of these recipes.

If you've ever looked at a pretty charcuterie board on Pinterest or Instagram and thought, there is no way I can do that; now you can. This is THE book you need if you want to design a perfect snacking party. It has everything and many things that are missing from other books like it. I particularly liked the choose your own adventure graphic page. It was very helpful. This books takes into account more than just how to cheese board, or how to set out a spread. You may never need another book on how to do this after this one, with a board for every occasion. The spicy cantaloupe jam was a huge hit. The cacio e pepe 7 minute eggs were bomb! I'm really looking forward to having a Pierogi Dumpling party. Buy this book. You will get SO MUCH use out of it. Thank you to the publisher for sending it to me in exchange for my review.

Beautifully photographed and illustrated and so helpful for planning a board or spread for a party. It's full of tips for entertaining and how to select flavours that work well together as well as how to style a board/spread to be aesthetically pleasing.

If you, like me, have ever been confused as to the right way to make a proper charcuterie board (how do all those instagram/pinterest chefs make it look so easy????) then this book is absolutely a resource you will need. From recipes for sauces to advice on colors, ratios of salty to sweet, this book is a great resource for anyone looking to make, well, Tables & Spreads! It delivers exactly what the title promises - the instructions are easy to follow and the recipes sound as though they are within reach of the average person and their local grocery store. Love it, now if you'll excuse me I'm going to try and make a instagram-worthy charcuterie board.

I enjoyed the photos and ideas for creating these spreads. As another reviewer said, once COVID issues have passed and we can free socialize I will look forward to using these ideas for inspiration

I love Shelly Westerhausen's earlier book - Platters & Boards - and her new book is cooking porn as well. Even if you have no intention of making the recipes, the book is complete eye candy and inspiration for decorating and hosting. The recipes are a nice mix of basic to moderate in difficulty but her talent is showing how to create wonderful food service for a party of 2 or more. And how to incorporate cooked items with purchased to have a fun time at your own party. Until we can resume normal, this book is also a great tool to help make small events with close family feel special. Kudos to Westerhausen!

This book is a great lesson in everything to do with cheese boards, delicious dips, and festive spreads! A reader can learn about which cheeses complement each other, simple recipes for entertaining, as well as tips for putting together an aesthetically pleasing spread. If you’re like me and love charcuterie boards, you’ll love this book!

A great book for those grazing diners and small parties where you don't really want to be hidden in the kitchen all the time. I love cooking, but I usually can't be bothered decorating, so this book was full of inspiration to make things look pretty without too much effort, just by using a few prep techniques. The cutting guide of things was nice that way. I really liked that.
The pictures in the book are just beautiful and you do want to dig in while drinking a glass and talking to your friends.

This book is a great resource for gatherings, whether it be a small group or large. The photos are beautiful; the food combinations interesting, and sometime unusual. It is very well organized and presented, with lots of recipes and suggestions provided. The book provides exactly what you would expect: lovely tables and spreads of foods as well as beverages. The authors have suggestions for a variety of spreads to use for breakfasts, lunches and dinners, and for different times of the year. A very good reference.

Such a beautiful book.

It is broken down beautifully and has gorgeous pictures of different spreads.

It is very useful and has some easy recipes. I can't wait to try some.

Overall I really enjoyed this book and it would be the perfect gift for someone who loves to hosts parties or even just for yourself as a helpful guide.

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book was around 3.5 stars for me.

This is a how to guide for making meal spreads and snacks. I like the concept and I like the recipes that are included, but honestly I was expecting more pictures. There's a lot of how-tos and steps included to put together a grazing table and I would have enjoyed seeing more pictures of what it could look like and inspiration.

There's some simple and some more time intensive recipes and a lot of tips for making the ideal plate. There's also tips for how to set the table and other things beyond the food that you serve. It's a helpful guide but wasn't as thorough as I expected.

Overall it's a good introductory book.

This book is broken into two sections, the first gives you all the information you need to plan your spread.
I loved the explanation of what type of cheese knife you need for what type of cheese.
I also found the chart on how to best store fruit very helpful. I’m sure I’m not the only one who gets home from the store and doesn’t know which fruit goes in the fridge and which stays on the counter.
I loved the adorable illustrations.

Part two of the book focuses on the recipes.

The ideas are very creative. An oatmeal bar sounds like a brand new idea.
The burrata bar especially caught my eye.

There’s not a ton of pictures but the ones included are vibrant and eye catching.

This book will be fun when people are able to entertain company again, or for a treat for their immediate family.

I got to read an early copy from NetGalley. Thank you!

This book was received as an ARC from Chronicle Books in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own.

I am always amazed at how beautiful all of these tablescapes, centerpieces and food platters look at parties and always have wondered how they pulled it off and thanks to Tables & Spreads, I now know how to pull one off when we get back to throwing parties post COVID-19. The photos displayed throughout the book were breathtakingly gorgeous. I can’t wait to try these out on my guests and share them with friends, family, and patrons at the library. I know many of our patrons will love this book and want to try some out as well.

We will consider adding this title to our TX Non-Fiction collection at our library. That is why we give this book 5 stars.

Beautiful photos and spreads. A lot of great ideas I’d like to try for a party. Great gift for someone who hosts parties

This book is for people way fancier than I am. That said, it's beautifully photographed and illustrated, and packed with ideas for entertaining with "spreads." There are lots of little extras like tutorials on napkin folds and how to properly (and prettily) cut your veggies. There's a wide variety of types of spreads.

I read a temporary digital ARC of this book for review.

When, as we say these days, ‘this’ is all over, I can really see myself swanning around as my guests tuck into a beautiful spread inspired by this book – the apparently effortless host….
I really liked the first section, which is about how to put a spread together, from choosing the tableware to preparing the vegetables. The second section was recipes for different themed food boards – which are, essentially, beautifully styled buffets.
Like me, Westerhausen is vegetarian , but (presumably) in order to reach a wider audience she has included her husband’s meat suggestions. I found these easy to ignore and the most of the meat in the photos could just as easily be the fake meats you see in the vegetarian chiller at the supermarket (maybe they were).
I must admit, I did get a bit confused between terms such as ‘table’, ‘spread’ and ‘board’… you put several boards together to make a spread? What’s a ‘table’ then? Maybe I didn’t read carefully enough.
Never mind, it doesn’t really detract from the enjoyment I’m getting from this book and the fun I’m getting from planning a fabulous spread for my post-virus celebration .
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC.

Lots of great ideas for spreads, from meats and cheeses to jams and sauces. With ideas for multiple occasions the possibilities are endless!

Tables & Spreads will show how you to put together beautiful Instagram-worthy spreads for your next gathering. It's a great guide to pair different things and let you determine what you need for the party you're planning. The pictures are great, so it would be a nice coffee table as well, though leaving it out will probably make you hungry!
Many thanks to Chronicle Books and NetGalley for the advance copy.