A beautifully arranged book of recipes and decorating ideas that can inspire you for both everyday at home and for when you are having guests over at your home. Lots of fun!

The photos in this book are beautiful! Perfect for anyone who loves to entertain and is looking for quick appetizers to make!

Turns out there is an art (and a serious science) to putting together a solid tableau of nibbles. This collection of tips, tricks and recipes will have you making five-star spreads in no time. Containing guides to styling a board for an event, how much food to serve and how to combine cheeses, dips, veggies and more for optimal enjoyment, this part instruction manual, part cookbook will have you yearning for when we can all host again. I already have ingredients for several dips, and a few cocktails, on my next shopping list. If you entertain, or just want to have a tasty afternoon with a family movie, this book should be added to your cookbook collection.

Very nice and fun book! Lots of recipes and beautiful photos. It's a great gift option for the holidays. I received a free digital copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review

This is a really cool resource if you enjoy entertaining. I appreciate that this book accounts for all levels of experience so each menu plan can be used exactly from the book or can be customized with your own recipes and favorite snacks. There are also more general tips for serving sizes and pairing flavors and textures together. I have been putting together my own spreads for years and am really looking forward to using these tips to make even better displays. I really appreciated the Holiday showstopper section for this particularly the Thanksgiving Pie Spread. I am looking forward to adding in some of the recipes I’m particularly excited about the Caramelized Shallot Jam Dip. The book also has a great range of menus for different events. This includes spreads for every meal, more snack style spreads, and even beverages. I also love the creative menus like the Birthday Breakfast Nacho Buffet, I am definitely looking forward to celebrating with that spread. All around this is a creative and fun book that will be a great help with any celebration.

Where do I start with my love for this book..😍 Shelly Westerhausen Worcel starts us off with a introduction, a "how to" of setting out a spread, the current cheese board trend but expanded and explained, how much of each per person, where to put what, garnishing. All with beautiful full page colour photos to provide inspiration. Now if that wasn't enough, on you go to recipes, wonderful dips and polentas and drinks to accompany the spreads. Again, mouth watering photos.. But it doesn't stop there! How about we take the idea of a grazing table and give it a theme, a focaccia building night perhaps, or pierogi filling where guests sit and chat, filling or garnishing their choices and you pop them in the oven and everyone gets to enjoy their personally taste matched creations.. brilliant! Special day? Birthday nachos, Valentine's fondue, New Year's mini bar? I'm all in!

**Thanks to NetGalley, Shelly Westerhausen Worcel and Chronicle Books for an early peek at this one that I will surely be purchasing when it publishes on May 4th, 2021!**

I really love to enterain people at my house when I am able to and I have recently got into making charcuterie boards as well. I like making them for dates nights for my husband and me as well, but I am not incredibly creative on my own and the boards I have made are getting a little boring. This book isn't solely about making boards, but food (and drink) spreads in general and there are some incredible recipes and ideas in here that I can't wait to try. There are menus broken down by event and I find that to be a big help. I also liked the beginning section and found it to be informative about the different utensils and things you may be using like the different kinds of cheese knives. I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys entertaining or who just enjoys making fun things in the kitchen.

Good concept I like the way that the book is layed out. I like the full page pictures of some of the layouts helps me to see what they really mean and possibly incorporate it into my own tables.

Tables & Spreads by Shelly Westerhausen Worcel with Wyatt Worcel show amazing platters to impress and breakdown how to make them yourself.

This book is beyond beautiful! The photography is richly colored and gives the reader a sense of what may be done with relative ease and everyday items and foods to create lavish (or not) events for entertaining or for a cozy evening at home with family. The author covers the basics for Spreads, including suggestions for how much food to prepare for the number of guests, and whether it’s a side or main dish. This makes the content helpful and appropriate for both a novice or a seasoned host. She even includes some budget-friendly DIY ideas included with purchased accessory suggestions for the current hosting trends.
The recipes while differing from my personal tastes, offer extravagant variety; as an example, my palate is not quite ready for hot harissa sauce (a Tunisian red pepper sauce) in a Bloody Mary for brunch.
Overall, Shelly Westerhausen Worcel has created a useful guide for hosts of all levels of experience for grazing table entertaining.

Lots of party entertaining menus, ideas to make eye-catching layouts of the food spread, pictures for everything and easy to make recipes to complete the spreads. I love to entertain and love to have family gatherings, and I will be using these ideas, tips and recipes many times over.

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.

#TablesSpreads #NetGalley

Special thanks to NetGalley and Chronicle books for providing me with ARC.

I am feeling sorry for not getting this book because there isn't any options to download it, not in kindle nor in NetGalley Shelf.

Loved the details in this book to help you make a grazing table fit for any occasion! I thought the questions at the beginning (including one about seasonality) to help plan everything were super helpful, and especially liked the beautiful photographs and illustrations since they gave me a visual guide to work with. The styling meat section was especially valuable for me because I never knew how to go about it! Overall, a great guide for entertainers and hosts, but also for anyone that wants to treat themselves to a fancy snack table at home.

I loved this book!! I'm just waiting dor social distancing to be over to have a great party at home and putting all this recipes to good use. It also includes shopping list, which is super helpful when planning a meal.

This book is a great reference! Beautiful pictures, lovely illustrations that are also very useful and great pairing ideas make this a surprisingly nice and useful book. The checklists were informative and the included recipes look delicious. I look forward to picking this up in a book format when it comes out and adding it to my library!

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.

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.

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

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.

With its beautiful photos of spreads and tablescapes and delectable recipes it makes me long for a time when we could all easily gather together. Although most of the ideas could be adapted to use in a fun way to do something different with your family or housemates to give a night a special feeling.

It is both a how to with helpful tips and food porn.

Wow.. what an indepth look into the Art of Spreads. You will have so much know-how by the end of the book that you will be drawing out ideas for it. Details on many things - cheese knifes, cheese cuts, meat cuts, styling, cracker types, candles, table cloth, color wheel, music, drink pairing. With so muhc thought put into it, you and your guests will enjoy the party even more.

An awesome book to help take some of the stress out of planning out a table spread for gatherings. I found this book really interesting, made me consider things that I'd never thought of, like actually setting out the appropriate amount of items based off of how many people and how many they would (or should) typically eat. When we host parties, we just put out platters wherever they fit and have at it. But there's an interesting rhyme and reason and I'm looking forward to trying it. This book had some great information and had some awesome pictures to go along with everything. I wish my palate was more than just chips and dip because some of the recipes looked and sounded delicious! I think this book would make a great book to have on hand for planning gatherings!

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving a free copy.

A beautiful book. The pictures pull you in and make you want to try out all the recipes. Definitely makes me think I could up my charcuterie board game.

Such a great book for any hostess! Filled with great ideas on beautiful spreads to offer your guests or even for a nice night in with your family! My family personally loves snacks & charcuterie so this was perfect for us!

It is a fabulous, fun, beautiful book!!! Tables & Spreads is the complete perfect, guide for those who love to have gatherings at home. It is full of practical advises about how to built your spreads, the wow factor, delicious recipes and more to help you welcome your family and friends into a cozy, delicious table..

This book explores big questions like these, explaining the breakthroughs and discoveries that have shaped our modern-day understanding of medicine and helped us protect and promote our health. Written in plain English, The Medicine Book cuts through the jargon and is packed with pithy explanations of the most important milestones in medical history, with step-by-step diagrams and witty illustrations that untangle knotty concepts.

Must have for anyone planning any kind of get together or just wants to make Tuesday a special occasion! Lots of different ideas and recipes. And the pictures are gorgeous! My favorite part is the authors give you a formula on how to make the perfect board. This would make a wonderful gift as well.

This is an excellent guide on how to make delicious recipes and style them. The book is divided into two parts. Part one covers how to build a spread and is further broken down into four sections including The Spread, The Basics, Adding the Wow Factor, and the Anatomy of a Spread.

In these sections the reader will learn the basics of building a Spread such as portioning a Spread; the essentials for your table spread ( serving dishes, shape, size; utensils: cheese knives, ladle, serving spoons, and so on). There are also tips for styling food including balancing flavors and textures🍱.

Another chapter is dedicated to cheese 🧀 and cheese cuts; meat, vegetables; fresh & dried fruits, and so on as well as how to store them.

Another chapter presents color themes and tips on choosing the right color for your table. It includes a color chart. This chapter also includes a range of choices for tablecloths, flowers, and candles 🕯 🌺

The fourth section covers the anatomy of a Spread as well as types of Spreads such as Abundance Spread, Family Style, Drink Station, and so on.

Part two covers Recipes, Boards & Tables; and themes and consists of three sections. This includes how to keep a Casual Spread, Interactive Spreads, and Holiday Showstoppers. They are twenty-one board themes with over sixty recipes in this section. Each theme includes stylings notes, recipes, flavor combination ideas, and a drink pairing suggestion.

Drinks include Quick Harissa Bloody Mary Mix, Smoky Carrot Bloody Mary Mix 🍸 🍹 ( Interactive Spreads) and Classic Dry Martini 🍸, Cranberry-Orange Syrup ( Holiday Showstoppers)

Casual Spreads includes The Standard (Spicy Cantaloupe Jam; Pickles Zucchini Ribbon; Herby Brown Sugar Nuts
The Lunch Spread: Roasted Leek, Apple & Blue Cheese Farro Salad; Cacio e Pepe 7-Minute Eggs
Interactive Spreads: Savory Focaccia Party and Ladies' Night Lettuce Wraps; Falafel Mezze Spread.

The last section covers Holiday Showstoppers such as Birthday Breakfast Nacho Buffet (Sour Cream & Chive Scrambled Eggs; Loaded Guacamole; Poblano & Pepita Verse Sauce.

There are also meat🥩 pairing suggestions throughout the book suggested by the author’s partner.

The book is accompanied by mouthwatering photos and easy-to-follow instructions on how to create your delicious Spreads. Highly recommend.

Thank you to Shelly Westerhausen Worcel and Wyatt Worcel; NetGalley, and Chronicle Books for the ARC of this book.

This book contains everything one would need to know to put together a killer get together which, after a year of pandemic-related quarantine, is something we can all look forward to. The information is clear, well put together, well illustrated, and informative. The recipes are healthy but delicious. The planning checklists and ideas make all of this accessible. All in all, a truly solid book of its kind.

This book was fab if your wanting help and guidance on making your table spread look every bit as appetising as they make it

The photos in this cookbook are beautiful. I like how it's broken down into parts and goes into how much time you'll need for prepping. I also like that there are check list-type things in here like the Five Qs. I really enjoyed the fact that there is a portion page because you don't want too much of some things and not enough of others. I am SO THANKFUL there's a page with illustrations of different cheese knives. I learned all about different cheese knives today and I had never known there were so many different ones!

This literally has everything in it to plan your next spread. I really want a copy of this!

Tables & Spreads made me want to throw a beautiful, elaborate dinner party immediately.

The first half of the book serves as a dictionary of sorts for everything you need to know about how to put together a table spread or edible spread. I found parts of it fairly intuitive, but the author articulates this at the beginning, suggesting readers jump around in part one as they see fit.

Part two of the book is an assortment of hosting themes with the recipes and styling notes needed to execute said theme. The accompanying photographs were beautiful and helpful. I’m especially excited to try the Christmas Morning Dutch Baby Party recipes (though I don't intend to wait until Christmas morning)

I think this book would make a lovely housewarming gift, especially if paired with a cheeseboard or set of wine glasses.

Thank you NetGalley and Chronicle Books for the ARC.

We all know table spreads are the up and coming party trend. Fantastic book loaded with beautiful pictures, appetizing recipes and the perfect tips!! Cannot wait to get a hard copy of this book. The new must have!

Short Review: Beautiful photographs and easy to follow instructions make this an excellent cookbook to add to your shelf.

This cookbook appealed to me because it seems to capitalize on the current charcuterie board craze. The cover is appealing, and the same bright, colorful food photos grace the inside of the book. It's structured in two parts - the first covers the logistics of building a spread, and the second gives recipes and ideas for different occasions and holidays.

A spread is defined in the book as "a series of platters, boards, and servingware that are grouped together by a common theme to create an abundant display of food."

Part 1: Building a Spread
Section 1: The Spread - I love the 'Five Qs to Start' that help you decide on what direction to go with your spread. I also love the timeline, complete with checklist, for preparing your spread. Great for organization and planning! Also includes a table for portioning, a table of cheese knives, a glass guide (what shape to use for what), illustrations of different cheese cuts (the illustrations are cute!), illustrated examples of how to style meat (!!!), vegetable cuts, an illustrated garnish table, and a 'Choose Your Own Adventure' flow chart for deciding on what to include in your spread! This interactive format is typical of the entire book. It almost feels like a workbook, which is great for party planning.
Section 2: The Basic
Section 3: Adding the Wow Factor
Section 4: Anatomy of a Spread

Part 2: Recipes, Boards, & Tables
Section 1: Keeping it Casual
Section 2: Interactive Spreads
Section 3: Holiday Showstoppers

My favorite themes/recipes are the Birthday Breakfast Nacho Buffet and the School's Out Summer Limeade Party.

There are more tables, illustrations, and checklists than I can list. This is a great book that covers all the details that you'd need to prepare a fun and impressive spread. I can see this enjoyed by a beginner cook who wants to be able to create elegant spreads without lots of advanced cooking, while I can also see it benefitting a more experienced entertainer in need of new ideas and detailed organization plans. It would look beautiful on your bookshelf or as a coffee table book.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced readers copy in exchange for an honest review.

5*

Beautiful book--while I received a digital copy from the publisher, I will be ordering the hardcover! Shelly Westerhausen covers the gamut from shopping lists, timelines, equipment, decorations, drinks, and recipes.

I can't wait to be able to put her advice for spreads to use. This book would also make a great hostess or housewarming gift.