A Crostini Bar for a Wedding Cocktail Hour: DIY Ideas and Recipes!

Gotta love the sheer scrumptiousness of a make-your-own Crostini Bar! It offers the wide array of choices, minimum hassle, and fun vibe many of today’s couples are looking for in a cocktail hour at their wedding event. Just the thing for a small, casual wedding, bridal shower, bachelorette party, or rehearsal dinner. While everyone assembles their crostini + toppings creations, the bride and groom get to chat and mingle much more than at a sit-down event.

So let’s get to some great examples for how your crostini station can be a real feast for the eyes. Then, on to some delicious crostini recipe finds to please the palate!

7 Setup Examples for a Scrumptious Crostini Station

Rustic, outdoorsy, woodland-inspired. That pretty well sums up the look of these actual crostini bars we found on catering sites and party planning blogs. Totally doable and easily customizable to your taste. Read on and see how!

#1 Wood elements everywhere create the heartwarming appeal of this crostini station from Pullman Catering.

Details to inspire you:

• Display risers assembled from rough-hewn wood planks laid atop tree stumps, trunk slices, and wooden crates
• chalkboard signs also in rough wooden frames
• Serve ware combining wooden platters, ceramic bowls, and tin buckets

#2 More of the rustic look in this crostini station setup from Celebrations Catering.

Details to inspire you:

• Varied styles of chalkboard signs from frames on mini easels to “sandwich board” style to small wooden discs
• Bunches of flowers in bottle vases with burlap and lace bands
• Quaint touches like a little wooden stool with a racoon figurine

#3 A definite woodland feel to this station at an outdoor wedding reception, featured on The Knot.

Details to inspire you:

• Crostini toppings presented directly on wood slices and trays (certainly scrubbed clean beforehand and probably lined with food-safe wrap)
• Weathered and worn wooden crates used as risers
• Stacks of white cocktail plates providing contrast to all the dark wood

#4 This simple setup from Pompeii Woodfired Pizza conveys a fun, casual vibe great for an at-home wedding event.

Details to inspire you:

• A chalkboard sign with a hand-written list in multi-colored chalk
• Varied choices of breads (aside from crostinis)
• Wood-fire pizza trays used to display crostini toppings and a metal tray holding cheeses and fresh blueberries, strawberries, grapes, and other fruits

#5 This crostini station from Tristar Catering features a lavish display of all kinds of accompaniments, from sliced meats to grilled vegetables to cheeses, plus this section for varied dips and dressings.

Details to inspire you:

• A “tree stump bin” to hold the crostinis
• Wooden slabs and raised stands to create varied heights
• Square earthenware bowls for the dips and sauces, with food labels on wine cork-holders

#6 We found this lovingly prepared crostini station at an actual housewarming on Bird is the Word. Details of the crostini accompaniments (many homemade) are given in the post, but the simple setup is so charming!

Details to inspire you:

• A farmhouse table with a simple, striped table runner for that homespun look
• An overturned fruit crate as a riser
• A large wooden charcuterie/cheese board for all the goodies
• Vintage-style breakfast or dessert plates

#7 This unique southern style crostini station on Tatertots and Jello features cornbread crostinis with a selection of toppings.

Details to inspire you:

• An oversized chopping board to display all the toppings
• An array of choices from savory to sweet to spicy, and from Italian to Mexican, offered in little glass jars
• Handwritten tent-cards to label each topping

Crostini Recipes with Meat, Veggie, Fish, Fruit & Nut Toppings

Aside from allowing your guests to assemble their own appetizers on toasty baguette slices, you can certainly include ready-to-eat crostini creations, too! Show off your culinary skills with these enticing recipes we found!

1 – Honey-brushed Pear and Boursin Crostini – from Honey.com

2 – Tuna Crostini – from Genova Seafood

3 – Mozzarella Prosciutto Crostini with Balsamic Glaze – from Josh Cellars

4 – Tuscan Tuna Crostini – from Starkist

5 – Eggplant Crostini – from La Brea Bakery

6 – Feta and Tomato Crostini – from Pillsbury

7 – Walnut Cranberry Crostini – from Fisher Nuts

Crostini Bar Tips: Estimating Portions + Practical Serving Ideas

1. Prepare for 3 to 5 bites per person when having the crostini bar for a cocktail hour preceding the main reception or wedding party meal.
2. If you will not be serving a meal, allow for 5 to 6 bites per person from the crostini selection.
3. You may also provide more filling options through side dishes like a light soup, salad, fresh and dried fruits, and nuts.
4. To keep the baguette slices crisp and crunchy, toast them in small batches and bring them out to the station in covered bread baskets. (Note: Try to find terra cotta bread warmers to put inside the baskets, too.)
5. For quick and easy serving, have spare trays and platters with the crostini toppings already pre-arranged to replace the empty or near-empty ones.
6. Serve the dips and dressings in small portions in containers that, once empty, can be easily switched with new ones.