How to Plan a Fondue Bridal Shower Party

Is a traditional sit-down bridal shower not quite your thing? Host a fondue party instead! It immediately spells warmth, fun, and casual interaction—precisely what you’d wish for as you bring your best friends together for this special occasion.

Here, we present ideas for creating an inviting yet elegant ambiance for a gathering of 15 to 20 guests, and for setting out an enticing fondue spread for all to enjoy. Ready to host a get-together that celebrates your coming wedding with warmth and élan? Take your cue from our great fondue party tips below! (*this post contains affiliate links)

Set Up a Relaxed Yet Stylish Venue

Casual can certainly be chic as well. In our fondue party venue (e.g., a cozy living room), an overall palette of warm tones sets an urban-rustic mood, with an elegant flair. Shades of brown, beige, gold, red, and a hint of blue interplay amidst the furniture pieces, throw pillows, a wool throw, and Persian rugs on wooden plank flooring. The earthy hues extend even to the serving accessories—wooden bowls, bamboo trays, and earthenware mugs.

Make the scene equally relaxing and romantic with strategic groupings of candles such as those atop end tables.  Then, mason jars filled with votive candles set on a coffee table provide an enchanting golden glow.

What better place to stage this appealing setting than somewhere familiar and convenient for you—your own home? Particularly for a bridal shower celebration, it’s like extending a welcoming hug to all who come to the party.

It’s Fondue Time: Send the Word Out with Charm!

Set the warm tone of the event by sending out invitations with a whimsical, retro, or modern touch—like these picks we made from Zazzle that are all customizable for your event.

1. Fondue Party Invitation
2. Bridal Shower or Fondue Party Invitation
3. Fondue Time Invitationn
4. Floral Garden Bridal Shower Bring a Recipe Invitation
5. Chocolate Fountain Bridal Shower Invitation
6. Fondue Wedding Shower Invitation
7. Fondue Party Invitation with Cheese
8. Fashionable Retro Fondue Party Theme Invitation

Fondue Party Essentials

To pull off your bridal shower in proper Fondue Party style, here are the entertainment essentials we recommend from serving forks to recyclable champagne glasses.

1. Swissmar Fondue Set – from Amazon
2. Stoneware Fondue Plates (set of 6) – from Amazon
3. Wooden Chalkboard Clips (set of 4) – from Amazon
4. The Cellar Whiteware Nested Serving Trays (set of 3) – from Macy’s
5. Recyclable Champagne Plastic Cup (set of 12) – from Amazon
6. Copper Hammered Flatware Caddy – from Amazon
7. 18 Pieces Stainless Steel Fondue Forks – from Amazon
8. He Asked, She Said Yes Hot Stamped Beverage Napkins – from Amazon

Fondue Bridal Shower Decorations

Adding bridal shower party accents to your home venue will be fun and easy with these ready-made decorative items we found. Take your pick!

1. Vintage Wedding Bunting (“Miss to Mrs.”) – from Amazon
2. Purple Floral Bridal Wishes/Advice – from Amazon
3. 48 Gold Glitter Graphic Dots Couple Advice Cards – from Amazon
4. Purple Tissue Paper Tassel Garland – from Amazon
5. Real Glitter Paper Pennant Hanging Banner (“Bubbly Bar”) – from Amazon
6. Fondue Bar Sign (8×10, frame not included) – from Amazon

Plan a Scrumptious Fondue Menu

To make your fondue menu interesting, select a variety of foods that will appeal to all your guests’ tastes—with some surprises thrown in.

For a base, start with the ever-popular dipping sauces made of melted cheese and melted chocolate. Try this: give your cheese  sauces a spicy kick with jalapeños and Sriracha!

Then, for guests to either munch on as finger foods or dip into the yummy fondue sauces, prepare fresh fruits like strawberries, cherries, bananas, pears, and apples.

On the side, have a more unusual array of pretzels, nacho chips, pita chips, biscotti, breadsticks, marshmallows, cookies, and nuts.

For an exotic twist, you can offer up dried dates or figs, or preserved fruits, such as kiwi, mango, and papaya.

Crunchy vegetable pieces—broccoli, celery, cauliflower, carrots—would be a great addition as well.

Main Dish Fondues to Consider

If you’d like to offer heavier fare, you may consider “main dish” fondue options like these.

1. Beef Fondue – recipe from Recipe Tips
2. Buffalo Chicken Fondue – recipe from Katie’s Cucina
3. Crab Fondue – from Betty Crocker

Have Unique Dipping Sauces for Guests to Try

You may want to surprise guests with an unusual dipping sauce or two. Here are some fun recipes that you can try out.

1. 3-Ingredient Caramel Fondue for a Slow Cooker – from Le Creme de la Crumb
2. Peanut Butter Chocolate Fondue – from Leite’s Culinaria
3. Garlic Spinach Cheddar Fondue – from Kraft Recipes

With such a scrumptious spread, the only thing you’ll have to worry about is whether or not there will be enough meats, munchies, and veggies to go around for dipping!

Set Out a Variety of Drinks to Match

 A fondue party can be held at any time of the year. But when holding it in the fall, a variety of both warm and cool drinks would be great. Depending on your expected guests’ tastes, decide on a selection of wines, coffee, tea, hot cocoa, and even liquor.

• A good approach would be to assemble a beverage station, so that guests can readily serve themselves to their choice of drinks.
• Offer up a nice wine or two: for a cheese fondue, a dry Riesling or even sparkling champagne; for chocolate fondue, any dessert wine or port, or a Cabernet with a hint of fruits or berries.
• Coffee, of course, is always looked for—so have a freshly-brewed pot ready at hand.
• You may also opt to serve up a variety of teas such as chai, green tea, or jasmine.
• If you think liquor would be appropriate for a fall-time party, you may offer cognac, brandy, and sherry.
• Hot cocoa would be perfect for this fondue party, served with a heap of marshmallows of course!

Food-related Games and Activities

In keeping with the fondue focus of the event, why not plan food, cooking, or kitchen-related games, activities, and DIY crafts? Best to have a mix of those the gents (if this is a couples’ shower) and older guests will enjoy, too. So you can have more than 1 activity going on at a time.

1. Foodie Fight Trivia Game – from Amazon
2. Wine Tasting Guessing Game – found on One King’s Lane
3. Foodie Craze, the Food & Wine Trivia Game to Play Anywhere Anytime – from Amazon
4. DIY Fabric-covered Wooden Spoons – found via Alice and Lois
5. “Name That Spice” game – thanks to Blue I Style
6. Foodie Dice Game – from Amazon

Give Thoughtful, Autumn-inspired Favors

 
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Guests will probably wish this party could go on. Extend the warmth, then, with lovely take-home favors that are inspired by the season. Here are some delightful ideas for favor items and how to package and display them:

• Prepare an assortment of fall-time nuts, delicious home-baked goodies, or rustic glam gift ideas like fragrant wood-shaving potpourri (shown in our photo above).
• Present these in charming heart-shaped boxes woven from natural abaca material, and attach corn husk thank-you tags(shown in our photo above).
• Or wrap the boxes in silky fabric circles in different colors, and display them atop multi-sized glass vases filled with raffia fiber (shown in our photo below).
• White embossed candles add an elegant touch to this eye-catching favor presentation (shown in our photo below).!

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Other great favor options for this fall-time fondue party: incense sticks, soy-based soap, or embroidered sachets filled with lavender buds.

A Goodie Bag of Food-related Favors

Again, since this is a fondue bridal shower party, an alternative would be to gift guests with “food lovers goodie bags” to take home and enjoy! Here are our suggested product picks to do just that:

1. Vintage Food Lovers Bon Appetit Gift Bag – from Zazzle
2. Gourmet Sea Salt Sampler – from Amazon
3. Triple Beer Cheese Spread – round labels from Evermine
4. Watercolor Blush & Gold Recipe Cards – from Zazzle
5. Personlized Dress Cookies – from Beau-coup
6. Lindt Lindor Caramel Milk Truffles – from Amazon
7. Perrier in a Can – from Amazon

Play Music to Get the Party in Full Swing

What’s a fondue party without some mood music? Make it an Ipod® party! Or tune in to internet radio sites like Pandora®. Whatever you choose, a great touch would be to compile a playlist of your favorite songs, including those of your fiancé. That way, everyone enjoys the party while getting to know you through your music.

Hint: When sending out the invitations, you may even get your guests in on the fun early by having them name 3 to 5 of their favorite songs. Then, include these in your playlist, and see the fun reactions as the tunes liven up the party!

Wow! This is sure to be one unforgettable bridal shower—from the fondue fare all the way to food lovers’ favors. We’re so excited for you to try out this inspiration!