Step Back in Time: Host a Savtini Speakeasy Weekend

When the thermometer climbs past 100 degrees, sometimes the best weekend adventure isn't outside at all. Forget fighting the heat, searching for shade, or standing over a grill in the blazing sun. Savtini and Suzzana have another idea.

Close the curtains, turn down the lights, put some jazz on, and turn your home into a 1920s Savtini Speakeasy.

Because sometimes the best way to make new memories is to borrow a little inspiration from the past.

The idea is simple: invite a handful of friends and family over for an evening that's completely different from the usual weekend gathering. But there's one requirement—everyone has to play along.

Tell your guests they're stepping back into the 1920s.

For the gentlemen, that might mean fedoras, suspenders, bow ties, vests, pinstripe suits or newsboy caps. For the ladies, bring out the flapper dresses, long pearls, feathered headbands, gloves and Art Deco jewelry. Nobody needs to spend a fortune. Half the fun is seeing what everyone comes up with.

Savtini recommends greeting guests properly—with a cocktail.

And a Speakeasy party gives you an excuse to rediscover some wonderful classics.

Set up a small bar featuring drinks from the era. Shake a Southside with gin, citrus and fresh mint. Pour an elegant French 75 with gin, lemon and Champagne. Mix the tropical Mary Pickford with rum, pineapple, grenadine and maraschino liqueur. Add a Bee's Knees or another favorite from the Savtini Speakeasy.

Print a little cocktail menu and let everyone choose their poison.

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Of course, Suzzana will remind Savtini that people probably need something to eat.

Keep that simple too.

Make trays of delicate cucumber sandwiches. Put out deviled eggs dusted with paprika. Serve warm meatballs that guests can grab with a cocktail pick. Individual shrimp cocktails look fantastic in small glasses, and a big cheese board with cured meats, olives, crackers, nuts and fruit lets everyone nibble throughout the evening.

Nothing needs to be formal.

That's the point.

This isn't a dinner party where somebody spends the entire night trapped in the kitchen. Prepare most of the food beforehand, put everything out, make the drinks together and enjoy your own party.

Then create the atmosphere.

Turn off the television. Dim the lights. Add candles. Find some jazz and swing music. Put playing cards on one table. Maybe teach everyone an old cocktail they've never tried. Take plenty of photographs because seeing your friends dressed like they've walked out of 1927 will probably provide entertainment for years.

You could even give your Speakeasy a password.

No password?

Sorry. Never heard of Savtini.

And that's really what this weekend idea is about.

Memories.

We're always looking for someplace to go and something to do. Sometimes we forget that with a little imagination, the people we enjoy being around can create something special without ever leaving home.

Someday nobody will remember that it was 103 degrees outside.

They'll remember Uncle Joe arriving in a fedora. They'll remember Grandma ordering her first French 75. They'll remember the music, the laughter, the ridiculous photographs and somebody insisting they knew how to dance the Charleston.

They'll remember being together.

Sometimes taking a step back in time brings a brighter future.

So gather the family. Invite some friends. Dress the part. Put out the appetizers. Shake the cocktails. Turn down the lights and let the Savtini Speakeasy open for one unforgettable evening.

And don't be surprised if there's a knock at the door later in the night.

A certain traveler may have heard there's a good martini being served.

Who knows? Kaelor just might show up.