What is the best foods to use for throwing a small "house-warming" party?

Easy peasy lemon squeezy! Finger foods, cheese plate, fruit plate. Or if you want, small sandwiches. Don't forget the beverages! Depending on the type of crowd, a simple sangria, assortment of beers, lemonade, or wines. As for entertainment, keep it simple, keep it interactive. A backyard thing would do the trick.

I did a shrimp platter, a meat and cheeses platter, hummus in a bread bowl with extra bread chunks, veggies and another bread bowl dip, and snacky stuff like pretzels and bread with a dipping sauce. And deviled eggs. We had about 20 people ranging in all ages and it was a hit. You don't need entertainment when people mingle. We just had country music on in the background.

"Panto-Rhyme" From the classic charades and standard board games to hip rhyming challenges, there are lots of ways to add fun activities to your at-home, casual party. Some to consider: Revised version of charades using news of that day. Board games from the past (Battleship, Operation, Twister) with odd substitutes for missing game pieces (toothpicks for Battleship pieces, tiny party favors for Operation). Create new lyrics to common and popular songs. For instance, you could use the tune from the Beverly Hillbillies television show to sing about a friend's promotion: "Come and listen to a story about a guy named Jay. Accounting extraordinaire at Horner, Smith and Flay." Get the idea? Trivia challenges--especially fun if you and your guests share a common hobby or interest such as old movies, cars or even cooking. Shrimp-Cheese Bites Make these delectable little bites in large batches. You may find you can’t wait for a party before sneaking them from the freezer to reheat and nibble! 1 1/4 cups Gold Medal® all-purpose flour 1/2 cup butter or margarine 1 egg, beaten 2/3 cup chopped cooked shrimp 2 ounces farmer or chèvre (goat) cheese, crumbled 1 egg 1 egg yolk 1/2 cup half-and-half 2 teaspoons chopped fresh basil leaves or 3/4 teaspoon dried basil leaves 1. Heat oven to 375°F. Place flour in medium bowl. Cut in butter, using pastry blender or crisscrossing 2 knives, until mixture is crumbly. Stir in 1 beaten egg until well mixed. Shape into a ball. Divide into 24 balls. Press 1 ball on bottom and up side of each of 24 ungreased small muffin cups, 1 1/4x1 inch. 2. Divide shrimp among cups. Sprinkle with cheese. Beat 1 egg and the egg yolk in small bowl. Stir in half-and-half and basil. Spoon about 1 tablespoon egg mixture into each cup. 3. Bake about 20 minutes or until light brown. Immediately remove from pans to wire rack. Serve immediately.

Have a pot-luck party...sometimes for house warming party, the guests will leave their "newly" purchased containers they brought the food in, for the home owner.... Play charades, pictionary with a big easel and large tablet of paper, have people tell their funniest "new" home stories... LET OTHER PEOPLE BRING THINGS TO YOU.. THE PARTY IS TO WELCOME YOU TO YOUR HOUSE, NOT THEM TO YOUR HOUSE!

You can find some good stuff at Cosco or Sams Club.

Boil 3 diff pastas and have 3 diff sauces. Red, white( alfredo) and maybe a clam Garlic bread slices and a veggie salad of sliced cukes,olives,zucchini,carrots with a vinaigrette dressing its marinated in for a bit Entertainment...get some of those DVD games like Shout (movie music or sports trivia)or Deal or No deal split folks up into teams around the TV and have a blast. Your not supposed to work hard for the party- you already did moving in and setting up. The party is to relax and enjoy the new place with friends

I would do appetizers. If you do a quick search you can find many on the internet. Gather those that you think are interesting or that would fit the crowd and then look at the ingredients to determine the most cost effective. Depending on the group you can plan games - we did a trivia game at one of our parties or outdoor games if possible. I know it sounds kinda lame but we have had good luck with it. If you have a really fun group you could "personalize" trivia around the new home owner.

Finger foods are great for any party, but especially great for a House-Warming party! I attended a party once where the hostess had encouraged each guest to explore her new place by putting the different types of appetizers in each room of the house. It was so clever, and an excellent way to please your guests as they take a tour of your new pad! Congrats!

For entertainment, play games. Everyone loves games.