How to Host a Semi-Homemade Big Game Viewing Party

*This post was created in collaboration with Coke, but all opinions are my own. Thank you for supporting Southern State of Mind sponsors!*

With the craziness of the holidays behind us, it’s time to start thinking about the next reason to host a celebration … the Super Bowl. Atlanta, how COOL is it that this year the Big Game is right here at home?!  Even if your team isn’t going this year, I think we can all agree it’s a fun excuse to gather friends on a winter Sunday evening. Who doesn’t love a reason to eat, catch up with friends, watch fun commercials and the half time show?

Oh yeah and maybe even watch some football…

To make this year’s Big Game even more fun, for you GA residents out there, Coca-Cola and Publix are teaming up to invite 10 lucky people (with 1 guest each) to attend a “Big Game Viewing Party” hosted by Coca-Cola! To enter this awesome sweepstakes AND to stock up on your supply of Coke for the big day, find the Publix near you by clicking .

Today I want to show you how to pull off a “semi-homemade” game day spread. I’ve got four simple snack ideas you can easily grab from Publix as well as two easy DIY party decor projects to kick up your spread a notch. And of course how to create the ultimate Coke beverage station.

It’s easy to have a fun and festive spread using all prepared foods, without the extra work. Because let’s face it, the hostess doesn’t want to be stuck in the kitchen, she wants to watch the commercials too!  But that doesn’t mean she needs to stick a bag of potato chips out with a can of dip either, am-I-right?

Football Turf Table Runner  |  Plaid Table Cloth  |  Beverage Tub 

So let’s tackle this Big Game party! (Yes, pun intended). Because, being here in Atlanta, we know that this big city is going to throw down a GREAT party!

BEVERAGE STATION

First up, a festive beverage station! Because no party is complete without it and all of the tasty snacks need something refreshing to pair it with. For my beverage station, I covered our stove area in the kitchen with a tablecloth and turf table runner over the burners.  I love using this “real estate” in our kitchen when entertaining, assuming we won’t need the oven.  

I just filled the beverage tub with Coca-Cola and Coke Zero in an assortment of sizes. Offering some colorful paper straws is a fun addition for your guests too! 

Now that we have our beverage station put together, let’s take a look at some appetizer/side dish ideas. 

APPETIZER IDEAS

An easy but always sophisticated appetizer idea is to create a cheese board. Here you can see I just grabbed a few blocks of cheese from the Publix deli along with some charcuterie fixings. When selecting cheeses, I always try to get an assortment of soft and hard cheeses, and of course, just grab what sounds good and is on sale. I don’t think you can go wrong with any cheese! To add a finishing touch, just add some rosemary sprigs that you can find in the produce aisle. 

The next idea is always a crowd-pleaser and requires little effort. Just grab the prepared spinach dip from the Publix deli and King’s Hawaiian bread. To serve it, hollow the top of a King’s Hawaiian bread bowl, add in the dip, then slice King’s Hawaiian rolls and place around the bread bowl. 

The third suggestion for a semi-homemade appetizer is to buy the already prepared Buffalo Chicken Dip and a few bags of the thin pretzels (also in our deli area) to serve with it. Warning – this stuff is so addicting! 

DESSERT

Of course everyone needs a sweet treat to top it off! For this semi-homemade dessert, I bought the prepared brownie bites from the Publix bakery, a tub of frosting and some candy treats. To add the frosting to the brownies, I just spooned the frosting into a sandwich bag, snipped the end and squeezed a dollop onto the brownie. Of course, match the candy to the team colors for an added touch! Such an easy way to take a store bought dessert and crack it up a notch. TOUCHDOWN!

Once you have your semi-homemade snacks figured out, it’s time to get to work on a few semi-homemade crafts.  I am calling them “semi-homemade” because they really can be whipped up using things you probably already have around the house with very little effort.

FOOTBALL MASON JARS

First up, let’s take a look at the football themed mason jars. I happened to have a few extra mason jars on hand, but you could always recycle spaghetti or jelly jars from the pantry. I just gave one a coat of black spray paint and the other got a coat of brown. A skinny paint brush dipped in white paint added the finishing touches for some paper straw holders. 

FOOTBALL BANNER

The second party decor DIY is a football banner, and it was made in a few minutes. For this, I used some brown paper note cards, twine and white paint. Cut the note cards into football shapes and hand paint the football details. Then hole punch each end and string the twine through the holes. Easy and free! Another TOUCHDOWN! 

I hope you are inspired to host a “semi-homemade” Big Game party of your own this year! Of course, the only thing better than hosting a party is ATTENDING A VIP BIG GAME VIEWING PARTY hosted by Coke!! For you GA residents out there, be sure to enter the Coke/Publix Sweepstakes where 10 lucky winners will be invited (with 1 guest) to attend a “Big Game Viewing Party” hosted by Coca-Cola and various NFL legends! So make sure you visit your local to grab your supply of Coke products and to enter the awesome sweepstakes!

Happy Hosting!

xoxo- Heather