Ask the host what’s still missing, then bring one thing that travels well and needs no oven when you arrive: a side, a salad, a dessert or the drinks. Bring it in your own dish, label anything with nuts or dairy, and if you bring a bottle as a gift, let the host decide when to open it.
Every Friendsgiving has four kinds of mac and cheese and not a single vegetable. The guest who brings the salad is remembered fondly. The guest who brings ice is remembered forever.
What is Friendsgiving?
Friendsgiving is a Thanksgiving-style dinner with friends instead of, or as well as, family, usually as a potluck in the days around Thanksgiving. The word has been around since at least 2007, and Merriam-Webster added it to the dictionary in 2020.
Step one: ask
Send the host one text: “What can I bring?” Then do what they say. A potluck works when everyone fills a gap, not when everyone brings their favorite dish. If the host says “just yourself,” bring a small gift anyway.
Dishes that travel well
- Vegetables: a roasted vegetable tray, a big green salad with the dressing on the side, or Brussels sprouts that taste good at room temperature.
- Sides that hold: a casserole you can reheat, a grain salad, cornbread, dinner rolls with good butter.
- Dessert: pie, brownies or cookies. Desserts travel well when they’re packed properly.
- No-cook: a cheese and charcuterie board, assembled at home and covered.
Skip anything that needs the oven or the last burner on arrival. The host’s oven has been booked since Tuesday.
Bringing the drinks
Drinks are a generous thing to bring to a potluck, because they’re the item the host is most likely to run out of.
- Prosecco is the easy choice. It goes with a mixed potluck menu better than most wines, it feels like a celebration, and one 750 mL bottle pours five glasses. For a group, plan on a bottle for every two or three guests; our drinks calculator does the exact math.
- Rosé suits Friendsgiving. Rosé is a common sommelier pick for casual gatherings, and a Prosecco Rosé brings the bubbles too. Our Prosecco Rosé guide explains the style.
- Bring it cold. Chill the bottles at home and carry them in an insulated bag, or bring a bag of ice and a bucket. Warm Prosecco is a disappointment and a hazard, because warm corks fly.
- Make it a drink, not just a bottle: mix the base for a Poinsettia (cranberry juice and orange liqueur) in a jar at home, then top each glass with Prosecco when you arrive. Or bring everything for a raspberry Prosecco punch.
- Something for everyone: add a bottle of sparkling cider or good sparkling water for guests who aren’t drinking.
Host gifts
A host gift is for the host, not for the table. Hand it over with a word like “this is for you, for later,” so nobody feels obliged to open it with dinner.
- A bottle they’ll enjoy: choose for their taste rather than for the price. Our answer to is Prosecco a good gift covers how to choose.
- Mini bottles as favors: a 200 mL bottle at each place setting is a small, festive thank-you, for guests who are 21 and over. See our guide to mini Prosecco bottles.
- Practical and kind: serving utensils, a nice dish towel, or a box of good chocolates for the morning after.
- For a host who doesn’t drink: flowers in their own vase, coffee from a local roaster, or a sparkling soft drink they love.
A good guest’s checklist
- Arrive with your dish ready to serve, in a dish you’re happy to leave or collect later.
- Label it: nuts, dairy, gluten, meat.
- Don’t take over the kitchen. Do offer to wash up.
- Take your empties and your leftovers home, unless the host begs to keep the pie.
The bottle that arrives looking wrapped
Bella Principessa Prosecco DOC and Bella Principessa Prosecco DOC Rosé are both Brut, and both come in a ceramic-painted bottle with no paper label. That’s useful when you’re bringing a gift: it looks finished without a bag. The Rosé, made from Glera with Pinot Noir, is a natural with cranberry sauce. Both are in stores in Florida now; see where to buy. For favors, there’s also a 200 mL mini Prosecco bottle, made to order.
Hosting instead? Read Prosecco for Thanksgiving for pairings and bottle counts. Please enjoy responsibly: 21 and over only, and make sure everyone has a safe way home.
