Fall Harvest Buffet
It’s easy to set up a fall harvest soup buffet as a lunch or dinner for friends and family. A fall soup bar is such a seasonal treat! Here are easy tips and lots of images to help you transform your kitchen counter or table into a fall feast.
A soup buffet is one of the easiest, coziest, and most fun ways to get together in the fall. And a soup bar gives us a reason to celebrate with our friends and family! I say, “Let them eat soup”! Here’s how to set up an easy and pretty soup bar.
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Soup is such a favorite at our home! How about at yours? I actually love to make soup! When the kids come home, it’s fun to have a soup we all love!
Set It Out And Let Everyone Serve Themselves
Our kitchen has the perfect counter to set out everything we will need for our meal! I love spreading out a self-serve buffet so everyone can dig in and take what they like!
If you can’t afford the countertop space, set a soup bar on a kitchen or dining room table! Or even a utility table covered in a pretty fall tablecloth would be just perfect!
I wanted this soup bar to reflect the beauty and bounty of the fall season! It’s all about feeling cozy and well-loved!
Fall is such a gorgeous season in Lancaster County. It’s the unofficial pumpkin land of America! We get our pumpkins locally from the back of flatbeds parked in a farm lane. So, they are not perfect, but I’ve come to embrace their imperfections as something to enjoy. One thing most of the pumpkins in our area have are stems! The stems on the pumpkins in the image below are green, and that means they were just picked.
Who doesn’t love pumpkins! To celebrate pumpkins, I decorate our soup bar with lots of them! On cake plates and candlesticks and dotted here and there along the soup bar.
I even added a pumpkin to the display of my favorite square dinner plates! These plates have an interesting handmade look and a tiny rim.
At the end of the table, I made a small impromptu arrangement of more pumpkins and a large dried gourd! Super easy!
Did you notice that little baby votive in the images, like the one below? I got a box of them at Williams-Sonoma almost a decade ago and LOVE them. They are much smaller than regular-size votives and look so festive wherever I put them. I’ve looked everywhere for more but can’t find them anywhere. If you know where I can find them, please leave me a comment. Thanks so much!
On the counter in the background, coffee and spiced apple cider are also set up to be self-serve! Once this buffet is set up, everyone can sit at the table and enjoy a meal together!
Make Something And Buy The Rest
When I was younger, I would make everything homemade! I was a bit of a homemade snob. I’m much smarter and wiser now! So, I made some things for the fall soup bar and bought some, too! I love to make soup, so it’s most often the thing I make. I usually make it in the slow cooker or make it ahead a day or two and warm it up before serving. I’m also a lot wiser about time management too!
Here are my favorite soups to serve a crowd.
Delicious Soup Recipes
Try all six of these comforting and delicious soups.
For our Soup Bar, I made a delicious Pork And Cabbage Soup. This soup is so hearty and perfect for fall.
I make my grandmother Nani’s recipe. She was such a big influence in my life. If you make one thing to serve on a fall soup bar, this should be it!
These are my favorite soup bowls. Like the plates, these bowls have a handmade look.
Make It Easy
When I make a big pot of soup and have it with Homemade Butter Topped Beer Bread or Sweet Cream Cornbread From A Box Mix. Both recipes are so easy to make. The Beer Bread tastes delicious toasted the next morning with butter slathered on it. Typing this last sentence made my mouth water. LOL!
But when I make the soup for the Soup Bar, I usually buy the rest! However, the next time I’m having a fall soup bar, I’ll make the beer bread. It’s just so easy!
Serving bread on a breadboard or vintage cutting board gives it an even more rustic feel! Perfect for fall!
The Pumpkin Caramel Bundt Cake is also from our local store! And it is so yummy!
If you would rather make dessert, here are my favorite fall dessert recipes. Can you tell I am a bundt cake fan?
FALL DESSERT RECIPES
Try these delicious desserts with the warm flavors of fall.
Whether you choose to buy or make dessert for a fall soup bar, put it on a cake pedestal! Everything tastes better on a pedestal!
I like to put dessert at the end of the buffet along with cake plates and forks so people can revisit the buffet and get their cake after they eat the soup.
I don’t even give a thought to people, especially grandbabies, eating dessert first!
The only thing I add to the soup bar just before people get in line is a whipped cream dispenser. You can’t fake whipped cream. The real thing is a culinary gift!
I just add cold heavy cream, a bit of powdered sugar, and a little vanilla extract to the dispenser and shake!! It’s just sooooo good!
You can see my whipped cream dispenser. This small kitchen gadget will last a lifetime!
Keep It Simple
I keep a Soup Bar very simple. It’s all about a perfectly scrumptious soup and bread! And a few fun, well-placed nods to the fall season! Remember to play some fall-inspired music and encourage lots of conversation and laughter.
Even soup can make wonderful memories! So remember to take pictures!
Click The Video Below For More Fall Inspiration
ITEMS FOR YOUR FALL SOUP BAR…
Our family loves soup, especially when the air grows chilly. Soup buffet/bar allows everyone to relax and visit as the work is done ahead. We enjoy a traditional pre Christmas soup and salad gathering each December for extended family. Some members bring their favorites, so it is great fun to sample several soups. Hope to try your Nani’s vegetable version. Thanks for sharing your recipes, along with the pretty decor. Inspirational, as always.
Love everything about this post!
So sweet!
Yvonne, I totally agree about Lancaster County and pumpkins. The carts of pumpkins by the side of the roads…the Amish road side stands filled with pumpkins! You are making me home sick, lol. I love your soup bar and display in your new beautiful kitchen. Would you share the source for the small cupcake stands please? I believe I need a few or more ? Hugs, Carol
Hi Carol, the cupcake stands are really candleholders. I found them locally. Here are some that are very similar https://rstyle.me/+hnq37Yuj9CwVw9YcHu-CAw
What a beautiful spread! I adore the autumn colors in your new kitchen, and your menu looks and sounds. yummy. Living in SW Florida, we don’t have cool weather until November… or sometimes December, but definitely by January! That’s when I make soup, and lots of it! I’m saving your recipes and hoping for a cooler day soon! In the meantime, I enjoy the fall vicariously through your wonderful blog!
Hi Rhonda, I hope I have brought a bit of fall beauty to you in SW Florida.
Beautiful! Great idea and beautiful table/setting.
Thanks Lynne!
Great ideas! Love your silverware! Where did it come from? Love your blog!
Here is link for the flatware: https://amzn.to/3dcwWAM
You have the most elegant style, I just love your blog! Would you mind sharing your source for those wonderful beautiful napkins? Thank you so much.
Hi Beth, they were a gift. It was from this shop on Etsy. https://www.etsy.com/shop/edithandevelyn?ref=shop_sugg
Love everything including the copper spoons. I’m wondering if there might be a way to do this safely, during COVID, for our apartment building Thanksgiving dinner instead of the potluck we usually do?
Great suggestion for a crowd. Like this for after caroling, ice skating or even during a bon fire this fall.
Thank you!
Now for my questions, what is the container holding the small stripe pumped kin?
What store in your area sells this delicious looking cake?
The twirly.gourds?
Never new fresh whip cream was this easy! You never stop teaching me.
Don’t stop. Ha! Ha!
This is lovely! You’re so talented Yvonne! How do you keep your Apple Cider warm?
Either in a coffee carafe or my slow cooker. Hope this is helpful.
Thanks Yvonne!
So welcome!
Where do I sign up for the ladle giveaway?
Love your posts but all of your pictures are not coming through.
Thanks for sharing but I’m looking forward to those pictures.
Thanks Jony
Not sure why. So sorry!
I loved your post today! Everything is spot on about serving to a crowd! I have a Collection ( small ) of Cake Plates on pedestals and find them so versatile and not just for food!! They are one of my favorite things ! I love the idea of just a Wonderful Soup and fill in the rest with store bought! My family has grown and this would be an amazing idea!! Have a lovely day!
Thank you, MaryAnne! I hope you too will have a soup bar this fall!
Fabulous idea…I am looking to host some of my retired teaching friends and this will be perfect ! Question – do you make more than one soup …and how do you keep them warm ? Thanks !
If you have a large group making a couple soups might be a good idea.
That is a beautiful spread! I love the simplicity of the all-white with pops of orange.
Thanks, Autumn! What a great name to have this time of year!
Wonderful post!! I want to have friends over and what a wonderful way to do it!!!
Thanks, Eileen! I hope you do!
Such a wonderful idea. I absolutely love soup as the air begins to chill. I love the idea of making the soup and purchasing the rest. Great tips. Thanks so much.
I’m getting smarter as I get older! LOL!
Everything so pretty, and the idea is perfect. Your food looks so yummy. Now I am hungry. Thanks for sharing
Thanks, Ivory!
Hi Vyonne,
I love your Fall harvest soup bar. I’m getting excited to set up one this weekend since my son and wife just recently moved back to this area. I especially like the cutting board for bread idea and all the nice fall decor placed on dishes and candlesticks! I have done several searches on your blog to find your recipe for beef tacos with fried corn tortillas and the chicken pot pie with a biscuit topping but no such luck finding these recipes. Could you please assist me in finding them. I really like those quick ideas for weeknight meals!
Check with Ann On Sutton Place, these are her recipes.
I love soup and I love making it…so cathartic! It’s still in the 80s/90s, though. So I’ll need to wait a few weeks! I challenge myself constantly to find menus that work with a crowd and keeping things warm. Soups and stews are the best! It makes even better leftovers too!
I’ve been eyeing your copper flatware for years! It’s not something I want for everyday use, but it sure jazzes up the soup bar!
I agree about keeping it simple. I wish I had the time back from when my kids were younger and I felt I needed to have a roast beef dinner after a long day at work!
Love the copper handled spoons! I’m having out of town company in December, I’ve been thinking about menus. I will definitely do a soup bar!
So pretty! And your soup recipes sound delicious!
I’m bookmarking your recipes in the hopes that a cool day will soon arrive! Until then, I get to experience fall through your fantastic blog!