Holiday parties are fun, but hosting one at home is a lot of work. 

This year, give yourself the gift of a festive shindig hosted somewhere else. Outsourcing your party to a restaurant means great food and drinks you don’t have to prepare, served in a place you don’t have to clean.

Just show up, have fun, and head home. 

From a soaring conservatory that seats dozens to a private vault for a more intimate event, these local restaurants have great party spaces.  

The Black Swan Public House, Asbury Park

This is the first holiday season for James Avery’s The Black Swan Public House, a European gastropub with imported beer at the bar, fish and chips on the menu, and soccer games on television

The historic building housing the restaurant was once a bank, and its vault remains. The snug space, filled with high-backed chairs and booths and decorated with ornate rugs and candelabras, seats 14.

You can book a small private dinner inside the vault at The Black Swan Public House in Asbury Park.

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Have a slightly larger group? Pass through the arch at the front of the restaurant to the tea room, an airy 20-person space with flowers overhead and a view of Mattison Avenue. 

As for the food, try Scotch eggs, shepherd’s pie, and bangers and mash with gravy, washed down with a pint or two. 

Go: 601 Mattison Ave.; 732-361-7159, theblackswanap.com.

The tea room at The Black Swan Public House in Asbury Park.

Alternate Ending Beer Co., Aberdeen

This 9,000-square-foot brew pub has a lot to offer, from its 30-tap bar and full kitchen to a movie-screening room, a nod to the building’s history as a theater.

Brewery owner Scott Novick offers several party packages for groups of 12 to 45, from weeknight happy hour events to weekend luncheons. Parties can be hosted in the main tap room or a private space.  

The party space at Alternate Ending Beer Co. in Aberdeen.

The food is top notch, as the folks from Asbury Park’s Talula’s lead the kitchen. Party menus include sourdough soft pretzels, wings, pizza and salad, with cookies for dessert.

A fun treat: Spring for the movie option, which includes the playing of a holiday movie on a big screen.

Go: 1057 Route 34; 732-612-8422, alternateendingbeerco.com.

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La Mondina, Brielle

A banquet room at La Mondina in Brielle.

Rustic Italian never looked as beautiful as it does at La Mondina.

The restaurant has three spaces available for private parties: two banquet rooms and a private, second-story dining room draped in white tablecloths and decorated with greenery and candlelight. 

These rooms can hold between 20 and 120 guests, and menus feature family-style platters or plated dinners of arancini with hazelnut romesco, arugula pear salad, rigatoni Bolognese, and chicken Marsala. 

Go: 110 Union Ave.; 732.612.8331, lamondinabrielle.com.

R Bar, Asbury Park

The Greenhouse at R Bar in Asbury Park.

Another new addition this year, R Bar will celebrate its first holiday in Asbury Park with parties in its second-story Greenhouse. 

The space, which has a private bar, a patio overlooking Main Street, and large windows showcasing the backyard performance and dining space, can accommodate 50 partygoers.

If you time it right, the setting sun fills the room with light. 

Owner Lindsey Taylor said party menus offer cocktail-style bites of the restaurant’s dishes: wedge salads, sliders, charcuterie and more. 

Go: 1114 Main St.; 732-776–7463, itsrbar.com.

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B2 Bistro + Bar, Point Pleasant Beach 

One of four New Jersey locations of a restaurant known for good food and ambiance, B2 Bistro + Bar welcomes holiday festivities in a second-floor party space.

Setting the scene are two fireplaces, including one outside on the veranda, and a bar. The space holds up to 110 guests, who can pop outside if it’s not too chilly for a drink by the fire and a bird’s eye view of Arnold Avenue. 

The festively decorated fireplace in the second-floor dining room at B2 Bistro + Bar in Point Pleasant

As for the food, the restaurant is known for its bistro-style dishes: wood-fired pizzas, hearty pastas, plenty of shareable starters – and an extensive sushi menu.

Go: 709 Arnold Ave.; 732295-0709, b2bistro.com.

618, Freehold Borough

The all seasons room at 618 Restaurant in Freehold Borough.

Since opening in fall 2016, Matthew Borowski and Chef Chris Dutka have been as attentive to their Freehold Borough restaurant’s aesthetic as they have to its food and drink. 

That includes rustic-yet-chic party spaces, with light brick walls, greenery, chandeliers and lots of light. There are three rooms for parties that can hold between 50 and 175 guests.

In the kitchen, Dutka’s style is creative American: “The menu is a lot of the favorites I’ve had. There’s a little of everything,” he told The Asbury Park Press shortly after the restaurant opened five years ago.

His food is seasonally inspired: Current dishes include short rib ravioli in tomato cream, mushroom and lentil Bolognese, and butternut squash ravioli. 

Go: 618 Park Ave.; 732-577-0001, 618nj.com.

Laurita Winery, Plumsted

The dining room at Laurita Winery in Plumsted.

Laurita Winery, known for its 40-acre vineyard, wine shop and food truck events, doesn’t have a restaurant, per se. But its dining room, where specialty brunches and dinners are hosted, is warmed by a roaring fireplace. It’s a great setting for a holiday event.

The winery, which is busy this time of year with Santa Claus visits, concerts and holiday brunches, recommends party planners reach out regarding availability. 

Go: 85 Archertown Road; 609-758-8000, lauritawinery.com.

Blu Grotto, Oceanport

The Conservatory at Blu Grotto in Oceanport.

There are two options for holiday parties at Blu Grotto, and either makes a lovely setting for a festive night out.

The stone-lined private dining room has an intimate feel, while the soaring Conservatory, with its glass walls and ceiling, is a grand space for up to 40 guests.

What will you be eating? The three-course menu has New York strip steak, crispy branzino, chicken Milanese, short rib meatballs and chopped salad, with affogato and tiramisu for dessert.

Go: 1114 Main St.; 732-776–7463, itsrbar.com.

Sarah Griesemer joined the USA TODAY NETWORK New Jersey in 2003 and has been writing all things food since 2014. Send restaurant tips to [email protected].

Source: Asbury Park

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