Thanksgiving, Outdoors: How to Host the Year's Biggest Gathering Outside

At two o'clock on Thanksgiving, every house in America has the same problem.

Everyone is in the kitchen. Somebody's basting. Somebody's asking where the serving spoons are. Three cousins are standing exactly where the oven door needs to open. The game is on in the other room, and nobody can hear it.

Then somebody opens the back door to check the smoker, and the air comes in cool and clean. Half the room follows them out.

That's your sign.

Why take Thanksgiving outside

The best parts of the day already happen outdoors. The smoker, the football in the yard, the kids running laps and the uncle telling the same story by the truck. Moving the gathering outside just stops fighting that.

It also solves the space problem. A house that holds twelve people comfortably gets tight at twenty. A backyard doesn't.

And in much of the South and Southwest, late November is about as good as the weather gets. Cool enough for a jacket, warm enough to stay out past dark.

Pick your plan

You don't have to go all in. Here are three ways to do it.

Most first-timers do best with “inside out.” It gets everyone outside for the parts that matter and keeps the turkey where it's warm.

Set it up in three zones

Think of the yard as three rooms. Guests will move through them in order without being told.

1. Arrival and drinks

Put this right by the back door so it's the first thing people see. Set out cider, coffee, a cooler and a bottle of something brown. This is where people land while the last dishes come out of the oven.

2. The table

One long table beats several small ones. Everyone can see everyone, and that's the point of the day. Use real plates and cloth napkins. Weight the tablecloth or skip it if there's a breeze. Keep centerpieces low so people can talk across them.

3. The fire

Set this up a little away from the table, so moving to the fire feels like the next part of the evening. Put the chairs in a loose circle a few feet back from the flames, with a blanket on each one. Leave a gap in the circle so new people can pull up.

Work backward from sunset

Outdoor timing has one fixed point: when the light goes. Look up sunset for your zip code, then count back.

The most common mistake is eating too late. If dinner starts at sunset, the food gets cold, the temperature drops and people head inside before the best part.

Keep everyone warm

Cold is what sends people indoors. Plan for it.

• Tell guests in the invite. “We'll be outside, bring a jacket” saves a lot of shivering.
• Put a blanket on every chair. Wool or heavy cotton. People will use them.
• Block the wind. Set the table on the side of the house away from the prevailing breeze.
• Warm the plates. A few minutes in a low oven keeps food from going cold the moment it hits the table.
• Keep hot drinks going. Coffee, cider and hot chocolate for the kids, near the fire.

Light it for after dark

Good light makes people stay. Use warm light, never cool white. String lights over the table, lanterns on the ground along paths and candles in glass hurricanes so the wind can't get them. Then let the fire do the rest. Turn off the porch floodlight.

Food that holds up outside

Cook inside and serve outside. Carry dishes out right before the meal in cast iron or covered casseroles that hold heat. Gravy keeps well in a thermos. Leave the pies inside until dessert.

If you're smoking or frying the turkey, the outdoor plan works in your favor, since the bird is already out there. If you're frying, place the fryer on a sturdy, level surface at least 10 feet from the house and never under roof eaves. Keep it off wooden decks, use a fully thawed turkey and never leave the fryer unattended. Keep children and pets at least three feet away, and never use water on an oil fire. Review the U.S. Fire Administration's turkey-fryer safety guide before you begin.

The part after dinner

This is the part people remember.

The plates are cleared. Somebody's on their second cup of coffee. The fire's settled into coals, and the kids have finally stopped running. Someone tells a story you've heard every year, and it's still good.

Nobody wants to leave a good fire. That only works if there's somewhere good to sit. A folding chair from the back of the garage will do for ten minutes. For three hours, you want something better.

The Vaquero is a campaign chair made with solid hardwood, heavy-duty cotton canvas and marine-grade hardware. It folds flat and carries easily, so it goes from the truck to the fire without fuss. It looks right by a fire, and people tend to ask about it. When the night is over, bring it in. The weather-resistant wood and durable canvas are made for life outdoors, but natural materials should not be left exposed to the elements for an extended period. See Chama's care and warranty information for details.

One more thing. Hosting Thanksgiving is a good chance to see what the hardest person on your Christmas list is sitting in. If it's a chair nobody chose on purpose, we wrote a whole guide for that. You can also find more ideas in The Chama Gift Guide.

Outdoor Thanksgiving checklist

• Sunset time for your zip code, and a sit-down time 90 minutes before it
• One long table, real plates and cloth napkins
• Weights or clips for the tablecloth
• A drinks station by the back door
• Fire pit, dry wood, kindling and a lighter
• A chair and a blanket for every guest at the fire
• Warm string lights, lanterns and candles in hurricanes
• Covered serving dishes, a thermos for gravy and warmed plates
• “Bring a jacket” in the invite
• If frying: level ground, 10 or more feet from the house, a fully thawed turkey and a fire extinguisher

The short version

Thanksgiving was always going to end up outside eventually. Somebody always drifts out to the smoker, the yard or the fire. This year, set it up on purpose. Eat while it's light, give everyone a warm place by the fire and let the evening run as long as it wants to.

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