Supper Club Charcuterie Board

I first became acquainted with a relish tray at the historic Golden Lamb restaurant in Lebanon, Ohio. Every year before Christmas, my family would get gussied up and enjoy a holiday meal together, and one of the highlights of dinner was the relish tray that started the meal. Waitresses would travel table to table, laden with huge wooden trays featuring corn relish, pickled watermelon rinds and egg salad. Although when I was younger I may have been more enamored with the cracker selection than some of the relish options, it was still a fun (and delicious!) way to begin our special holiday meal.

Fast forward to—let’s just say, several—years later and a relocation to northern Wisconsin, I was happy to see that the relish tray is alive and well in the supper club culture that abounds in the Upper Midwest. While I still enjoy relish trays and retro supper club foods from local establishments, I was inspired to combine the relish tray with the ever-popular charcuterie board trend and make a relish tray-inspired charcuterie board at home, affectionately calling it a supper club charcuterie board.

What is a supper club charcuterie board?

As its name suggests, a supper club is typically open only during dinner hours and features a meat-heavy menu with steaks, walleye and broasted chicken. Cocktails—especially old-fashioneds—are de rigueur, and the meal typically starts with a relish tray featuring pickled items, cheese and crackers.

Therefore, when you combine a supper club’s relish tray with a classic meat and cheese-centric charcuterie board, you get a spread that spans several types of pickled vegetables, cheeses, crackers, fresh veggies, dips, olives and, of course, relishes and condiments for dipping.

This board doesn’t pull inspiration from the heavy mains and side dishes you can find at supper clubs, but they’d be delicious served as the main course after you’ve finished grazing the board for a truly supper club-inspired meal.

Ingredients for a Supper Club Charcuterie Board

• Bread and crackers: What’s a charcuterie board idea without crackers? This board uses a combination of rye crackers, miniature sesame breadsticks and baguette slices.
• Fresh vegetables: Crunchy fresh vegetables, including trimmed radishes, carrots cut into sticks or chips, celery sticks and whole green onions, are perfect for dipping.
• Snacks and pickled vegetables: Pickled green beans and pickled mushrooms with garlic add zesty, flavorful bites to the board. Horseradish deviled eggs made with hard-boiled eggs, mayonnaise and horseradish add a tangy twist to the classic party appetizer. Classic charcuterie offerings such as sliced summer sausage, pitted ripe olives, and pickles such as cornichons or gherkins round out the snacks on this board.
• Condiments: A flavorful ranch dip made with mayonnaise, sour cream, herbs, spices and Worcestershire sauce is perfect for dipping crunchy vegetables. In addition to cheddar cheese cut into triangles, this board features a bold cheese spread made with cheddar cheese, cream cheese, herbs and spices.

How to Make a Supper Club Charcuterie Board

Step 1: Choose your board and serving bowls

With its hefty variety of relishes, dips and classic charcuterie offerings, you’ll want to choose a charcuterie board that has plenty of space. Opt for serving bowls that are neutral in color so that they highlight—rather than compete with—what they contain. You can also create visual interest by varying the heights of the containers, such as putting the sesame breadsticks and pickled green beans in taller jars and the sliced meat and cheese on a shallow platter.

Step 2: Place the larger dishes and prepared recipes

To begin, make space on the board for the larger serving dishes and the prepared recipes, like the deviled eggs. Space them out so you can surround them with supporting items later.

We placed the shallow tray for the summer sausage and cheddar cheese triangles on the right side of the board, and filled the space surrounding it with the horseradish deviled eggs. The breadsticks and green beans flank the pickled mushrooms, while the bowl of ranch dip is right in the middle of the board. The container of cheese spread is across from the summer sausage tray, and a small bowl of pickles sits toward the bottom.

Step 3: Fill in the remaining colorful fresh veggies

Space out the veggies and items of similar color at various points around the board—instead of putting them next to one another—to create visual interest.

For example, we spread out the orange items on the board by putting the carrots at the top to balance the cheddar cheese triangles on the right-hand side and the cheese spread on the left. We put space between the green onions and celery sticks by putting the light brown breadsticks and pickled mushrooms between them.

Remember that you don’t have to put all of one kind of vegetable in one spot. We sprinkled the red radishes throughout the entire board to achieve pops of red in multiple places, and we did the same with the olives.

Step 4: Arrange the crackers, dippers and other finishing touches

Fill in any gaps on the board with the rye crackers and baguette slices. Consider putting each of these next to the dipper or spread they’re best suited for.

You can tuck any extra radishes and black olives you have into the spread as well, but don’t feel as if you have to cover up every inch of the wooden board.

Step 5: Serve the board

Serve the board with individual plates, napkins, and small serving utensils or little wooden skewers so guests can pick up their desired food items easily without using their fingers.

Tips for Making a Supper Club Charcuterie Board

Can you make a supper club charcuterie board ahead of time?

You can make the pickled vegetables, deviled eggs, ranch dip and cheese spread several days in advance. For food safety purposes, don’t place the items out on the charcuterie board until just before you plan to serve it—although you could arrange the empty serving dishes on the board in advance.

What else can you put on a supper club charcuterie board?

Although this board features only one kind of meat and hard cheese, you can easily add more. Other classic charcuterie meat options include pepperoni, salami and prosciutto. Other cheese options include soft cheeses, such as Brie, goat cheese or Camembert, and hard cheeses, such as Gruyere, Manchego or aged cheddar. More meat and cheese means you need more crackers, so opt for classic club crackers, water crackers or cracked wheat crackers. If you expect to have guests with gluten sensitivities, make sure there are clearly marked gluten-free options—and serve all bread and crackers separately from the rest of the charcuterie board.

For even more relish tray-inspired items, add a flavor-packed cheese ball or include even more pickled vegetables, such as pickled beets. You can also add a bowl of mixed nuts for something salty and dried or fresh fruit for something sweet.

When can you serve a supper club charcuterie board?

Charcuterie boards like this one can be served for all sorts of different occasions. Whether served at a casual gathering, at an open-house or as a shared appetizer to start a dinner party, this supper club charcuterie board will fit right in.

What drinks can you serve with a supper club charcuterie board?

To lean into a supper club vibe, think classic cocktails, such as spirit-forward drinks like brandy old-fashioneds, Manhattans or martinis. To make entertaining a breeze, consider a cocktail kit to get the party started. Beer, from pilsners to hoppy IPAs, and wine, from white or red, also pair well with a supper club charcuterie board. For nonalcoholic options, serve a signature mocktail, such as a cranberry fizz, along with a variety of flavored sparkling water.