Award-Worthy Oscars Party Food and Movie Pairings

Chow down during the 2016 Oscars on Feb. 28 with food pairings for the 2016 Best Picture nominees, including The Revenant, The Big Short and more.

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Photo By: Tara Donne

What to Eat During the Oscars

Set on postapocalyptic battlegrounds, an icy tundra and Wall Street, in a 2001 newsroom, way far away on Mars and in a teeny space, this year’s assortment of Best Picture nominees doesn’t easily call to mind an elaborate feast, as those of past years did.

But if you’re theming your spread, here are our suggestions for the lobster rolls (Spotlight), bear claws (The Revenant), canapes (Bridge of Spies), cocktails (The Big Short) and more for your red-carpet-worthy event.

Get the Recipe: Ben Sargent's Lobster Roll

The Big Short

Wall Street excess is your ticket to serve truffles and sparkling-wine cocktails like this Prosecco Gold Rush.

Get the Recipe: Prosecco Gold Rush

Bridge of Spies

This Cold War-era thriller begs for retro '60s dishes. We’re planning to make Laura’s kitschy canapes and Mad Men-era cocktails. You could go for Swedish meatballs, too.

Get the Recipe: Kitschy Canapes X 3

Brooklyn

There are so many ways this could go. Make a Brooklyn Girl cocktail or bake coffee cake using Brooklyn Brewery stout (with caraway streusel to give it an Irish appeal). The best might be this movie-themed ice cream, created for Cooking Channel by beloved Brooklyn ice cream shop Ample Hills.

Get the Recipe: Brooklyn Girl

Max Max: Fury Road

In a world where water is impossibly scarce, a dry rub seems like a fitting dinner idea. You could pour dry Champagne (Piper-Heidsieck has a special super-golden bottle for the occasion) or go dry for the night. (Just kidding!)

Get the Recipe: Memphis Dry Rub Ribs

The Martian

Unless you plan to serve packets of dehydrated astronaut ice cream, play up the Mars element with Chuck’s fried Mars bars, or get a little more literal with marshmallows (or marshmallow-popcorn balls).

Get the Recipe: Homemade Marshmallows

The Revenant

The Great Plains set an icy backdrop for Leonardo DiCaprio’s long winter journey. Get into the Midwestern spirit with meaty Nebraska hand pies or hearty North Dakotan potato crepes. If you’re really into it, chisel an ice luge or bake big old bear-claw fritters.

Get the Recipe: Nebraska Handheld Meat Pies

Room

For this celebration of spirit and love, borrow from the film’s birthday scene and serve a joyful, rainbow-colored cake.

Get the Recipe: Icebox Doughnut Birthday Cake

Spotlight

Amp up the Boston flavor with Boston cream pie cupcakes, lobster rolls or creamy New England clam chowder. If you’re really in the spirit, you could dress up like a rumpled journalist in pleated chinos or stonewashed jeans.

Get the Recipe: Boston Cream Pie Cupcakes