This was on a kitchen thread and looked delicious.

https://www.gardenweb.com/discussions/4835814/kitchen-reveal#addAnswer

Here's an image of one of my inspiration antipasto platters...

I like pepperoni, salami, cubed cheese (family has been into smoked gouda lately and I've been enjoying manchego, though jarlsburg is one of our go to cheeses too), crackers, bread sticks, celery sticks, carrot sticks and sliced cukes, cherry tomatoes, some mixed nuts, some olives, and maybe some sliced toasted baguette to use with bruschetta...trader joe's makes a good one: trader giotto's bruschetta.

Of course for only 8 people you won't need anywhere near that much food, but you can pick and choose your favorites.

I'm pretty lazy and not very creative so my go to for something to take to a party:

Wind and Willow makes a great BLT cheese ball mix. Raspberry Chipotle sauce over cream cheese is as easy as you can get and always a big hit. Serve either with your choice of crackers.

No pictures , but I too find a nice antipasto platter makes a lovely presentation and offers something for everyone.

My go to favourites are Fontina, fresh moz slices ( not to wet) , gorgonzola, Pecorino Romano, and an orange aged cheddar.

Along with prosciutto rolled up, a couple types of salami ( one mild, one spicy) , couple of types of olives, roasted red pepper and fresh figs if you can find them. If not use grapes or melon pieces.

I also sometimes skewer cherry tomatoes withb bocconcini balls and drizzle with a bit of good olive oil.

For breads I like a nice crusty baguette, bread sticks and some nice crackers.

There are a million pictures out there if you want to google some. Easy to transport, easy to put tolerate and always a hit.

What I like best about them is there's always something for someone...gluten free...don't eat the bread or crackers; lactose intolerant...don't eat the cheese; low carb...stick with the meats; vegetarian...eat the veggies and crackers...

IMO Ina Garten is the "Queen" of cheese boards. Our cookbook club did an Ina Garten night and the appetizer person used two of her recipes to make this luscious platter -- easy cheese board and cheese and bread platter (links below). I thought she did a good job --

Ina's theory is "hunks" together -- and lots of color. You'll never go wrong using Ina's guidelines IMO!

https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/easy-cheese-board-3539085

https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/cheese-and-bread-platter-4718427

Trader Joes has a carmelized onion English cheddar that is very good. I've also had some kind of red wine cheese from BJ's or Costco that had a little crystallized something in it which lent a bit of "crunch" and that was good as well.

Two of my favorites--I make a cheese spread with half neufchatel (or marscapone or full fat cream cheese) and half mild gorgonzola and a generous amount of walnuts although you could use other nuts like almonds or pecans. Very easy and very good. Also I recommend St. Andre cheese for something heavenly and unusual. It's like Camembert but richer. I also recommend doing some hummus, nice easy addition for those who don't eat meat. I buy a really nice baguette and slice it up and toast for something with less fat than crackers, or else mildly seasoned pita triangles. I also love wasa crackers (no wheat) but I may be in the minority.

If you want to impress, cold marinated seafood salad for an appetizer, with all the sexy seafood like real crab, octopus, scallops, etc. Or some kind of fancy smoked fish.

Another vote here for St. Andre cheese!

IMHO, a lot of the prettiest displays are the hardest to make a nice bite to eat from. Keep how people are actually going to be able to get at and cut pieces off the cheeses in mind.

It's nice if you have a china or metal tag, or similar, to identify the cheeses, so you don't have to keep explaining. Also, make symbols for easy/familiar and challenging/rare. I love almost all cheeses, but I know people who think mild cheddar is awfully pungent.

A favorite cracker is Raincoast Crisps cranberry hazelnut, but they're a bit pricey, and big (you can break them). They interact with the cheese, making a different taste, so are good served next to water crackers or something similarly bland. I really don't care for fatty crackers (butter crackers, Ritz, etc.) with cheese, though they're often served. Together, they need more contrast.

Once you've decided what to go, go for it, let go of other ideas, and enjoy the company!

I like to do a cold appetizer platter using TJ's canned dolmas (grape leaves stuffed with rice - gluten free and vegan) along with a good quality feta and maybe another couple of cheeses - or maybe a mild and also a more pungent feta, Kalamata or other briny olives, maybe one black, one green. Some fresh baby red peppers, usually cut in half lengthwise and seeds scooped out. Some cucumber slices for another fresh element. A couple kinds of crackers; I like the pita crackers from TJ's, too. Maybe some hummus or baba ganoush. Add some red grapes for sweet contrast.

I drain the feta and dry it very well, then cut in cubes and serve with those little bamboo picks. I always squeeze fresh lemon over the dolmas to brighten them a bit.

TJ's Cotswold Double Gloucester is a good one for the cheese platter. A nice French feta is one of my favorites...creamy and less salty. Agree with Olychick regarding TJ's pita crackers. You can make a tasty herb cheese spread, too. This is one of my favorites.

Garlic-Herb Cheese Ball

Best made a day before serving.

1 8-oz. pkg. cream cheese, room temp.
1 small clove garlic, minced
1 T. minced green onion or chives

1 T. chopped fresh basil (or 1/2 tsp. dried)
1 T. chopped fresh dill (or 1 1/2 tsp. dried)
Salt, to taste
Lemon pepper, to taste

Combine ingredients and mix well. Cover and chill. Form into ball for serving.

Gorgeous plating with the honey HU+#'s !!

As a guest simple is better.

As a host I go overboard but I've hosted so many events over the years. Large and small. I do a big elevated board down my table for grazing. Prepped ahead platters so I can re-fresh easily...

I think visiting your cheese shop would be not only fun for you but appreciated by your friends and host. Three or four cheeses, cornichons, olives, nuts. From my experience cheese shops are very friendly and accommodating making suggestions. They should have crackers, etc. If I include a cured meat I prefer to just get a small amount sliced paper thin. Most cheese mongers have charcuterie.

For easy transport, choose a platter that will hold a few small containers in the middle for nibbles. Cheeses on one side with maybe some grapes, cherry tomatoes. I like to separate/arrange the crackers on the other side away from the moisture of the cheese. Crackers get soggy rather quickly if prepped ahead stacked in rows touching the cheese.

I'm guessing the host has a plan in place already so no need to go overboard. A small Artisanal cheese tasting is always appreciated since we don't often splurge on them ourselves at home.

Humbolt Fog, (a personal favorite), Goat Gouda, a mild creamy gorgonzola, a soft style goat log...rolled in herbs. Variety. Or any recommended above.

What I don't really like as a host is a packaged app or bag of things I need to heat or find another tray or something sloppy in a foil tray plopped on my serving table. (unless it is a good friend that has called ahead and I'm prepped and expecting it)

I just heard a woman pitching an antipasta book on my way in to work on NPR. I didn't catch her name or the book, but one other traditional idea came up - caponata. Also marinated feta with some ad-ins. I've done both but didn't think eggplant because it is so far out of season here. Roasted eggplant anything is dead easy. I do it in the oven with the broiler.

ETA: Had time to find the link - https://www.npr.org/2019/05/14/722170260/a-meals-magical-beginning-inspires-cookbook-full-of-antipasti

"In an effort to explore her Italian roots, Saveur magazine Editor-in-Chief Stacy Adimando took a life-changing trip to Italy in 2012 – one that helped inspire her cookbook, Piatti: Plates and Platters for Sharing Inspired by Italy. The book focuses on Italian antipasti — the small plates that usually greet you before a meal."

Just wanted to add if you want to add some spicy vegetables to the platter, don't forget giardiniera...comes hot or mild.

I don't do the long wood platter like I showed above, because one grandson is very allergic to milk. I do have a LOT of different glass serving dishes in various shapes, including glass cracker holders.

I do a pickle olive tray with pickled okra, picked baby corn, several kinds of olives, and different picked peppers. I like a fruit tray with various fresh fruits. A cheese tray with different soft and hard cheeses. A shrimp tray. A meat tray. Different condiments down the table.

I spread these out with the cheese tray off to the side, and the cracker trays at various places. At the end I would like people to start, I place small plates and at the other end napkins. This works better for me than mixing the cheese in one huge tray, although that is beautiful.

Here are a couple of charcuterie platters I've done. I try to do 2-3 of meats, 2-3 cheeses, a fruit, and then some small additional variety such as olives, nuts, jelly.

By the way, my favorite EZ appetizer is cream cheese with a sweet-hot jelly poured over it. In fact, that's what the small white ramekin on the right in the bottom picture contains. But I've often done it just on its own.