Life

7 Ways To Celebrate Cinco De Mayo At The Office

by Chrissa Hardy

Cinco de Mayo is here, and it's time to get your Mexican pride on! You probably want to kick back with a never ending flow of margaritas and the perfect music playing all day long. That would be the best, wouldn't it? Unfortunately, you'll be at work, because Cinco de Mayo falls on a Tuesday this year. Ugh, work ruins EVERYTHING. But it's OK, because you can still have a blast at your Cinco de Mayo work party.

Gathering with the coworkers and celebrating a very important piece of Mexico's history can be super fun, as long as you do it right. You need the right food, the right tunes, and the right decorations (as with any party, of course), and you'll have yourself a spectacularly themed bash. And don't just slap together a party with what you think are traditional Mexican elements, or you'll end up with a sloppy version of Michael Scott's "Welcome Back, Oscar" soiree, where Ryan added an "ñ" in "lemonade" because he wasn't sure what else to do. Here's everything you need to throw the best Cinco de Mayo work party ever. Grab those sombreros and go nuts! And then once your lunch break is over, get back to work.

1. Incorporate the right colors

You'll need red, white, and green to properly celebrate the colors of the Mexican flag.

2. Make food part of the fun

You can make dishes using traditional Mexican cuisine into fun food art. Use guac, sour cream, and salsa to make the flag. Get creative and play with your food, like a grownup.

3. Make virgin cocktails

Margaritas are always better with tequila, of course, but that doesn't mean they're gross without. Make Mexican cocktails without the booze, and everyone can pretend they aren't actually at work.

4. Serve ALL the guacamole

Can you ever really get enough guac? I'm thinking not. But why not test it out and find your belly's guacamole limit?

5. Find the perfect playlist

Let it rock on one of the office computers, and let loose.

6. Offer a taco bar

Have a local Mexican restaurant cater the party, and have everyone build their own tacos. DIY anything food-related is absolutely part of the fun.

7. Understand the history

Cinco de Mayo commemorates the victory the Mexican army had over France in 1862. It was the Battle of Puebla during the Franco-Mexican War. In the U.S., the holiday has evolved into a massive celebration of Mexican culture, packed with everything wonderful that has come out of the country.

Image: Cascadian Farm/Flickr; Giphy (7)