Food is central to any party as it not only fills the guests up but it is also a very good vehicle for getting your guests to mingle with one another. When it comes to planning the food for a baby shower simpler is often better and one excellent way to make simple food more elaborate is to take care and time over its presentation.In most cases baby shower hosts like to serve a buffet of finger foods as this type of food is easy to eat, does not require a great deal of preparation and fairly large quantities of food can be provided reasonably inexpensively. Another good idea for baby shower food is for the host to put together a 'pot luck' menu to which each of the guests contributes something different to eat. Finally of course you can have a formal sit-down meal, but this is not a very common choice these days.At the end of the day it is really up to the host to decide how much she can afford to spend on food and how much time she has available for preparation. This more than anything else will normally determine the menu for the party. Unless the baby shower is being planned as a surprise, the host should discuss the menu with the guest of honor when they initially meet to work out the details for shower and, if it is agreed that the host will provide the food, then this should be bought in about a week ahead and the initial preparation done a day or two ahead of time, leaving the finishing touches for the day of the party.You must not forget that your guests will also need something to drink and, as a general rule, the host should plan on serving only non-alcoholic drinks. The expectant mother will not be able to indulge anyway and there is always a chance that if you do serve alcohol some of the guests will indulge a little bit more than they should. For this reason, it is a good idea to leave alcoholic beverages out altogether. Serving non-alcoholic drinks is also a lot less expensive but, at the end of the day, the choice is up to the host.Appropriate drink choices for a baby shower might include a variety of fruit juices, an assortment of soda, a tasty fruit punch served in a punch bowl and tea and coffee. Also, since drinks will not spoil, they can of course be bought well in advance of the occasion.Now, while the guest of honor will quite rightly be the center of attention for the majority of the proceeding, she will need to step out of the limelight briefly to make way for the baby shower cake. A simple cake decorated with baby accessories and piped with the word 'Congratulation' will do the trick nicely but, if the budget allows, a more elaborate cake can be turned into a truly eye-catching centerpiece for your baby shower table.If you are planning to order a cake from your local bakery then they will probably need about a week's notice for a reasonably simple cake, but something more elaborate could take longer and so this is one item that needs to be ordered well in advance. Of course you can always make your own baby shower cake, but this will depend very much on how good you are at baking and your level of skill as a cake decorator.Whatever your choice in terms of food, drink and the cake remember that simple food and good presentation is often the key to a successful party.