Catering for House Party / Planning? (1 Viewer)

[NajehHejan]

Every year we have a Memorial day party and grill up burgers/dogs/chicken/etc and buy salads/etc but this year we’re looking to have a local pizza place do the catering. We were at a friend’s house where they catered and the food was awesome. It’s not full catering but more they drop off a bunch of food and leave – so think more along the lines of a huge delivery order but they have a special “catering” menu. I obviously want enough food but not too much that will go to waste. If I’m expecting 30 adults do I tell them 30 or 20 or 25? We want a nice mix of stuff but want to keep the cost down. Any tips would be appreciated (i.e. if you order for 20 heads you’ll get 30 heads worth). Thanks.

 

[VA703]

I would do bbq type food instead of pizza

just do pulled pork or pulled chicken and have people bring sides

 

[Johnny Bing]

I would do bbq type food instead of pizza

just do pulled pork or pulled chicken and have people bring sides

This seems like better option instead of pizza, because if you have leftovers you can always freeze the pulled chicken/pork.

 

[gianmarco]

You never want to run out of food. In the end, always err on the side of having extra food. If you're worrying about the cost of that then you probably shouldn't be catering a party.

 

[avoiding injuries]

For 30 people I would definitely say 20. I've done a fair amount of catering and found this to be true with ever vendor. I am also of the belief that it's better to have too much than too little and I would still do this.

Worst case, you see you're going to run low and you order a few pizzas to bridge the gap during the party.

 

[NajehHejan]

For 30 people I would definitely say 20. I've done a fair amount of catering and found this to be true with ever vendor. I am also of the belief that it's better to have too much than too little and I would still do this.

Worst case, you see you're going to run low and you order a few pizzas to bridge the gap during the party.

Thanks. We're doing sandwiches, wraps, finger foods, etc. Glad to hear I can order for 20 and it should cover 30.

 

[VA703]

subway $5 foot longs

everything on it

cut into 4's

 

[Cjw_55106]

I would tell them the correct number and be done with it. Hoping that you get 33% more food is playing with fire IMO.

 

[NajehHejan]

subway $5 foot longs

everything on it

cut into 4's

gold!!!

 

[McGarnicle]

subway $5 foot longs

everything on it

cut into 4's

This or pizza is perfect if you start to run low on food. But, don't ever run low on food.

 

[[icon]]

subway $5 foot longs

everything on it

cut into 4's

This works surprisingly well if you have a good subway near you.

EDIT TO ADD: This isn't something I suggest if you're trying to serve quality food.. but if you're just trying to feed some folks on a basic level and on the cheap... it's a good option.

 

[VA703]

if you do the subway method, just be sure not to put condiments on it there

 

[Joe Bryant]

Every year we have a Memorial day party and grill up burgers/dogs/chicken/etc and buy salads/etc but this year we’re looking to have a local pizza place do the catering. We were at a friend’s house where they catered and the food was awesome. It’s not full catering but more they drop off a bunch of food and leave – so think more along the lines of a huge delivery order but they have a special “catering” menu. I obviously want enough food but not too much that will go to waste. If I’m expecting 30 adults do I tell them 30 or 20 or 25? We want a nice mix of stuff but want to keep the cost down. Any tips would be appreciated (i.e. if you order for 20 heads you’ll get 30 heads worth). Thanks.

I think something like Pizza should be pretty easy. Determine how big the pizzas are and how many people they'll feed and then just do the math.

Most places are pretty good about knowing their business. I'd tell them your situation and if they're a good place, they'll be able to tell you how much food.

I'm just an amateur caterer and I can predict it pretty well now. The big thing is knowing not just the number of people but also how much they'll eat. 30 people where it's all college age guys will eat a lot more pizza than 30 people with half of them being women and kids.

I did a BBQ gig last year serving lunch at a Habitat for Humanity house build. They said it was 30 people. Turns out it was 30 UT Football players. Fortunately, I knew before I got there so I basically took my normal numbers x 3. Worked fine.

Good luck.

J

 

[NajehHejan]

Every year we have a Memorial day party and grill up burgers/dogs/chicken/etc and buy salads/etc but this year we’re looking to have a local pizza place do the catering. We were at a friend’s house where they catered and the food was awesome. It’s not full catering but more they drop off a bunch of food and leave – so think more along the lines of a huge delivery order but they have a special “catering” menu. I obviously want enough food but not too much that will go to waste. If I’m expecting 30 adults do I tell them 30 or 20 or 25? We want a nice mix of stuff but want to keep the cost down. Any tips would be appreciated (i.e. if you order for 20 heads you’ll get 30 heads worth). Thanks.

I think something like Pizza should be pretty easy. Determine how big the pizzas are and how many people they'll feed and then just do the math.

Most places are pretty good about knowing their business. I'd tell them your situation and if they're a good place, they'll be able to tell you how much food.

I'm just an amateur caterer and I can predict it pretty well now. The big thing is knowing not just the number of people but also how much they'll eat. 30 people where it's all college age guys will eat a lot more pizza than 30 people with half of them being women and kids.

I did a BBQ gig last year serving lunch at a Habitat for Humanity house build. They said it was 30 people. Turns out it was 30 UT Football players. Fortunately, I knew before I got there so I basically took my normal numbers x 3. Worked fine.

Good luck.

J

Thanks Joe. I got a quote and it seems reasonable for the most part, but one part seems off:

8 hoagies cut into 24 pieces = $62 (about 8/ea)

6 wraps cut into 12 pieces = $56 (about 9/ea)

4 paninis cut into 16 quadrants = $48 (12/ea)

50 wings = $33

A medium tray of pasta salad to serve 30 people = $40

He originally quoted me a total and then when I started breaking down the math myself it seemed high, so I called him back and he broke down each section. I think he may have done a math error or tried to cheat me on the first call, cause when we got to the pasta salad he was struggling a bit and said “yeah, $40"

This place comes highly recommended from a friend. $40 for pasta salad seems a lot, I don’t care if a dumptruck backs up into my driveway full of pasta salad.

Maybe I’ll ditch the pasta salad and get my own potato salad, macaroni salad, etc.

 

[[icon]]

Bachelor Pasta salad that will get you compliments...

Boil/Drain 3lbs Kroger Spiral pasta ($3)...

Add 2 bottles Kroger Zesty Italian Dressing ($2)

Add 1 mid-sized container of Cheap Powdered parmesan cheese ($4)

Add one jar sun dried tomatoes ($6) chupped into a bit larger than pencil eraser sized pieces.

Add one can of black olives cut in half ($2)

Add 1/2 Red onion ($1) cut and "shattered" into 1" long strips. (maybe go less here if a somewhat singles event).

Chop 3 stalks celery into thin crescents ($1)and mix in

Mix well and refrigerate.

Voila... $20 for a monster batch of quite good/easy pasta salad.

If this crowd isn't heavy eaters can prob get by with 2lbs. ($15ish)