Does this sound like an okay party spread?

[bdaypartyfood]

Currently planning a surprise 30th birthday for my partner and catering it ourselves. It’s a family party so a mix of ages and some children there! Probably about 60-70 people coming.

I’ve never really done a buffet before but my current plan is this:

Ham sandwiches (1x platter)
Cheese sandwiches (1x platter)
Egg mayo sandwiches (1/2 platter)
Tuna sandwiches (1/2 platter)

Cherry Tomatoes (500g bag)
Celery
Carrots (1kg bag cut into sticks)
Cucumber (2 whole cucumbers)
Pepper (1 pack of 3 peppers)
All served with various dips

Mini sausage rolls (50)
Cocktail sausages (50)
Vegetable spring rolls (24)
quorn cocktail sausages (1 pack, only one vegetarian that I know of!)

Cheese & onion crisps
Sweet chilli crisps
Salted crisps
Tortilla chips
Onion ring crisps
(All one big share bag per flavour)

Chicken bites (72 pack)
Cheese pizza (x2)

Breadsticks (2 packs)
Coleslaw (1 pack)

Strawberries (2 packs)
Grapes (2 packs)
Watermelon (1)

Fairy cakes (24)
Mini flapjack (20)
Mini brownies (20)
Mini rolls (20)

Also doing some gluten free sandwiches and some gluten free cakes (only one person is wheat intolerant not coeliac so no cross contamination concerns)

Obviously a proper birthday cake as well!

Does this sound like a good spread of food? Too much or not enough?

Trying to stick to a budget where possible as the room hire was expensive!

Thanks in advance for advice!

It’s not rude to ask at all!

MIL: please will you bring your nice pasta salad
SIL: it would be great if you could pick up a cake

I am a bit of a host so I do have dishes that I do regularly but people do this to me often - just the other week MIL was having a bbq and directly messaged to say would I mind making my cous cous salad. Not rude in the slightest!

Ah, it’s good that you’ve mad it clear that you’re a superior person who doesn’t use AI. Well done you!

But the chances of food poisoning are high if people are left to bring stuff. I wouldn't risk it. I once avoided food poisoning at a bbq because i didn't eat the tiramasu - people were hospitalised! And I'm not sure that the OP's relatives and friends are used to making couscous salads.

How is it different if other family members bring things they have made vs just the OP? She isn’t experienced either!

OP I think with your attitude the party will be great if you serve porridge and marmite sandwiches- it sounds so warm and welcoming and understanding.

But it's not rude to ask. I love to be asked. So do my friends. It makes you feel part of it.

I agree. I just wouldn't do it. I doubt that food for 70 people can be adequately purchased, prepared, transported and stored. Imo it's a huge risk for anyone doing this sort of thing. If you can't afford caterers, stick to nibbles and cake.

Nibbles/light snacks is definitely the way to go, and I'm glad that is what you are seriously considering now. Push start time back, and be clear on the invite that it's a party + nibbles (to lower expectations!), then the guests can have their evening meal before arriving.

Simple, easy and with a few balloons and decos it will be amazing. People will be coming to celebrate the birthday, and they will enjoy it immensely.

Don't forget the Birthday Cake and candles, and a few other small cakes to hand around later.

I think you’re doing well in serving what you know people will actually eat, not just what would be deemed a nice/fancy buffet.

Only thing I’d say is that (personally) I’d avoid having people make their own sandwiches etc. I think it sounds like a good idea in theory and maybe would work in a smaller group but I honestly wouldn’t go near anywhere where there was the possibility of 70 people putting their hands on food. I feel like most people would skip using tongs and unless you’re watching them like an hawk, it’s not really something you can police.

You do you. Don’t bother about others saying it’s boring. You’ve attended family parties, you know what your relatives eat.

I’d make far more sandwiches. Most people will probably have 3-4 quarters so I’d be catering for using 140 slices of bread. I’d be cooking a couple of joints of gammon or something probably cheaper than ham? Maybe keep them plain to cater for everyone. Maybe buy a couple of bottles of mayonnaise and one of mustard or what ever depending on what sandwiches you make. Add their own.

I’d be eating all the crudities but they’re often not the first to go so I’d probably keep those to minimum but maybe just carrots (2 1kg bags at least, 2 celery, 3-4 cucumbers). Maybe peppers as you’ve listed. No tomatoes probably more expensive.

Don’t bother with coleslaw unless you’re doing pasta / rice etc. If it’s the only non-finger food then don’t do that.

Don’t thinks onion bhajis are a good idea. You need to cater for 1-2 each and they’re far too expensive.

I wouldn’t do chips they’ll go cold.

Do lots more pizza. You need to cater for 1-2 slices each. If you cannot cook them all there then don’t have them at all.

More mini sausage rolls and/or cocktail sausages - aim for 2-3 each at least.

Get a couple of 1kg packets of dried pasta and make some pasta salads. A jar of pesto sauce into one (vegetarian) and another with frozen peas, sweetcorn, ham etc. Ideas https://www.simplyrecipes.com/best-pasta-salad-recipes-recipe-developer-11734545 that would be cheap and filling.

Could do rice salad too.

Make crustless (or with crust) quiches? Divide into 12 so you would need 5-6 of them - just throw veg in. Relatively cheap and probably go a long way.

Cheese and crackers. Crackers are probably relatively cheap and can go quite a long way. Same as crisps if you know they’ll go down well (ignore what others have said).

Maybe get a couple of baguettes and cut them up?

Not sure about breadsticks…

Don’t bother with grapes (children choking) or strawberries. Too expensive for his many you need. If you want fruit use something that does further such as melon or pineapple.

Don’t get cupcakes. A pack of 24 is totally insufficient as you need to cater for one each. Treble quantities of mini sweet bites. Most people will have 2-3 each.

Maybe 6-7 cheesecakes instead. Iceland and Aldi do quite cheap cheesecakes.

Buy a few things specifically for vegetarians and food intolerances etc and keep them separate! Make sure you count up all items they can have to make sure they have enough.

Don’t assume children will eat less they tend to have a lot at things like this when they can pick at foods.

Good luck. It’s a mammoth task. I hope you have help.

Make sure you buy plenty of cling film otherwise you’re sandwiched will soon dry out!

If its a family party and budget is tight then either make it clear that its “nibbles” rather than a buffet and provide nibbles or talk to the family about making it a pot luck buffet. My family used to do this for big get togethers when we were young and it worked well. The host provides the basics but every family member brings their “thing” or if not confident cooks they brought the breads or fruit etc. You can also keep budget down by making all your own salads etc but its a lot of work for 70 people and you need plenty of fridge space if making the day before.

A family party is just that - not an opportunity to teach MN approved healthy eating. Base the food on what your family will eat. £200 is tight to cater over much for 70 so if you don’t have fridge space/time to do all the catering and pot luck isn’t your family’s thing then keep the invite to “nibbles” and spend the budget on nibbles.

I agree that the Op sounds lovely

family… not so much. Can you imagine not offering to bring something to such a big party or contribute financially if your own son’s birthday party that you are attending??

Whatever 🥱

@bdaypartyfood Your party sounds like such a lovely idea and your guests will have a great time as you’re putting so much thought into everything.

I wondered whether hot dogs could be an option for you? If you can borrow a couple of slow cookers you can easily fit around 20 in a single slow cooker and then you don’t have the hassle of making sandwiches.

Also I am totally over-invested in this thread and just made a shopping list in Asda with loads of the things you mentioned (spring rolls, sausage rolls, dips, crisps, chicken dippers, pizza, cakes, brownies, fruit and the hot dogs) there is definitely more than enough for 70 people and it came to £182. If you want me to share screenshots of everything let me know, I didn’t want to clutter up the thread with all the pictures!

Hope it all goes really well!

Yes! Hotdogs in fresh soft white rolls with a selection of sauces would be great. You could cook a ton on foil lined trays (easier washing up) across the day and wrap in foil to keep warm. I think oven cooked might be nicer to give them a bit of colour. Decent quality ones are often on multibuy offers too.

When i have seen hot dogs being cooked at fairs, the staff are forever testing the temperature of each hotdog, so i have to presume that hot dogs are a particularly tricky item to serve safely when you are catering for large numbers.

Your contributions have been limited to warning about food poisoning. I don’t think this or any food related thread is for you @Arran2024

This sounds lovely with good ideas but I feel is more than she needs for an after dinner snacks party? This sounds like enough food for a full lunch, and hard on the budget.

@bdaypartyfood I hope it goes great and that your partner has a lovely time for his birthday.

Don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone probe a hotdog to be honest!
Cook em through thoroughly and eat same day- job done.

I asked DH as he used to be a chef, he used to estimate that cut into quarters most people take between 4-6 sandwiches and that usually means around 6 or 7 loaves of sliced bread.

do yoh maybe have some health anxiety or germ phobia? As much as I agree food safety is key, I do think maybe you’re going over the top a bit, I’ve never once seen hot dogs being probed.

Recently a lady in the supermarket got 6 bags of chips, a few quiches and a few pizzas and a few big tubs of coleslaw and that was for her daughter's big birthday party. She was holding it at her house and she told me she was going to cut the quiches and pizzas into slices. Like she said it was catering without much hassle. She was also buying a few bottles of wine apparently Asda's cheapest and I remember at the till it all came to £85 which a few people commented about saying that wasn't a bad amount. She told me that she didn't want people to be drunk so it was maybe 5 bottles of wine .She said adults often don't want a pudding. I said to her I would want orange squash and a pudding . Like she said I wasn't going to be there and she had orange juice at home. She was pleased the people near the till agreed that was a good choice.

Doesn’t it depend how many she was catering for?!

For me op it's the fact your making everything yourself that's so time consuming and stressful and the foods on your list is all a bit miss matched. Two amazing buffets at birthday parties will live forever in my mind as they were so amazing. Party one had around 70/100 people and on the invitation we were all asked to bring a specific plate of something think mine was sausage rolls.. anyway it was the biggest and best buffet I've ever seen it was honestly fantastic and all the guests felt happy to provide a plate. Unfortunately I forgot to take a photo of this buffet something that I will always regret. I kid you not everyone had about 4 plates and we all got food bags to take home. The second party had around 60/70 people and the buffet was a massive pot of macaroni and a massive pot of chilli with a mix of cut up slices of crusty bread and garlic bread. Both buffets opened at 9pm and were great for soaking up the alcohol. Make life easier for yourself op keep things simple and I hope you have a great time. Oh also at both parties there was bowls of nibbles like crisps etc on the individual tables. God I want a buffet now 😩

Ideas from my OH about how to do it:

A typical sliced loaf, disregarding crusts, will have 16-18 full slices. (Avoid the really thin skinny bread, which is cheap in every respect - go for the next thickness up, but not toastie-thick).
If we say 16 slices, that's 8 full sandwiches - cut into quarters, that's 32 individual butties from one loaf. If we go for worst case scenario and argue 50 guests are going to take 6 butties each (most people will take less, in the end?) then that's 300 individual quarters. So for around 50 people with a margin built in, in case any more show up - if you start with 10 supermarket loaves, perhaps. Use a big palate knife for buttering, as if it were a plasterer's trowel....

Keep the fillings inexpensive - big block of cheese, grate it so it goes further; some with tomato and maybe cucumber, some with sandwich pickle or chutney. Get a couple of those big packs of cheap sandwich ham (and/or sandwich chicken). Again, sliced tomato or chutney, perhaps some shredded lettuce. Mango chutney works with ham or cheese. A couple of tins of tuna, maybe, mixed in with mayo and sweetcorn; throw some egg mayonnaise in there too, and provide a buttie selection that offers variety.

Dressing the sandwiches up for display works too - garnish the serving plates with chopped lettuce, sliced tomato and cucumber, and sprinkle chopped chives or spring onions over the top. Garnish adds visual appeal and of course it's like an edible salad side!

The trick is for a big buffet - things which are quick and easy to make. About 80% of what you put on the table should be 20-30% of the cost outlay. Once you've done the bulk - you can then add in things like shop-bought quiches, pre-cut into 8th or preferably 16ths. Or cold pizza - the basic cheese-and-tomato, again cut to 8ths or 16ths. There should be just enough of the more expensive stuff.

There should be just enough left over at the end to give the visual impression that you've pushed the boat out and you haven't skimped - that however many people turned up, you managed to feed them!