Xmas buffet help please!

[MrsAceRimmer]

Hi everyone, I've been reading your threads and have got some good tips, but I'm panicking a wee bit now.
I stupidly said I would host Xmas dinner at my house this year, but I don't have space to have a sit down meal for 7 adults, one four year old and a one year old. I was thinking of doing a buffet instead.
Problem: I have no idea what will and won't work. It's all close family (my parents, brother &SIL, my grandfather and me, DH and the 2 DCs) SIL is allergic to seafood and DB is not a fan of custard (odd IMO).
I'm not sure if I should serve a roast or what! Our guests are likely to be here for about 7 hours 11am-6pm roughly.
Help!

First you need to decide if it's buffet food or roast. Maybe ask around what others want? Could you not all squeeze around a table for a roast but plate up in the kitchen first?

If I was doing a buffet instead of a roast on Christmas day I would do,

2 different meats, a ham and a topside of beef served hot
Different rolls and baguettes
Pickles gerkins beet root chutneys and such
A massive cheese board
Pâtés including a smoked salmon one
Crackers
Potatoe salad and coleslaw
Salad
Fruit salad
Marshmellow banana and strawberry skewers with a chocolate fondue
Mince pies a Christmas cake Christmas pudding a retro black forest pudding baileys cheesecake an trifle

This is what il be doing boxing day!

Delia's rilettes of duck - the recipe is on her webpage, don't bother with the cranberry confit she suggests, just buy cranberry sauce and serve with melba toast. Actually that might be too much cranberry if you are planning the turkey meal aswell. Will keep my thinking cap on and get back to you...

Will think on it but if you decide you want to do a buffet buffet rather than a roast turkey and full Christmas dinner buffet, pick up the entertaining food to order booklets from places like waitrose, m&s and the other supermarkets. Their Christmas ones (out now) all have lots of ideas for buffet dishes that are a bit different. And in most cases you can make them yourself without too much effort, you don't need to buy them.

Having said that - I haven't ever been to a buffet where the little cocktail size sausages haven't been one of the first things to go. If you want nice ones, the waitrose ones are fab - cost similar to sainsburys or tesco but they don't fill the roasting pan with lots of gunky stuff making it a pain to get clean later and taste really really good. I always get loads of compliments when I do them and get people asking me where I got them from.

Thank you all - we are going to try and see if we can squish in round the table. If not, I will def be using lots of your ideas. Sadly zipzap, my nearest Waitrose is nearly 200 miles away in Edinburgh

What about roasting something on the barbecue, that would free up the oven.

To be honest, I find it easier to cook a roast dinner than serving a buffet. So, I would go for a roast dinner and try to squeeze round the table.
Also, if invited for Christmas lunch most people would expect a roast ( or maybe just me )
Remember it is your Christmas day too, so you don't want to spend all day in the kitchen.

You can always browse their Entertaining offerings online for ideas, then do it yourself for your buffet.