How to Cater Your Own Party

Party Food Table

If you decide to have a party, the biggest question often is do I have it catered or do I cater it myself? Professional caterers can be expensive, usually costing from $10 a person for a simple hors d'oeuvre menu on up to the stratosphere for full sit down meals with table service.

If you have more time than money and are willing to do some work, you can cater the party yourself. Besides saving money, you will likely receive tons of compliments from your guests.

Things You'll Need

• A notebook or marker board for planning notes
• A calculator
• Some basic organizational skills
• Some recipes
• Lots of elbow grease
• Someone(s) to help - optional, but preferred

Instructions

1. Determine realistically how many people are coming to your party. Ideally, you have sent out invitations asking for RSVP's. If you don't want too much food left over, slightly underestimate the number of people who will show. Use your best judgement. You know your friends and family's habits best.

2. Plan your budget. How much can you spend on everything? Are you planning decorations? Will you have the party at home, or do you have to rent space? How much clean up are you willing to do? Do you have friends or family you can count on to help? Do you want to hire someone to clean up? Do you have to buy disposable plates and utensils? Calculate how much you are able to spend per person.

3. Decide what kind of food you want to have. Will it be just hors d' oeuvres and drinks, a full buffet, or a sit down dinner? What kind of drinks are you going to serve? If you have never done this before or there are a large number of people coming to your party, make it as simple as possible. Plan to serve mostly food that can be prepared or bought ahead of time so you don't have a last minute rush.

   You will need to try to calculate how much food you will need per person. You can consult your recipes and package labels for number of servings and divide the total by the number of expected guests. Plan to have about 4-6 items per person.

4. Write out your plan of action! Ideally, you will need a week or two to prepare. You will need a shopping list, the recipes you will make, what serving dishes you will need, a list of decorations, and who will be helping. As best you can, write out a timetable of tasks and who will be doing what.

5. Believe it or not, now that you have a detailed plan the hard part is over. Sure, there is lots of work left to do preparing everything, but with your plan of action, everything should go reasonably smoothly. When the day of the party arrives, you will be able to relax, enjoy your guests and bask in all the compliments you will receive. Don't be surprised if you get requests to cater someone else's party.

Tips & Warnings

• If you have a membership in a place like Sam's Club or Costco, you can get trays of party food at a good price and save time.

• Planning is key...DO NOT SKIP THIS STEP!

• Consider the type of event when planning your menu.

• Make ahead food is best, but be sure to consider how much storage space you have in refrigerator or freezer.

• Make mostly recipes you've successfully made before. Don't try to make too many new dishes. This is not the time to experiment.

• With allergies and various diets out there, make sure not to have the same ingredients in all the dishes. That way every one has something they can eat.

Resources

• Cater It Yourself and Save
• Great Party Recipes