How much party food for 30 people

On average, plan for each adult to consume about 1 pound of food total not including dessert. Remember; the more options you have, the less you need of each. In our experience, guests consume apps per person in more formal situations, assuming the event features a main course. Guests may enjoy as many as appetizers in more casual settings. Hosting a cocktail party? Plan for apps per person per hour. Pro tip: stock up on bulk items that require no work such as nuts, pretzels, and olives so that guests can munch on these items as soon as they arrive before the appetizers are served.

The guidelines below help you plan for the star of the show! Remember, the more options you have available, the smaller each portion size can be. Hosting a buffet? Decrease the main course portion sizes by oz as people tend to like to try a variety of options from a buffet. Great tips! I'm always worried about how many cocktails one bottle of booze will make. I'm pinning this to come back to again and again :. Facebook Pinterest Instagram Youtube.

Calculate 1 alcoholic beverage per guest per hour. Guests will always eat — and drink — more at night than during the day. Beer — Guests will drink about 1 bottle every half hour to hour Cocktails — A milliliter bottle makes about 16 drinks.

No matter the size or style of your party, I'm sharing all the tips for planning and prepping an amazing party for cheap!

Not only that, we have an amazing list of party food ideas to help you figure out exactly what to serve! If you know me, you know I love to party! I am an entertaining NUT. We love having people over, whether it's one couple or forty friends — we love to entertain. A LOT. Unfortunately, if you're not careful, feeding a crowd can be expensive! Don't worry, my friend, I've got some tips to help you stay on top of your party budget! You ready to get started? Here are helpful tips to keep your wallet in check when feeding all the people:.

Just click on the section you're curious about above and we'll take you there! If you're hosting a graduation party at your house and plan to invite all your family and friends… I wouldn't recommend serving steak.

That would become an extremely expensive party! However, if you are hosting a dinner party with two of your best couple friends then sure, steak is a little more reasonable. Food Network has a great barbecue party calculator for figuring out how much to make per person. Doing it via text, Facebook, or email will get you the most results.

People hate having to call! Time of day is a HUGE determining factor for what kind of party food you should plan to serve. There is nothing worse than going to a shower at and only getting a few finger desserts to eat.

So, here's a chart to help determine what you should serve:. See how that works? Another thing to keep in mind with time of day is that people will eat and drink more at night than during the day, so plan appropriately.

Take a dessert party , for example, if you have more variety of desserts, people will eat less of each and will be satisfied with smaller bites. If you have a dessert party with three cakes and nothing else, you should cut big slices and expect them to be wiped out. But if you have smaller cakes, cookies, pastries, cake bites, brownie bites, and other small things, you can serve less of each and make much smaller portions because there is more variety. With anything in life, setting a budget is key.

Decide early what you are willing to spend and base your menu around it. Believe it or not, it's quite easy to do a party for cheap or even free. If there are going to be lots of kids at your party, avoid dark-colored punch, soups, and meals that could cause a mini disaster in your house. When people will have a table to sit at, soups and taco salads are fine to serve. If people will mostly be standing and mingling, finger foods are best.

When it's something like a family reunion , consider a menu that has something for everyone, something that everyone from little kids to seniors would enjoy. Having a baby shower? I'd avoid chicken wings and focus on a lighter menu. Just keep your attendees in mind so the food is fitting! Baked potato bars , soup bars, and pasta bars are perfect for winter months.

Salad bars and BBQ's are perfect for spring and summer. Potlucks are great all year. Just consider what's in season, and what time of year it is. All of that being said, here are some examples of great menus that I use to feed a crowd on the cheap:.

A lot of these ideas are classic! These are foods that people love, and the best part is that they can be cheap if you plan right!

Another bonus — a lot of them will also work for lunch time. If your party can be turned into a brunch, you're in luck because you can mass produce all kinds of brunch foods for cheap. And people love breakfast foods. There are so many ways to mix up snacks and have a super fun party! The sky is the limit. Here are just a few ideas to get you started thinking. Great for late-night get togethers. Provide drinks and a few main desserts, as your guests to bring a dessert to share.

Toss in a veggie tray for the healthy eaters. We also have a printable version of this list plus all the topping and food ideas, be sure to grab that list! Throughout the year, watch the sales!

If you see condiments go on sale, stock up. Same with chips, paper plates, napkins, drinks, and other pantry items. This also goes for anything you can freeze cheese, tortillas, meat, etc.

Before running to the store, open your fridge, freezer, cupboards, and pantry and use what you have! This goes for decorations, too. Trust me…you'll save A TON of money if you simply get creative with what you already have.

The week of your party, keep an eye on the ads and use it to influence your menu. If Coke products are on sale that week, buy those instead of Pepsi products. List of Partners vendors. Featured Video. Related Topics. Read More. Your Privacy Rights. To change or withdraw your consent choices for TheSpruce. At any time, you can update your settings through the "EU Privacy" link at the bottom of any page. These choices will be signaled globally to our partners and will not affect browsing data.

We and our partners process data to: Actively scan device characteristics for identification.