I previously asked a quesiton about what to do for my son who is graduating college soon. I originally thought I had until Dec 2013 (obviously I would have to have it planned sooner but still I had time). Well now he's graduating in May instead which is great except money is tight and nothing is planned. Additionally, just 2 weeks after graduation he will be leaving for a summer internship. As suggested to my last question, I asked him what he wanted. He would like to have paintball outing (did one for his birthday and had a blast so he wants even more people) followed by a party at our house.
Paintball is covered. I found a great discounted paintball package deal and the participants will be paying their own way (I paid for the package and they are paying me because we had to buy quickly for that deal).
Now I am trying to figure the party out. Hubby is going to be at the paintball outing so he won't be home to help w/ getting ready so I will be enlisting help from family members. I am trying to figure the best, inexpensive way to feed a lot of people at an outdoor party. I know we can do burger and hotdogs...you know the whole BBQ menu but was trying to think outside the box. Ideas?
we use the park a lot. & instead of BBQ, quite often, we just order fried chicken. The sides for either entree are the same & easy to do.
When my niece graduated from college, we had a buffet of appetizers... hot wings ordered in + sub sandwiches. The family members pitched in on the sides.....& it ended up being a Dance Party. It was a BLAST watching the generations dance together! Oh, & drinking games in the garage....
Pulled Pork. Seriously. Delicious and so cheap/easy to make! I make mine the day before and then just keep it warm in the slow cooker or in a low oven.
We're having a housewarming party the weekend after Easter with about 40 people and here's what we're making (it is all able to be done ahead of time):
Pulled Pork
Sandwich rolls
Coleslaw
Baked Bean
Chips
Veggies and Dip
Fruit Salad (cut ahead, but mix right before)
Pickles
We are having a couple of small appetizer trays out for the first hour and then serving dinner. Dessert will be brownies, cookies and cupcakes. In your case, just order a cake!
Or here's a twist. Have family members bring BBQ related dishes with recipes on cards. Then gather them up and give your son copies so that he has some home cooked meal ideas for when he's away at his internship (my SS had to feed himself on his internship and simple meals were appreciated). Even if he never makes one, he can flip through and remember the event and remember the person. You can even make a PDF with a picture of him and the person next to the instructions and he can carry it around on his smartphone (if he has one) or computer.
Do some pulled pork on the smoker or in your crock pot. Use a pork picnic roast. There are TONS of amazing recipes out there. I prefer those that use a cider vinegar mop to smoke/roast it. Sooooo delicious.
I've ordered hoagie trays for big parties. The tray comes with potato salad, macaroni salad and coleslaw. The condiment come on the side. Then you can just buy chips and soda.
I would consider a 6ft sub sandwich. You can make multiples of this.
We do this with a 6ft board (hardware store sells them.. .. it can be covered in wax paper.
At the venue/ Lay the board across the table.
You purchase 7 - 12 inch french loves. Cut the rounded ends off. Cut them in half.. Line them up.
Place mayo on one side, mustard on the other.. place slices of cheese on one side, them salami slices, ham, slices, Bacon or Prosciutto slices. then onion, lettuce and tomatoes, peppers. whatever.. Place the top of the bread on top.. looks like a 6 ft sub.. They cut each loaf into 3 pieces. .. Bags of chips, relish tray with pickles, olives, peppers.. deviled eggs, veggie tray with dip, fruit salad.. Sodas. Beer.. A cake..
Pasta is my favorite cheap and crowd pleasing thing to serve. Do one of each, pesto, marinara and alfredo. Make only one with meat to keep the cost down even more. A large green or Caesar salad and some garlic bread and your good to go! If family is bringing food to contribute they can bring appetizers, fruit, beverages, cookies, stuff like that.
Why not do a "Last Hurrah College Party" as your theme? Have pizza ($5 deals or you might get lucky and Papa Johns or Dominos will have a promo code for 50% off), beer, chips, fruit, etc. To cut down on costs, you could ask people to bring their favorite beer or adult beverage and you can provide water, tea and lemonade. Bake batches of cookies and put them in tins (you can do this 1-2 days ahead of time - just be sure to seal the cookies to keep them fresh). Set the tins in open cardboard boxes with packing materials (shredded paper, peanuts, bubble wrap - whatever you can find/have for free - ask people to help you with this - someone is bound to work someplace that gets packages frequently). Write on the packages to make them look like care packages from home and sit several around your party space. If money allows or you want to get creative, you could purchase or make 1 large cookie and write "Congratulations X" or whatever message you would like on it. You can continue the theme and give people toiletries in little boxes like they were sent from "home" as their parting gifts. If you coupon, you can get that stuff way cheap or even free. If you or your son has any of his college memorbilia - pennants, flags, etc. hang those up all over the place. You could even print their mascot/logo out online and put them in frames and set them around. If your son has pictures of him and friends from college, put some of those around. Definitely include a graduation pic too! Set up a beer pong table with plastic cups, play some music, Foozball if someone will loan you a table, the bean bag game everyone plays now, hackysac, etc. Maybe you can even bribe a couple of people into wearing togas! Have fun with it - it's not the money spent that will count but the thought you put into celebrating your son's accomplishment! Congratulations to you both!
I'd say call your local meat markets and tell them the occasion and that you'd like to do something special. I often go meat in bulk at a local, not a chain, grocery store that still had a butcher's section. They sold it to me at their cost since they didn't do anything but hand me the box. I also bought food stuff through the local jr. college kitchen. The head guy would just order the food I needed for a party at church or somewhere and I'd pay him what he paid.
I ordered stuff like precooked frozen lasagna noodles, beef bouillon paste by the quart to make French Onion Soup, and bags of shredded lettuce or salad mix. It was cost so it was a lot cheaper.
Check your local restaurants. At the end of the day they maybe cheaper. I agree with hoagies. Even Subway makes 6 ft sandwiches, but my friend found out it was cheaper to just order 12" subs and have them put the toppings on the side. The problem I find with burgers and hotdogs is that the grillmaster doesn't get to enjoy the party as much. Also, I've had friends that throw parties and say that they will provide food and sodas and the guest can bring a beverage of choice if they want. I've never been offended being asked to bring a beverage. Also, don't most pizza places have $5 pizza deals? I would do pizza and subs, sides, and a couple batches of cookies and/or brownies. Kids in their early 20s are easy to please when it comes to food, keep it simple.
