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Party Planning Guide

Party Planning guide and checklist

How many guests invited?___________________

Assume 80% will attend of those receiving blind invitation

Assume 100% if close friends or relatives

Type of guests:

Male________________ Ages_____________

Female______________ Ages_____________

Couples______________ Ages_____________

Males eat more then females and younger males eat the most, adults 50+ eat the

least

What is the purpose/theme___________________________

Base decorations on theme; purchase as local Party store or from mail order companies such as Oriental Trading Co. www.orientaltrading.com

Time of Day___________________________________

Planning food based on day part – breakfast, brunch, lunch, cocktail party, dinner

Expected weather_______________________________

People eat less in hot weather – serve lighter fare during hot weather

What will guest do before and after food service?

Before__________________________________________

After__________________________________________

Heavy activity before a meal increase appetite

Heavy activity planned after a meal will decrease appetite

For parties of up to 20 people increase expected food required by 20% - Covers spilling, extra guests

Planning for food (buffet)

Minimum recommendations:

1 salad

1-2 entrée

1-2 starch (rice, pasta, potato)

1-2 vegetables or medley

bread/rolls

butter

Rule of thumb for calculating food – 1-2 pounds of food per person

Hors d’oeuvres 4-8 if before dinner – butler service

8-12 if a part of buffet

18-24 if no meal is served

Shrimp 1-2 if served butler style

4-12 if on buffet

Soup 6-8 ounces per person

Salads 4 ounces if one salad offered

2 ounces if 2 or more salads offered

Meat, poultry, fish 8 ounces total

Burgers 2 ea for males 15-25

1 ea for other males and all females

Hot Dogs same as burgers

Cold cuts 6 oz ea – listed by popularity – Turkey, ham, roast beef,

Corned beef/pastrami, salami

Starch same as salad

Vegetables same as salad and starch

Desserts 1 piece per person if cake or pie

2-3 pieces if individuals (cookies, brownies, etc)

Bread/rolls dinner rolls/sandwich rolls 2 per person; sliced bread 4

Slices per person for sandwiches

Butter 2 oz per person

Beverage service - alcoholic

Calculate number of drinks based on number of hours of party

1 hour 2

2 hours 3

3 hours 4

4 hours 5

Wine – sold in 750ml or 1500 ml (1.5l)

Normal portion 5 oz (148 ml) = 5 servings per bottle

Liquor – 750ml = 25 oz = 25 servings for mixed drinks

20 servings for straight drinks (martini)

Mixers – OJ, tomato juice, grapefruit juice, soda, tonic

8oz per drink

Canned soda – variety – diet, cola, lemon lime, non-caffeine 2 per person

Ice needed

Outdoor party – summer 5lb per person (used for drinks and for icing

down beverages)

Indoor party – 1lb per person if refrigeration is available

Ice for keeping food cold – 1lb per 1lb of food

Garnished – oranges, lime, lemon (1 each per 10 people)

Straws and stirrers – 1 each per drink

Plates, glassware and eating utensils – non-disposable 2 each of all

Disposable 4 each

Composition and presentation

Serving and presenting food is as important as the food itself

Keep hot foods hot using chaffing dishes

Keep all cold food stored on ice (bowl in a bowl)

Inspect all plates before service and monitor buffet line for spills

Wipe the rim

Place clean napkins over spills

Don’t recycle lines

Choosing plates and platters

Choose plates or platter large enough to hold food

Use a variety of round, square, triangle, bowls

White is easiest to work with

Choose specific plate design for food (ethnic)

Arranging foods on plate

Colors – bright, variety

Textures – soft, hard

Shapes – variety, lead to central theme

Arrangement – careful, height building, lead into entrée

Improve the look of deli trays by lining with fresh lettuce leaves

Improve the look of bowls of premade foods with the addition of sliced tomatoes, eggs, sprinkle with hers and spices (parsley/paprika)

Offer dishes with different principle ingredients

Offer foods cooked by different methods

Offer foods with a variety of colors

Offer foods of different textures

Table layout

Rounds, squares, rectangles, half rounds, wedge and serpentine

Consider room size, tables for guests, flow of service, and flow of food from kitchen

Rule of thumb, 2 feet of space for every item

Do’s and Don’ts

Keep the buffet simple

Separate into stations

Use small containers to promote freshness

Locate near kitchen to easy access

Use visual cues to guide customers through buffet

Use made to order stations to promote freshness

Keep personnel available to service buffet

Don’t locate the buffet in the middle of the floor

Don’t make guests over-reach for food, causes spills

Don’t skimp on display pieces

Service ware

Mirrors, platters, baskets, chafing dishes (chaffer)

Serving utensils, fuel for chaffer

Fill chaffer 15 min before service with boiling water or urn water

Plates and silver – check each and every one for soil

Setup – single sides, double sided, T, Rounds

Consider flow

Set up in menu sequence

Plates and silver

Soups

Salads/ breads

Starch

Vegetables

Proteins

Sauce

Height – flower arrangements, staged height

Pattern – establish flow using shapes

Negative space – or not

Don’t over crowding tables

Label each item – cards, P-touch on fruit, using fruit as card holder

Using stations

Improves flow of traffic

Offers a variety of theme ideas

Establish by theme or course