Southern Summer Nights - The Appetizer Course: The Planning

Disclaimer: Microplane and the Argenta Market are supplying items for a giveaway. I have not personally been compensated by either entity. All opinions are my own.


Gina’s got the place looking beautiful in preparation for your arrival at our #virtual #dinner #party.  I just wish I had a tiny bit of her creativity.  I hope you took a moment to enter the Giveaway being sponsored by Microplane and Argenta Market.  It only takes a moment to complete the Rafflecopter.  (Shhh…don’t tell anyone, but I hope you get to take home one of our special party favors.)

It’s not always easy to know just exactly how many appetizers to plan for a party, is it?  Some of that will depend, of course, on exactly what kind of event you are planning.  If you are having a dinner afterwards. the number and variety of appetizers will certainly be different than if it’s a cocktail party.

 

A good rule of thumb is 4 to 6 items per person with a dinner party.  You only want to whet your guests’ appetite, not fill them up.  However for cocktails only a suggested number would be 8 – 10. 

You have a full evening of delicious dishes coming your way.  Save some room for those.

Calculating The Number Of  Appetizers That You’ll Need   

Dinner Party  Number of Guests		10	15	20	25	30	35	40	50	55	60	100
Butler Passed Style	Number Pieces Needed	40	60	80	100	120	140	160	200	220	240	400
Buffet Style	Number Pieces Needed	60	90	120	150	180	210	240	300	330	360	600
			8	10	13	15	18	20	25	28	30	50

Cocktail Party Number of Guests		10	15	20	25	30	35	40	50	55	60	100
Butler Passed Style	Number Pieces Needed	80	120	160	200	240	280	320	400	440	480	800
	Number of trays needed	7	10	14	17	20	24	27	34	37	40	67
BuffetStyle	Number Pieces Needed	100	150	200	250	300	350	400	500	550	600	1000

I don’t know about you, but Hubby and I are the butlers at our house!

Some pointers to keep in mind with your planning:

A cocktail party enables a host to entertain more people and enables them to mix more than a typical dinner party.

A party of longer duration that is not followed by dinner would be an “open house” of 3 or 4 hours.  Since some guests might actually be there for the entire duration and would probably seek more extensive food, a light buffet is generally provided.

Depending on the season and the time of day (an open house can begin in mid-afternoon), the buffet could include cold salads and platters, hot foods or a mix.

You can, of course, have hors d’oeuvres/appetizers as well as buffet items at an open house, and you can serve a buffet at a cocktail party.    Source: The Nibble

Begin your party by entering the giveaway and then coming on over on Monday to check out the appetizer course.

 

Here’s the schedule for the rest of the party: Invitation

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