I am soon to be wed to a magnificent man on July 21st 2007 and we will be having approx. 50-60 people at the reception, I have drawn a big blank when it comes to what to serve....I need either recipes on large dishes or general food ideas....any help is greatly appreciated...thanks in advance everyone!
2007-06-05 04:40:38 · 31 answers · asked by Sam Fisher 3 in Family & Relationships ➔ Weddings
Go to your local supermarket and buy some veggies: cauliflower, broccoli, cherry or grape tomatoes, baby carrots and celery and cut them up and put then on a tray (you can get the trays at a dollar store) with ranch dressing. Buy some bulk fruit like pineapple, melon, grapes and strawberries and put them on a tray. Buy big chunks of cheese at the deli dept. and cut up into cubes. Get at least 3 choices like cheddar, pepper jack and cheddar/jack. Get lunch meat like ham, turkey and roast beef and roll them up and put on a tray. Get bowls of crackers, pick a few different ones. Do something like little smokies, chicken wings, and beef or chicken kabobs. Once you get all the food, make an afternoon of it with your mom, close relatives and friends and the bridal attendants. With all of you working together you can get it done quickly. Make sure to have someone at the wedding in charge of refilling the trays. All of these have been served at the last few receptions I went to. I'm also on a budget and having it catered is very expensive. I'm going to do what I suggested to you. Congrats.
2007-06-05 07:52:18 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
We made stuff up the day before. I had a few friends from work come to the reception site and they heated up everything and set everything out. We had :
Ham......we found a cheap place for spiral hams
Grilled Chicken Breast....I work in a store, and got them from the deli
Baked potatoes....a friend donated a couple bushel
toppings are inexpensive
Rolls...I made sandwich and dinneer rolls at work, I'm the baker...they could have a sandwich or eat the meat on the plate
Chips, cookies cheese & crackers......go to a local discount grocery store, it's less expensive there.
Coleslaw.........it was a fall wedding and cabbage is like 75 cents a head around here....big medicine ball size
Pasta salad.the same friend who donated the potatoes also made a huge batch
Soda.... we didn't provide any alcohol...people will drink cheap soda if that's what you offer
Cake.like I said, I'm a baker, so I made my own at the reception site the day before the wedding. It was cheaper for me that way.
And we only had about 75-100 people at the reception.
People wre so stuffed from dinner, that most didn't have any cake.
2007-06-05 06:03:20 · answer #2 · answered by Becky M 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Congratulations on the wedding! So soon! OMG! :)
Ok... this is what I think... you can either stick with just cake and punch (you are going to have cake anyway, right? :) lol)
Or you could just make some finger foods and stick with like a cheese tray with crackers and some fruit like grapes and such.
OR you could hire a caterer. They have trays of food starting at usually about $35 or so. You could order from chicken wings to lasagna. They usually do cheese or veggie trays and hors'dovres, too. Just call local places and see if they will strike you up a deal! :)
Some people even do a "dessert" bar at their reception. You already have the cake, but you could make cookies, brownies, cupcakes, and such... that is becoming popular, too.
Either way it goes, there are tons of choices! Good luck! And CONGRATULATIONS again on the wedding!!
2007-06-05 04:53:14 · answer #3 · answered by CC 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
My parents went for a backyard BBQ hosted by some friends who did it as their gift to the couple. If you have firends or relatives that are good cooks this is a great idea becasue you get a gift you really need and the person feels really honored that you enjoy their cooking so much you would serve it on your most special day. Help them with the costs if it's going to be a lot of people though. As for me I'm having a morning wedding and serving a brunch buffet. Pancakes, omelletes and the like are pretty cheap too.
2007-06-05 08:53:01 · answer #4 · answered by Natalie G 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I'm having a DIY reception for 50-60 on a budget. Here's the menu:
fresh fruit (strawberries, grapes, other fruits that are easy to eat and require little or no prep)
cheese (like brie) and crackers
mini quiche (very easy to make and freeze ahead)
chicken and bean empanadas
veggie tray (store bought, about $45)
sushi trays (store bought, about $60)
tomato and mozzarella kabobs
salad
chicken and asparagus lasagna (and some with just the asparagus for non meat eaters)
mini roast beef sandwiches
wedding cake and ice cream
Best of luck and congratulations!
2007-06-05 05:34:38 · answer #5 · answered by blondissima622 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
PB&J is a good one
jk- if you want to lower cost then go with app's and finger foods setup buffet style - it gets a lot pricier when you have a large sit down dinner. also if it is not too late the time of day has a lot to do with it. if you have your reception at a time when people would be eating 12-2 or worse start when it is dinner time 6pm (or so) then people will be hungry and you typically have to provide more food.
my wedding was at night and the people that only came to the reception most likely ate first because it started at 730
2007-06-05 04:46:05 · answer #6 · answered by HD 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I had 25 people at mine. All the ladies on both sides of the family nicely prepared and brought 1 dish for the menu. We had a large pasta/meat dish, melon salad, tossed salad, sliced italian bread, roasted chicken, roasted potatoes, antipasto, stuffed mushrooms, hots/meatballs with sauce, and we ordered in sheet pizza from our favorite pizza place. Our cake was really nicely decorated sheet cakes (1 vanilla, 1 chocolate) prepared locally, but more reasonable as a sheet cake versus the tiered cake. I did reimburse some people for the main dishes. All in all, it still came out wonderful. Homemade food is much nicer than catered, you never know if you will really like what they make. And certainly, much more cost efficient. Best of luck to you!
2007-06-05 04:49:44 · answer #7 · answered by Annie 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Make ahead & freeze till the big day- Roast turkey that has been de-boned or pork roast that you've shedded. Serve with b-b-q sauce. Serve from a large roasting pan.
Potatoes- for every 16 oz bag of frozen hashbrowns mix in 1 can cream of potato soup, 1 16oz tater topping, 1 cup of milk & 2tbsp butter . Mix & cook in roasting oven. You will need 3 bags for each roaster & 2 roasters-full for 50 people.
Baked beans-1 roasterful of beans
Buns for the meat 10 doz (bakeries will sometimes give you a discount if you ask)
Wedding cake
2007-06-05 04:59:35 · answer #8 · answered by abbyn 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
One thing I've seen that could get pretty pricely or really cheap depending on which way you go is a desert reception.
Instead of a meal have an ice cream bar with all kinds of toppings and such. Have lots of cookies made ahead of time. Have your wedding cake be the centerpiece. You could also have different kinds of candy in your wedding colors on the table as part of the centerpiece. I've also seen people set up tealights and have a s'more station. It could be very cheap and classy if carried out right!
Good luck!
2007-06-05 05:07:59 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
You could have an hors-d'ouvres reception. You could make ham salad sandwiches and cut them out with some cute cookie cutters. Or you could do smoked salmon rolls with cream cheese and peppers and stuff inside.
If you don't like the idea of finger foods, you could do some simple italian dishes. Pasta is inexpensive and loved by almost everyone.
For desert you could do individual cupcakes or have a soft serve ice cream sundae bar. Good luck.
2007-06-05 04:47:59 · answer #10 · answered by justagirl 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋