Spring is upon us and it’s the perfect time for entertaining! The question is – do you spend the day making and baking yourself or simply order a delicious spread of food and sit back to enjoy it with your guests?
We recently had 130 teenagers at a joint 14th birthday party and, it was actually no big deal, so I am going to share my tips with you.
- It helps if the family that your child partners with are absolutely committed to running the event in partnership with you, that will take away a lot of hostess stress (I was very lucky). They’ll share the planning, invitations, shopping, troubleshooting, costs and set up and pack down.
- Find the right venue for the number of attendees and make it beautiful with some decorations (we went to Astoria). If it’s outdoor, hire a small tent for shade or wet weather (we are in Melbourne!).
- A cosy room for dancing, an excellent DJ (we used Tongue and Groove) and ultra-voilet lights (we hired 2 from DJ Warehouse Hire) were all a hit with this crowd.
- Lots of snacks like chips and lollies…lots of lollies (I quite like the Swedish sweets from IKEA).
- Just enough food to keep them satisfied, which wasn’t much actually – mini sausage rolls, mini focaccias (1/4 of our usual portion size or 1/4 pizzas) and mini cup cakes (chocolate and vanilla).
- Set up a drinks stand with large bottles of drinks and environmentally-friendly cups with a marker to write names on. I was keen to make a point of not using plastic cups or individual bottles so this worked pretty well, and then I put the cups in the compost bin.
- Hire a photographer to capture the fun (we used Tongue and Groove for this too).
- Have plenty of adults from both families helping with crowd control and serving (we had 10 – 2 guys on the door and another on a chair in the back garden).
- Pre-warn neighbours about the when the party starts and finishes (ours was 6.30-9.00pm). And if you like your neighbours, why not invite them in for a quick drink.
- Have a theme (ours was Coachella) and have fun!
We had absolutely no drama, just a rubbish clean-up the following morning and putting furniture back followed by a decent floor mop!
Whether you’re entertaining family, friends or teenagers, we’ve got plenty of tasty food to keep everyone happy…and probably coming back for more. Have a look at our catering menu and Party Time brochure for ideas. Enjoy the party!