Cocktail Party for 20 guests
A cocktail-style cocktail party for 20: 5 dishes, about 148 g of food a guest (6.75 lb in all), 32 lines on the shopping list and around 90 drinks. 33% of the cooking can happen before the day.
- Dishes
- 5
- Food
- 6.75 lb
- Drinks
- 90
- Shopping lines
- 32
Sized by the planning engine
The menu, amounts and kitchen check
- · We set food for 7 PM — change it if your timing is different.
Menu for 20
To start
- Pimento cheese that holds its own0.5 batches · 5 servingson the day
- Warm olives & fried almonds0.5 batches · 5 servingson the day
Starters
- Harbor toasts with sardines, roasted grapes and black-pepper labneh1 batch · 8 servingson the day
- Devilled eggs, crisp shallot1 batch · 10 servingson the day
Dessert
- Baklava bil fustuq1 batch · 16 servingsday before
About 148 g of food a guest. 33% of the cooking can be done before the day.
Shopping highlights
- Sardine fillets12 oz
- Citrus for garnish5 ea
- Fresh mint2 tbsp
- Herb for garnish — mint or rosemary2 bunch
- Onion1 ea
- Seedless red grapes2 cup
- Shallots3 ea
- Clarified butter12 oz
- Cream cheese1 oz
- Eggs10 ea
10 of 32 lines. The full list comes with the plan.
Kitchen check
Over capacity
Checked against a starting kitchen of 1 oven and 4 burners — not yours yet. Seats are not counted here: the planner asks for your real number rather than guessing it.
Drinks and cost
- Drinks, all kinds
- 90
- Ice
- 40 lb
- Food, estimated
- $314
About $16 a guest — a planning estimate from typical supermarket costs, not a price.
Countdown
The cocktail party timeline, condensed
3 weeks before
- · Send invitations with a start and end time and dress code.
- · Choose one or two signature cocktails and a zero-proof match.
1 week before
- · Confirm numbers and dietary needs.
- · Buy spirits, mixers, garnishes and glassware.
Day before
- · Buy fresh ingredients, bread and lots of ice.
- · Batch and bottle cocktails; chill them.
Day of
- · Assemble toasts and fill eggs in the last two hours.
- · Put out olives and nuts; light candles 30 minutes before start.
Day after
- · Recycle bottles and wash glassware.
- · Store opened vermouth in the fridge.
Other sizes
Cocktail party for more or fewer
Questions hosts ask
How much food for a cocktail party for 20?
About 6.75 lb of finished food, or 148 g a guest across 5 dishes. The amounts are sized by the planning engine and include a small margin.
Should a cocktail party for 20 be a buffet or a sit-down meal?
It usually runs cocktail-style: guests help themselves, so not everyone needs a chair at once. Still count the seats you have; the planner never assumes them.
How many drinks for a cocktail party for 20?
About 90 drinks across the party, including alcohol-free ones, and 40 lb of ice.
How far ahead should I start planning?
Start 3 weeks before: send invitations with a start and end time and dress code, and choose one or two signature cocktails and a zero-proof match.
What does a cocktail party for 20 cost?
The food in this plan comes to roughly $314, about $16 a guest. That is a planning estimate from typical US supermarket costs, not a price for your shop.
Plan my cocktail party for 20
Tell us about your kitchen, your seats and anyone's food needs, and the menu, shopping list and timeline redraw around them.
Start planning