Halloween party for 16 guests
A grazing-style Halloween party for 16: 6 dishes, about 370 g of food a guest (13.25 lb in all), 29 lines on the shopping list and around 72 drinks. 40% of the cooking can happen before the day.
- Dishes
- 6
- Food
- 13.25 lb
- Drinks
- 72
- Shopping lines
- 29
Sized by the planning engine
The menu, amounts and kitchen check
- · We set food for 6 PM — change it if your timing is different.
Menu for 16
To start
- Cheese board with quince & walnut1 batch · 8 servingson the day
- Pickle and ferment tray0.5 batches · 10 servingson the day
Starters
- Gougères1.5 batches · 15 servingsday before
Sides
- Herbed grain salad1 batch · 10 servingsday before
- Cold green salad, sharp dressing1 batch · 8 servingson the day
Dessert
- Macerated fruit & citrus1.5 batches · 15 servingson the day
About 370 g of food a guest. 40% of the cooking can be done before the day.
Shopping highlights
- Citrus5 ea
- Citrus for garnish4 ea
- Cucumber3 ea
- Herb for garnish — mint or rosemary2 bunch
- Lemon2 ea
- Parsley2 bunch
- Salad leaves15 oz
- Seasonal fruit6 lb
- Assorted cheese1.3 lb
- Eggs6 ea
10 of 29 lines. The full list comes with the plan.
Kitchen check
SERVING STATIONS — What runs out first
Serving stations is the busiest part of this starting kitchen.
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
- 72
- Ice
- 35 lb
- Food, estimated
- $302
About $19 a guest — a planning estimate from typical supermarket costs, not a price.
Countdown
The Halloween timeline, condensed
4 weeks before
- · Send the date, the start time, and a question about what people do not eat.
- · Finger food and one warm tray. The door will interrupt the cooking.
2 weeks before
- · Order the things that sell out. Leave the greens for the week of.
- · Decide the table before you buy anything for it.
1 week before
- · Cook whatever is better the next day. Leave the last fry for the day.
- · Count the zero-proof and the water with the rest of the drinks.
Day before
- · Clear the surfaces you will actually serve from.
- · Label what is already done so a helper does not redo it.
Day of
- · Finish only what cannot wait. Put the rest out before people arrive.
- · Keep one person out of the kitchen once guests are in the room.
Day after
- · Cool leftovers in shallow containers. Note what actually ran out.
- · Eat the food that keeps. Throw out the food that does not.
Other sizes
Halloween for more or fewer
Questions hosts ask
How much food for a Halloween party for 16?
About 13.25 lb of finished food, or 370 g a guest across 6 dishes. The amounts are sized by the planning engine and include a small margin.
Should a Halloween party for 16 be a buffet or a sit-down meal?
It usually runs grazing-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 Halloween party for 16?
About 72 drinks across the party, including alcohol-free ones, and 35 lb of ice.
How far ahead should I start planning?
Start 4 weeks before: send the date, the start time, and a question about what people do not eat, and finger food and one warm tray. The door will interrupt the cooking.
What does a Halloween party for 16 cost?
The food in this plan comes to roughly $302, about $19 a guest. That is a planning estimate from typical US supermarket costs, not a price for your shop.
The whole night
Plan my Halloween for 16
Tell us about your kitchen, your seats and anyone's food needs, and the menu, shopping list and timeline redraw around them.