Lunar New Year for 36 guests
A buffet-style Lunar New year for 36: 6 dishes, about 949 g of food a guest (75.5 lb in all), 30 lines on the shopping list and around 137 drinks. 20% of the cooking can happen before the day.
- Dishes
- 6
- Food
- 75.5 lb
- Drinks
- 137
- Shopping lines
- 30
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 36
To start
- Shui jiao4.5 batches · 45 servingson the day
Mains
- Coconut vegetable curry, big pot, no dairy3 batches · 48 servingsday before
Sides
- Dan chao fan4 batches · 24 servingson the day
- Suan chao qingcai4 batches · 24 servingson the day
Bread
- Bought sourdough, cultured butter5.5 batches · 44 servingson the day
Dessert
- Canned fruit cup, no chill needed7.5 batches · 45 servingson the day
About 949 g of food a guest. 20% of the cooking can be done before the day.
Shopping highlights
- Minced pork8 lb
- Choy sum8 lb
- Citrus for garnish7 ea
- Garlic48 clove
- Ginger5 oz
- Herb for garnish — mint or rosemary3 bunch
- Mixed vegetables21 lb
- Napa cabbage6 lb
- Scallion5 ea
- Cultured butter2 lb
10 of 30 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
- 137
- Ice
- 56 lb
- Food, estimated
- $786
About $22 a guest — a planning estimate from typical supermarket costs, not a price.
Countdown
The Lunar New year timeline, condensed
4 weeks before
- · Send the date, the start time, and a question about what people do not eat.
- · Dumplings, a whole fish and a sweet rice bowl are a common shape. Which foods are required is a family decision.
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
Lunar New Year for more or fewer
Questions hosts ask
How much food for a Lunar New year for 36?
About 75.5 lb of finished food, or 949 g a guest across 6 dishes, with coconut vegetable curry, big pot, no dairy as the main. The amounts are sized by the planning engine and include a small margin.
Should a Lunar New year for 36 be a buffet or a sit-down meal?
It usually runs buffet-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 Lunar New year for 36?
About 137 drinks across the party, including alcohol-free ones, and 56 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 dumplings, a whole fish and a sweet rice bowl are a common shape. Which foods are required is a family decision.
What does a Lunar New year for 36 cost?
The food in this plan comes to roughly $786, about $22 a guest. That is a planning estimate from typical US supermarket costs, not a price for your shop.
The whole night
Plan my Lunar New year for 36
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