Making Restaurants Work Harder For You

Are You Hosting An End Of The Summer Picnic?

Are you known in your group of friends or in your neighborhood as the hostess with the mostest? Or, it might be that you are a host instead of a hostess. Either way, if you are planning an end-of-the-summer picnic, this year you might decide that you want some help. If that's the case, from arranging for barbecue catering to planning the sides to go with the barbecued meats, here are some ideas that might help you.

Leave The Work To The Caterers - You can still be an exceptional host or hostess without having to slave over the food. Think of arranging for barbecue catering. The caterers will have the training and the experience to provide a delicious meal. You can choose the menu, or the caterer can make suggestions on foods that have been well received at previous events. 

Whether you select the menu or whether the caterer does, consider having a wide variety of meats. For example, some people love beef and aren't so crazy about chicken. So, obviously, you'll want something like ribs on the menu. Some people never cook pork themselves, but would be thrilled over having pulled-pork sandwiches. Add that to your list of items the caterers can provide. Will there be little kids at your end-of-the-summer event? If so, they might love just some barbecued hot dogs.

Plan The Sides For The Meats - Of course, the caterers can provide sides for the meal, too. However, they'll be fine with you telling them that all you'll need is to have barbecued meats provided by them. 

Consider having a pot luck where all of those who attend bring a favorite side dish. You might ask specific people to bring salads, others to bring a vegetable dish, and yet others to bring desserts. 

Besides the meats and the sides, think of having something extra at your picnic. For example, wouldn't it be fun to have a pop corn machine or a cotton candy machine? Think of having watermelon, too. Or, don't ask for desserts and have a home made ice cream. If you can get your hands on an old-fashioned machine that has to be manually operated, those at your picnic might have a lot of fun taking turns with having a hand at making the ice cream themselves. 

Clean up should be easy. The caterers will take care of the cleanup for the foods they brought. Those who brought food will take their own dishes home with them. Presto! Cleaning is a done deal!