early afternoon food ideas

chief0401

We are having an at home celebration after we return from our honeymoon since we are having a destination wedding in Costa Rica. It will be for about 150 people. Thinking about having it around 1pm-ish or 2 (haven't decided on the exact time yet).  We can't really decide on food and need help. We were thinking small sandwiches, build your own salad bar, appetizers, fruit kabobs, etc but that is just thought. Any suggestions or ideas for food would be great. Thank you!

Sue-n-Kevin

I think your ideas sound fine if you are having a somewhat informal buffet. Are you having it catered, or doing it yourself?

My recommendation would be to check with local gourmet stores that also do catering. This is what we used for our reception. It is a bit more budget-friendly because the stores already have delicious food on hand for their customers, and they don't make all their profits on just catering, so are more willing to negotiate. You could look into local options for sandwich wrap platters with side dishes, some restaurants or carry out restaurants do this, as do some grocery stores. For 150 people you'd probably need about 200 half sandwich wraps plus side dishes (cole slaw, potato salad, whatever they offer).

Appetizers can often be more expensive than standard buffet food (pasta, meats, etc) because of the time involved in preparation.

However, if you are doing it around 2 pm (1 pm is still "lunch time" for some), then you'd be fine with appetizers or light sandwiches and some side dishes.

150 people at an in-home celebration is a lot unless you have a good sized back yard. You will need to rent tables & chairs (yes, 150 so everyone can sit), and banquet tables for the food to sit on. These rentals often cost more than the food.