Planning Your Graduation Party Menu Amidst the Season’s Rush
Ah, graduation! So much excitement in the air. There’s so much to going on…end of year sports banquets, baccalaureate parties, academic awards ceremonies, and graduation ceremonies. You likely have more than just your child’s activities to attend – niece, nephews, friends of your kids, kids of your friends, neighbors…and planning a party on top of everything might seem like an enormous task. This is a busy time of year. But I’m here to help! Let’s start with the menu.
I’ve been to many graduation parties. Some of them are extravagant, catered affairs that rival wedding menus. But I think the most important thing to think about when planning your menu is it’s not all about your child. Now let me explain what I mean because that sounds kind of cruel!
Think about all the graduation parties that you will be attending this year. If you have a child that is graduating high school you more than likely have more than just your child’s graduation to attend. I remember when my kids were graduating high school I usually had between 10, 15, sometimes 20 graduation parties that I would try to at least make an appearance. And a lot of them landed on the same day. It was a strategic planning effort to plan your weekends around them all. I remember setting all the invitations out or looking on Facebook for the invitations and the dates and times, getting a calendar out, and trying to plan based on date, time, and location. This one is on this date, from 1 to 3. And this one is on the same date, from 2 to 4 but 60 miles apart! So when you think about planning your menu think about all the other graduation parties the majority of the people coming have been to before and after the one you are throwing. By the time they reach your child’s, they may have had several ham sandwiches. And how much potato salad have they eaten? Who knows! So don’t feel like you need to set out a full 10-course meal for people attending the graduation party.
At one of my child’s graduation parties, I was co-hosting with someone else. Knowing that this would be just one of many stops for the majority of the guests, I planned a very simple menu of just 4 items. Pulled pork sandwiches, salad, chips, and dessert. Super simple, right? I asked the co-host to bring the chips and salad. They decided that they were going to bring four other things besides the two that I asked them to bring. Guess what? We both went home with two full sheet pans of veggie pizzas (that I eventually just threw away) and baked beans up to our ears. We had so many other leftovers we didn’t know what to do with it. What a waste!
What I have found is that you make one thing the centerpiece of your menu. So for my oldest son’s graduation party, we had root beer floats. They were a huge hit. We had a keg of root beer and I rented a soft-serve ice cream machine. For a lot of the guests, that was the only thing they had because they had been to a graduation party before or they were going to one after.
Another way to make things easier on yourself is to hire a caterer. You don’t need to hire a master chef who’s going to serve filet mignon and all kinds of extravagant food. There are plenty of restaurants out there that offer a very casual menu. Where I live, there is a fantastic Mexican restaurant that will even bring the plates and silverware. And you don’t even have to wash them! This is going to cost more than doing it yourself, but sometimes if you have a lot going on, it’s worth the money.
So yes, the party is all about your child, the menu doesn’t have to be extravagant. The decorations are where you really can show off your child and their accomplishments. Be sure to sign up to be notified of my next post where I will describe a simple way to make sure your child’s first 18 years is the center of attention (even if it might embarrass them a bit 🙂).
Remember, less is more
~ Melissa
