Let's Party!!

I'll leave the theme up to you, but here are some ideas for the food.  You can
have a successful function going 'all out' with the food, sparing no expense or
you can do things elegantly but very economically, the choice is always between
you and your bank account with a big dash of common sense. No matter what
you choose to serve, by doing the food yourself, you
will SAVE money and gain SATISFACTION. ( more tips here )

Weddings:

• Hot Buffet Meal  - hot and cold items, from expensive (Prime Rib)
  to inexpensive (meatballs over rice), plan the cost on a per person basis.
• Cold Buffet Meal - Easier to serve, but needs lots of fridge space, again from expensive
  to very economical, plan the cost on a per person basis
• Dessert Buffet - allows you to have an elegant reception without all the expense of a full meal.  Cheesecakes are the most expensive dessert, but having a dessert buffet allows you to make and freeze the entire 'meal' long before the event and there are many elegant and less expensive treats than cheesecakes.
• Cocktail party - Appetizers, these can be prepared and frozen well in advance and range between expensive and very economical. Presentation makes anything look fabulous. You can choose to serve only wine and punch as beverages.
• Afternoon Tea Party - This will allow you to book a hall or have a 'garden party' during the day, maybe even on a Sunday afternoon!  Serve fancy sandwiches, little bars and bite sized cookies, tea, coffee and punch. This can be wonderfully elegant and not nearly as costly as a full meal.  All the food items can be made and frozen ahead, simply thawed and plated on the wedding day.
• Potluck Dinner - Yes! a Potluck for a wedding reception.  What a perfect idea for those on a restricted budget or who don't want to spend THOUSANDS of dollars on a 'party that lasts only 4-5 hr.. (no excuse not to get married). Great for very young couples and second marriages and this allows you to share your wedding with more people or your entire church community if you desire.  This great idea all but eliminates a per person cost for the guest list.  One of the ladies on my board, it was her second marriage, had a big pot luck reception at her farm.  Lots of friends and neighbors were invited, (she became nervous about the idea, but we assured her it was a great one and would work out well)  Friends helped decorate, the event was a great success, the food was fabulous, someone even brought heart shaped biscuits!  Best of all, the marriage was celebrated, everyone had a great meal and the newlyweds didn't have a huge bill to pay.  Makes sense to me!
  This idea tho, has it's limitations.  Don't expect the guests to bring food, and then have it sit in their car while you get married.  It works best for at-home weddings where there is lots of oven and fridge space. 

You are invited to our wedding!

We are doing some things differently 
'cause it's our second time around
and rather than keep it to ourselves
we want our family, friends around

We are keeping things quite simple 
and hope you'll share our day

We're having a wedding reception, 
but it'll be done a different way.

To share our special celebration,
we ask you bring a POT LUCK DISH,
This seems a little strange
but it is our simple wish,

Then we can share this special day of ours
without too much expense or fuss,
sharing it with family, friends and workmates,
All of you, who mean so much to us.
...Dayle

• Simple Dinner: Something as simple as a spaghetti dinner or chili meal with a big tossed salad, and a couple of marinated salads and rolls, can be very economical too, easy to prepare and an inexpensive way to celebrate your wedding.

'*'*'*'
Food for a variety of Other Functions:

• Buffet
• Potluck
• Spaghetti Dinner
• Lasagna Dinner
• Soup Dinner - Great for Lent, or as a fund raiser for Charity, or after winter sports.
• Make your own Sandwiches
• Salad Bar
• Taco Bar
• Baked Potato Bar
• Ice Cream Social - make your own ice cream sundaes.
• Burgers and hot dogs
• Chili  or Stew - Chuck wagon food.
• Picnic or Potluck Picnic - with or without ice cream and hot dogs supplied
• BBQ's - burgers, steaks, shisk kabobs, salmon or fish steaks, chicken, ribs, bring you own steak and/or potluck, bbq's beef on a bun, hot dogs or smokies (smoked sausages),
• Pies -  make for a fund raiser
• Roast Pig
• Clam Bake
• Luau
• Corn Boil
• Turkey Dinner
• Afternoon Teas
• Brunch
• Breakfast
• Pancake Breakfast
• Luncheon