Caraway Posted May 10, 2017 Share Posted May 10, 2017 I am organizing a potluck for 80 families. Each family will sign up via list of choices (main, side, green salad, fruit, dessert). My question is, how do I break down how many I need of each category? 15 mains, 15 sides, 10 green salads, etc.. Help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
umsami Posted May 10, 2017 Share Posted May 10, 2017 My son's class just had a potluck and they used this website PerfectPotluck.com It may help (or at least make things easier.) 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caraway Posted May 10, 2017 Author Share Posted May 10, 2017 Thanks! I was planning to use sign up genius but I'll check this out. Still looks like I have to create the # of slots though. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bambam Posted May 10, 2017 Share Posted May 10, 2017 I'd be tempted to do this: Main dish (enough to feed 10 people) and the number needed equals the total amount of people you have. Same with every other category. I'm not sure my amount on the main dish is reasonable (serve 10 people?), so if not, someone chime in and help! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rachel Posted May 10, 2017 Share Posted May 10, 2017 I like it to be a surprise, I don't mind if we end up with 70 deserts and 4 kinds of potatoes, but I know not everyone likes that. I don't think I'd break it down between sides, fruit, and green salad. With that many families you will end up with some of each. Maybe do 20 mains, 40 salads/sides, 20 desserts, 15 drinks, 10 chips/breads. You may want an other category just in case someone doesn't know where their item fits. That's more than 80 slots but some people will definitely bring more than one thing. Is everyone bringing their own paper goods and dinnerware or do people need to sign up for that as well? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cjzimmer1 Posted May 11, 2017 Share Posted May 11, 2017 Our homeschool group has each family bring a main dish and then either a side or a dessert. They tried a lot of other variations and this was the only one that really provided enough food. They had too many times where a family would show up and just bring a bag of chips. With this method we've never needed to do signup because there was always a good variety and you you there will be enough to feed everyone. just another thought in case you want to simplify things. 12 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pink and Green Mom Posted May 11, 2017 Share Posted May 11, 2017 They had too many times where a family would show up and just bring a bag of chips. This. I ran one for an old co-op one time, and at least 75 percent of the families attending brought a (as in 1) bag of chips. And then had the nerve to complain that there was not enough food. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SamanthaCarter Posted May 11, 2017 Share Posted May 11, 2017 My smallish church does it by last name. If your last name starts with A-M you bring main dish for 8, if N-Z , you bring a side or dessert for 8. Next potluck reverses. I don't know if they break the alphabet evenly, it might be based on the median from the membership list...Anyway, it works quite well. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SamanthaCarter Posted May 11, 2017 Share Posted May 11, 2017 (edited) This. I ran one for an old co-op one time, and at least 75 percent of the families attending brought a (as in 1) bag of chips. And then had the nerve to complain that there was not enough food. some people....if they can get away with thinking just a bag of chips as a side, I don't think I'd let anyone bring just a side. Main dish plus side/dessert for that crowd. [emoji12] Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Edited May 11, 2017 by SamanthaCarter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heartlikealion Posted May 11, 2017 Share Posted May 11, 2017 Our homeschool group has each family bring a main dish and then either a side or a dessert. They tried a lot of other variations and this was the only one that really provided enough food. They had too many times where a family would show up and just bring a bag of chips. With this method we've never needed to do signup because there was always a good variety and you you there will be enough to feed everyone. just another thought in case you want to simplify things. This. I ran one for an old co-op one time, and at least 75 percent of the families attending brought a (as in 1) bag of chips. And then had the nerve to complain that there was not enough food. These seem like extremes lol I wouldn't want to ask families to bring a main dish and a side/dessert. That seems like an awful lot of work for each family but maybe that's just me. And a bunch of people just bringing chips sounds like something you definitely want to avoid lol. Perhaps some guidelines sent via email or on the website would help, but I don't know if you can add all that info. Like "dessert to feed X number" so they don't show up with just 12 cookies. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heartlikealion Posted May 11, 2017 Share Posted May 11, 2017 (edited) I'd be tempted to do this: Main dish (enough to feed 10 people) and the number needed equals the total amount of people you have. Same with every other category. I'm not sure my amount on the main dish is reasonable (serve 10 people?), so if not, someone chime in and help! I'm leaning toward this, except that if she has 80 families attending I wouldn't ask anyone to bring a dish to feed 80. I would think a smaller number would suffice so there's variety but no one feels the pressure to feed everyone their dish. Wait I'm confused. Maybe you mean each category combined equals the number of people attending and I'm just not computing today. Edited May 11, 2017 by heartlikealion Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie G Posted May 11, 2017 Share Posted May 11, 2017 I like the idea of people bringing two things, like a main and a side or dessert. Most people make more than one thing for dinner so it shouldn't be a big burden. I've been to too many potlucks that were half desserts and very few main dishes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SamanthaCarter Posted May 11, 2017 Share Posted May 11, 2017 I like the idea of people bringing two things, like a main and a side or dessert. Most people make more than one thing for dinner so it shouldn't be a big burden. I've been to too many potlucks that were half desserts and very few main dishes. Yes, you've always got to limit desserts. It's usually the cheapest and easiest route for people. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted May 11, 2017 Share Posted May 11, 2017 I generally think it's easiest to make one thing, but make enough for, say, ten people. Having everyone make multiple things seems unnecessary unless it's something like, you bring a dish and drinks/plasticware/paper plates kind of a thing. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vonfirmath Posted May 11, 2017 Share Posted May 11, 2017 When we were growing up -- potlucks at church meant bringing "Enough food for your family +1" -- which for a family, yes, meant multiple dishes. I find bringing a main dish + side/dessert to be much less panic-inducing than what has happened ia couply years in a row of one of my Sunday Schools -- kids got sick, etc. So they ended up with not enough filling food for the people there with what people who came actually brought and had to run out to the grocery store to buy deli salads/etc to try to make it up. It looked and felt sparse. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cjzimmer1 Posted May 11, 2017 Share Posted May 11, 2017 I guess I don't see the two items as really much extra work. If you aren't up to making something, bring a bag of grapes or a bowl of quartered oranges. They isn't more than 5 minutes of effort and fruit is always one of the first things to go. But I don't like putting the work of bringing the main portion of the meal on a smaller portion of the families. Especially if you are a smaller family or one that doesn't eat much. Asking them to make enough to serve 10 is a big chore. A friend of mine thinks 2 pounds of taco meat is sufficient for 18 people because of how little her small family eats. I on the other hand think a group of 18 would need at minimum 5 pounds of meat based on the appetites of my family. Plus my kids eat more food at potlucks because they like to try different things there will also be more waste as people take something and it turns out they don't like it and it will go to waste. I've never been to a potluck where there was too much main meal items. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heartlikealion Posted May 11, 2017 Share Posted May 11, 2017 When we were growing up -- potlucks at church meant bringing "Enough food for your family +1" -- which for a family, yes, meant multiple dishes. I find bringing a main dish + side/dessert to be much less panic-inducing than what has happened ia couply years in a row of one of my Sunday Schools -- kids got sick, etc. So they ended up with not enough filling food for the people there with what people who came actually brought and had to run out to the grocery store to buy deli salads/etc to try to make it up. It looked and felt sparse. I guess I don't follow the logic. If kids got sick, didn't their families go home? If they left, then why did the church need more food? Wouldn't it all even out? Unless their family provided a main dish and everyone else there brought sides. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heartlikealion Posted May 11, 2017 Share Posted May 11, 2017 (edited) I guess I don't see the two items as really much extra work. If you aren't up to making something, bring a bag of grapes or a bowl of quartered oranges. They isn't more than 5 minutes of effort and fruit is always one of the first things to go. But I don't like putting the work of bringing the main portion of the meal on a smaller portion of the families. Especially if you are a smaller family or one that doesn't eat much. Asking them to make enough to serve 10 is a big chore. A friend of mine thinks 2 pounds of taco meat is sufficient for 18 people because of how little her small family eats. I on the other hand think a group of 18 would need at minimum 5 pounds of meat based on the appetites of my family. Plus my kids eat more food at potlucks because they like to try different things there will also be more waste as people take something and it turns out they don't like it and it will go to waste. I've never been to a potluck where there was too much main meal items. Well, fruit can be expensive and may not fit the requirements of the sign up sheet depending on what you are asked. A side I like to bring to potlucks is Yankee salad which consists of fruit (I don't think I spend that much time/effort because I buy the kind that is already sold cut and it has other ingredients so it doesn't have to fill the whole bowl) and then I'd have to come up with a second side. It would feel like a chore to me, but I don't really like to cook and find doing anything in the kitchen a hassle, especially if I have to think about transporting it and keeping it hot/cold. I'm lazy and I admit it if that makes a difference. Edited May 11, 2017 by heartlikealion Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 11, 2017 Share Posted May 11, 2017 Bring enough for your family plus one more works here...most families have the cookware to do that. Hard for smaller or younger families to make ten servings of something, and it doesn't put off singles. We ask each household to bring a main and a side or dessert. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vonfirmath Posted May 11, 2017 Share Posted May 11, 2017 (edited) I guess I don't follow the logic. If kids got sick, didn't their families go home? If they left, then why did the church need more food? Wouldn't it all even out? Unless their family provided a main dish and everyone else there brought sides. Kids got sick so the family didn't come. They were signed up to bring certain things. Since they did not come, the food did not arrive at the church. So yes, two of the main dishes and several sides weren't there. People who DID come brought skimpy portions. And there ended up with not enough food. Two years in a row AFter that, the class decided to cater the meal and sold tickets to cover the cost. I don't know how that went after the first year because we ended up moving and switching churches to one closer to the new house. Edited May 11, 2017 by vonfirmath 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heartlikealion Posted May 11, 2017 Share Posted May 11, 2017 ahh I see Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bambam Posted May 11, 2017 Share Posted May 11, 2017 I'm leaning toward this, except that if she has 80 families attending I wouldn't ask anyone to bring a dish to feed 80. I would think a smaller number would suffice so there's variety but no one feels the pressure to feed everyone their dish. Wait I'm confused. Maybe you mean each category combined equals the number of people attending and I'm just not computing today. My idea - need to feed 80 people. So, Item to bring - "Main dish to serve 10 people" - and there are 8 chances to sign up for this. - So, theoretically, at least, you should have enough main dish to feed 80 people. For salads - "Salad to serve 12 people" - and there are 7 chances to sign up - which I know would then feed 84 people, but hey, it is close enough. Does that make more sense? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KungFuPanda Posted May 11, 2017 Share Posted May 11, 2017 I'd do 1/2 mains, 1/4 sides, and 1/4 dessert. I don't like to specify any more than that because I don't mind the luck element to pot luck. I don't like to make it a free for all though because you can run out of real food and get stuck with a gazillion desserts. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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