How Can I Feed About 100 People For $2000?

by Liz
(Sunnyvale)

So my wedding is oct. 7 and I have about 110 guests. This doesn't include the band and photographer. Now I only expect about 80 guests to come since a lot of people are from out of town and probably won't come.

I was originally trying to do this for under $5ooo but with the band and photographer and hotel room expenses.....etc. it's already looking like it's gonna cost 8-9000. This is insane.

In this budget I have planned to spend about $2000 on food and like $1000 on alcohol (just kegs of beer and some cases of wine). How can i possibly do this? This is a beach themed wedding, btw. I don't know if that matters. The reception is at the carmel women's club and it does have an onsite kitchen but i would like to avoid cooking the food for everyone if possible as I either have to hire a cook or ask someone I know to cook for 80 people...i don't wanna do that to anybody....help!

Hi Liz

Thanks for getting in touch, I know exactly what you mean when you say "this is insane" - weddings have a way of becoming expensive even when you are being super careful.

But don't panic, $2000 to feed 80 people is ok, there are a couple of options that would fit very nicely with your beach theme.

The first is a barbeque, I know you said noone to cook but men love to take over the barbeque - do you have a group of men that would enjoy having a go? or hiring one person to cook the barbeque would not be that expensive. Have a chat with local colleges as there is a wealth of talent that would love to have the oppotunity to do something like this. Keep the meat simple but filling - burgers and sausages are relatively cheap and then there could be lots of salads to accompany the barbeque.

Another fun beach themed option is to have a picnic, ask your guests to bring their picnic rug and have all of the food in picnic baskets and hampers (that you have borrowed). If you thought you could get away with it why not ask your guests to bring a picnic!

You could also go with a traditional buffet with a twist and speak with a local takeaway restaurant if they could provide the food. One wedding I went to had their local Thai restaurant provide the food and the serving staff and that cost less than your $2000 budget for the same number of people.

Depending on the time of day you could also go with an afternoon tea themed reception with tea and cakes. This works for a short reception but in a longer one most guests will be expecting more food.

Here are lots more cheap wedding reception ideas that should save you some money.

Good luck choosing the theme for your food,

Suz x

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