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Birthday Party Menu On A Budget

Catering Food Ideas For Kids Birthday Party:

Asda Grocery Haul| Frugal living| Tiny food budget

Hiring Professional Caterer for Kids Birthday Party is a great idea to make the party a success. The caterer will take care of food part, which is the most important element of any event/ gathering as food is also the major factor in deciding the success of your party.

Guests will visit you to shower blessings however theyre also attending the event for the food feast which theyre expecting at your birthday party event. Therefore, presenting them with flavorful and rich taste food will be incumbent on the host. And to make this happen you dont need to spend hours in deciding the menu and shopping around, then cooking and presenting.

Simply hire a professional caterer theyll do the job while you get to enjoy with your guests.

Although food menu should be based on the specific event, its time, location, theme and most importantly the budget, the catering ideas we are sharing here will help to make your birthday party even more memorable, these party ideas will not only delight your kids but will also impress your adult guests.

How To Make A Birthday Party Menu On A Budget

Birthdays are a special occasion not just for the kids, but also for moms and dads. It is bittersweet to watch your little one grow up and become bigger each year. As parents, all you want to do is make your child’s day more enjoyable and memorable. You buy them gifts and throw them a birthday party where they can invite their friends and have loads of fun! However, organising a birthday party is exhausting and can be expensive. It entails getting decorations, invitation cards, guest lists and putting together a menu. Out of all of this, the hardest part is to manage all the kids once the party starts.

How do you organise a party that doesnt burn a hole through your pocket? The answer is having a smart Menu. You can serve food on the menu that requires little investment and can be made at home using everyday items. Look for items you can get in bulk. Be it a bag of chips or burgers, looking for bulk party orders is important as items bought in bulk can lead to discounts. Another tip we have- buy something like pizza sauce which can be used to make several other items. This ensures that your food is equally delicious and easy to make.Here are some of BerryTrees picks for the best options for birthday party menu on a budget.

Cheese Cracker And Fruit Tray

This is an appetizer that can be expensive but doesnt have to be. Here are some tips on how you can serve cheese, crackers and fruit cheaply.

  • Get your crackers at a store known for low prices, such as Aldi. They have a knockoff brand multi-variety cracker box that tastes terrific. They also have knockoffs of Ritz and other popular cracker brands.
  • Buy cheese in bulk and slice it yourself. Pre-sliced cheese is very expensive!
  • Buy accompanying fruit thats on sale. Check your ads and buy around whats on sale.
  • Make homemade dips and cheese balls if youre serving them with the crackers. You can find many great recipes online.
  • Make this a savory dish by adding olives, artichokes on skewers. Again, buy when on sale and a little goes a long way.

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Determine How Many Guests Youll Have

The number of guests your party will have is an essential equation for your budget. It affects the quantity of the things you need to purchase, especially food and drinks. More people means a bigger budget lesser people means a smaller budget. So keep that in mind before you send your party invitations.

Budgeting For Birthday Parties

Chalkboard look for a buffet table

So, since I didnt have a time machine to sort out the birthday spacing issue in our family, I had to find another way to make the birthday party madness more manageable. I ended up giving each of my kids a birthday celebration budget and full ownership over choosing how we celebrated as a family. It turned out to be a great way to teach my kids about budgeting and priorities.

Heres what I did. I created three lists: an activity list, a dessert list, and a dinner list. Each list contained several ideas and a price next to each idea. I also made sure to include at least one free option in each list. For example:

Activity List:

  • Costco pizza
  • Sit down restaurant

Then, I told my kids that they each got $75 to celebrate with our family. They could choose any combination they wanted, as long as they didnt go over $75. One child chose an expensive activity so we had dinner and dessert at home. Another child chose to eat dinner at a sit down restaurant, so we stayed home for the activity and dessert.

Not only did this help me stay within our budget, but my kids loved being in charge of the planning process for their big day. Playing party planner made the day feel even more special to themand I snuck in an educational lesson about budgeting and making sure your spending aligns to your priorities, which is a clear parenting win.

Interested in entertaining resources to teach your kids about budgeting? Check out YNAB Kids!

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Chip And Dip Party Board

Homemade dips and store-bought chips make this one irresistible party board. With a variety of chip options such as tortilla, pita and salted and flavor-packed dipping choices like sweet pea guacamole and beet hummus, there’s a delicious combination for every taste bud.

Get the How-To: How to Make a Chip and Dip Party Board

Lets Start With Dessert First

Sure, Costco cakes wouldnt be considered clean but if you eat a piece of cake a few times a year, I think you will be just fine. Remember, what you do every day matters more than what you do once in a while .

Costco cakes are AMAZING. And the price is amazing too. At our local Costco, the price is $18.99 for a sheet cake that serves 48 people. They have limited designs to choose from and from what I understand, they do not do custom work but for the price, you cant beat it! I have a post on How to Order a Cake from Costco where I keep the designs updated. They always seem to have designs for all of the major holidays and plenty of birthday designs to choose from.

If cake isnt your thing they also have cookie platters or pies , and cheesecake . Ill take one of each. Please and thank you.

Need A LOT of pies? You can special order those too.

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Buy Your Food On Sale

Buying your food on sale is vital. After youve planned your menu start keeping an eye on sales flyers.

Then start stocking up as you find things youll need on sale.

For instance, Im throwing a high school graduation party for my oldest daughter this year. I bought paper plates in January when they were on sale at Sams Club. I also started stocking up on soda in March.

Whenever I see a sale on something I know Ill need for the party, I buy it. Remember to keep expiration dates and storage in mind when you do this. You dont want to serve expired soda at a party or buy only to realize you dont have storage capacity.

Note: if you have a bigger family or entertain a lot, a deep freezer is a must. This will allow you to freeze meats and other items for as long as a year without getting freezer damage.

I buy a quarter of grass fed, no-antibiotic, no-hormone beef every year for $4.50 a pound since we have a bigger family. I can stock up in this capacity only because we have a large freezer that ensures the beef will keep.

Being able to buy in such a large quantity saves a ton of money on our grocery bill.

You can save too if you keep an eye on the sales and stock up in advance on what you need.

Make Or Decorate Your Own Cake

Party food idea || Birthday party ||Baby Girls Birthday party idea|| Party at friends house

If youre a regular Martha Stewart, you might envision going all out and making your own cake from scratch and decorating it with layers of fondantyou go-getter, you! But if youre not so culinary talented, feel free to grab the nearest box mix and icing at the grocery store.

We knowmaking your own cake at home can be a real pain in the neck. Is the box mix and premade icing cheap? Sure. But sometimes, the hassle of actually making the cake can deflate you of any birthday spirit. Thats what generic cakes from the grocery store are for.

But dont freak out if your kid wants a themed cake. After all, who doesnt want Batman swooping in or a Disney princess gliding across that fluffy, sugary buttercream frosting? Pick up a generic cake at the grocery store and slap one of your kids favorite figures on the cake. Just remember to wash it firstno one wants to crunch on actual dirt when theyre eating the worms and dirt birthday cake.

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St Birthday Party Food Ideas

Your baby’s first yearand yours as a parentis a milestone worthy of a party. Your littlest guests won’t be too interested in the spread, making this a great chance to brainstorm birthday party food ideas for adults . Here are some crowd-pleasing ideas:

  • Hamburgers
  • Spinach-artichoke dip
  • Pasta salad

Some additional wallet-friendly crowd pleasers to consider for gatherings, according to Cheapism, include bean dip, wings, and flatbread pizzas.

But don’t forget the little ones altogether, of course! One-year-olds enjoy a variety of foods, so consider putting together a “baby buffet” with things like cheese cubes, mini sandwiches, crackers, bananas, muffins, yogurt, applesauce, pasta, hard-boiled eggs, lean proteins, and more. Avoid anything that can be considered a choking hazard, such as popcorn, hot dogs, nuts, or grapes.

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Passport To Fun Surprise Party

This is one of my favorite surprise birthday party ideas for adults!

Basically, your goal is to create the feeling of a whirlwind adventure around the world for the recipient.

Trust me, its not as expensive as it sounds, especially if you follow the plan below and enlist some help.

  • First, find a few friends willing to go in on the party with you. The more the better, and not just because theyll help you cut down on the cost!
  • Assign a different country to each person. They need to come up with at least one type of food from that country as well as one unique decoration.
  • When you send out the invites to other friends, politely ask that they bring along something unique to their favorite country. It could be something as simple as a special drink recipe .
  • Buy or make passport books and hand them out to all the guests when they arrive. Challenge guests to travel around the world and sample something from every country!
  • If youre throwing this party solo, you can still save money.

    Just choose a few different countries and make inexpensive recipes from each one. Try to find recipes that have ingredients in common to cut down on your grocery expenses.

    For decorations, print out maps and use them to make your own table covers, banners, and more.

    Use a world map to inspire your table arrangements. For example, North and South America off to the left, Europe and Africa in the middle, and so on.

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    Opt For The Most Cost

    Regardless if youll be hosting a kids birthday party, a simple get together, or any gathering, try to opt for cost-friendly alternatives. As weve said earlier, spending too much doesnt ensure a successful party. Its possible to organize a cheap party that can satisfy your guests. Specifically, there is plenty of party on a budget food ideas that you can use. Serving tasty party foods doesnt have to hurt your pocket.

    But, if you have the money to make your party as grand as possible, go for it!

    How To Throw A Birthday Party On A Budget

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    Remember birthday parties? Assorted color balloons, a simple sheet cake, streamers and pin the tail on the donkey. Those were the days.

    And when youre trying to throw a birthday party on a budget, its easy to feel like theres no way to make it happen without either going overboard or having the worlds lamest shindig. But have no fearweve got 10 tips to help you throw an affordable celebration without sacrificing any of the fun!

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    Tea & Gardening Party

    Combine your passion for gardening with a tea party for one of the classiest outdoor party ideas for adults. We have all the tips you need for the tea party part.

    For the gardening part, invite friends who are as passionate about growing things as you are. Ask each guest to bring different seeds .

    Grab some little seed starter pots and some soil, then let everyone put together their own ultimate garden to take home.

    For food, serve tea party fare like cucumber sandwiches and, of course, tea.

    Salads are also perfect for a gardening party, especially if you use local fruits and veggies. Bonus points if they come from your own garden. Try our Tomato & Cucumber summer salad with orange juice dressing!

    Now that you have some fun themes to try, lets talk party venues!

    Dessert Ideas For A Kids’ Birthday Party

    A big birthday cake allows for a more dramatic blow-out-the-candles moment. Try a theme cake if your kid’s mad about Barney or Clifford. Costco is known for making great-tasting, inexpensive sheet cakes with lots of characters and designs to choose from. Similarly, many local supermarket chains provide cost-friendly and highly customizable options. Ambitious? Make your own cake and get decorating ideas from various websites.

    If you want less of a hassle, opt for cupcakes instead. There’s no cutting, and they’re easier to serve. Consider icing cupcakes in different colors and arranging them in a fun pattern, or one that spells out your child’s name or “Happy Birthday.” Put out sprinkles and other decorations so each guest can create her own masterpiece.

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    What Are Some Party Finger Food Ideas On A Budget

    If youre throwing a party on a budget, finger foods are the way to go! Classic finger foods like pigs in a blanket, devilled eggs or tea sandwiches are easy to make and only need ingredients that you probably already have at home. If youre looking to save some cash, try picking a few recipes that use the same ingredients!

    TIP: Pick recipes that need the least amount of ingredients for some extra savings!

    Host The Party At Your Home Or The Park

    Eating food at a Babys birthday party for the whole day! #shorts #cute #food

    Choosing the perfect party venue may mean having to splurge a massive amount of money for that aspect alone. Luckily, you have some of the best locations right under your nose. A party at your home or the local park is all you need to celebrate your 8-year-old. Home parties are great because everyone can enjoy the comfort of a home, with the conveniences of air conditioning, clean bathrooms, and endless drinks.

    Parks are another great way to keep birthday costs low. If your home is a bit smaller or youd rather keep those crazy kids outside of your home, then the park is another great option. Park parties are perfect for spring, summer, or fall birthdays. It can be a fun way to keep the kids entertained and active with outdoor sports and activities.

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    Lets Go To Finger Foods/appetizers Next

    Maybe our neighborhood is strange but the first things to always disappear are the fruit and vegetable trays! I am just simply amazed at the price of Costcos premade vegetable trays and fruit bowls. Sometimes we just buy them when we dont feel like cutting up our own vegetables for the week!

    Check out these prices:

    • Vegetable Platter : $9.99
    • Fresh Cut Fruit Bowl : $9.99

    I wasnt sure whether to consider these party platters as appetizers or the main course so Ill just include them here. You can order a party platter from Costco! The options at our local Costco are listed below:

    • Croissant Sandwich Platter : $32.99
    • Chicken & Swiss Rollers : $32.99
    • Shrimp Platter : $39.99
    • Meat & Cheese Platter : $26.99

    Stylish Table Cloth Or Runner

    This is not only an easy way to dress up your gathering, but will also protect your furniture. I have had luck buying them at Home Goods for $5. I like the vinyl ones that are easy to wipe down, but I also have cloth ones that I can throw in the washing machine. Once again, it’s an investment that you can use over and over.

    Keep in mind that you can also use a roll of wrapping paper down the center of a table as a disposable runner! I also like the cheap table cloths from the dollar store, because you can toss them guilt-free if they’re too dirty to keep and reuse later.

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    Make The Ordinary Special

    Instead of just slicing nature’s bounty and spreading it around a platter, transform fresh fruit and vegetables into miniature works of art that can double as table décor. Some simple ideas include:

    • Wrap thin slices of deli meats around scallions to make flower buds. Use a little dab of cheese spread or guacamole to hold the buds in place.
    • Make apple blossoms. Core and cut an apple in half lengthwise. Don’t peel. Use a very sharp knife or mandolin to cut very thin slices running from cored edge to peel. Keeping the peel to the outside, roll the slices into a rosette. Layer on more slices for a larger rosette. Secure edges with toothpicks.
    • Cut bell peppers in half horizontally and scrape out the seeds and membrane. Fill the halves with dip for a natural serving vessel — no bowl needed!

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