Tips For Planning A Summer BBQ

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Summer is often thought of as BBQ season. With holidays such as Memorial Day, 4th of July, and Labor Day, you are bound to be invited to a cookout. It’s highly possible that you could be the host of one of these shindigs. Whether you are veteran BBQ’er or just getting started, planning ahead can make your summer BBQ go smooth.

BBQ Guests

You should know the approximate number of people that will be attending the festivities. No matter how many invites you send out, there will be people who just cannot attend or who will want to bring a friend or a friend of a friend. Don’t expect RSVPs from everyone you invited. You need an approximate amount of attendees to plan for food and possible parking conflicts.

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Weather

If it’s summertime, we can assume that the temperature will be warm enough. However, we cannot predict any precipitation. If it does rain, do you want all these people in your house or would you rather have them outside in a tent? You can simply have a rain date. You should be keeping tabs on the weather as the BBQ date approaches and make any changes necessary.

Meat for the BBQ Grill

A BBQ isn’t a BBQ without any meat to throw on the grill. What types of meats do you want to serve? Is this just a hot dog and hamburger event, or are you cooking chicken, ribs, or sausages? We all like to save money so if you need a lot of food, you might want to shop at a big warehouse store such as Costco or Sam’s Club. Your meat should be prepared and marinated ahead of time so those meats are ready for grilling on party day.

Side Dishes

If you want to stick to traditional sides, baked beans, potato salad, and coleslaw will do the trick. If your party has a certain theme, then you need sides to match. When you invite someone to a BBQ, they’ll likely ask if they can bring anything. This is a perfect opportunity to have them a bring side dish. This will be one less item you need to prepare. Chips and pretzels are a great snack to have on hand and the chips will go great with the burgers and dogs.

Other Stuff You Might Need for Your BBQ

After planning the food you need to plan miscellaneous items. You guests will need drinks. Non alcoholic beverages should be available for the kids and non-drinkers. If you want to make alcohol available, you need to get that or have a guest bring some. Your guests will need a place to sit. You need to have enough chairs. Everyone won’t be sitting at the same time so you don’t really need a chair for every guest. If the party will be running into the night you might want to consider tiki torches and mosquito repellent.

Summer time BBQs are a lot of fun but it can be a lot of work for the host. It is a 3 PM to until event for your guests but it’s an all day affair for you. To cut down on work time, prepare as much as you can ahead of time. Use disposable items if possible to cut down on cleaning time. Accept any help that is offered to you. The main thing you need to do is to have fun!

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Tips For Planning A Summer BBQ

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