We are getting pizza from Sams Club for my dds birthday party. I never know how much to order. There are 12 kids confirmed to come plus adults, and quite a few others we havent heard from yet. The party is at 3 so I figure most people have eaten lunch and shouldnt be starving. The pizzas are huge, I would say like bigger than a large from most places and we are having them party cut into squares to go further. I was thinking to get 4 but now Im worried that wont be enough. We also bought tons of mini bags of chips and watermelon and of course cake. Last year I way over ordered and we had like 3 full pizzas left after the party... How many would you order?? Im terrible with this, lol, I always panic and buy way too much food.
With everything else you, I would think the 4 pizzas would be enough. Like you said people should not come starving at 3pm.
I don;t know how many servings you get out of a Sam's club pie. When it comes to pizza, I always count on a child having 1 slice, an adult having 2 slices, then I add a fudge factor too depending on the children's ages, and whether the adults are big eaters.
cold pizza makes for an excellent breakfast.
good luck to you and yours,
F. B.
I have noticed that kids don't seem to eat much at parties. I always get way too many pizzas! My daughter can usually scarf down 3 slices, but at parties I'm lucky if she eats one. Same with her friends.
I would order enough for everyone you're expecting to have two to three slices of pizza and one piece fo cake. Some will want more, some less. It should balance out. I don't believe in providing lots of food for people who might show up but never bothered to let me know.
To distinguish between the expected and the unexpected, I would seat them at different tables. Set the main table(s) for your expected guests, complete with name cards. You can even say something like, "Oh, hi! I wasn't expecting you!" with a big excited and sincere smile on your face, and usher them to their table. Give the expected guests first dibs on food by setting it at one table and calling each table up one by one. I guess I wouldn't make a big issue of it for the kids to hear, but I certainly wouldn't mind letting them hear that we weren't expecting them and are having to make special accommodations for them. Their parents should know better.
4 along with everything else should be plenty. Make sure to pick up some aluminum foil or have containers handy to package any leftover pizza and you can reheat as needed for snacks or meals for your family in the days to come.
Honestly, I never serve more thans snacks and cake at parties that aren't during normal mealtimes. You could skip the pizza entirely and just serve chips, melon and cake, but it sounds like four will be plenty.
