How to Calculate Serving Portions for Banquets
A banquet is a meal that is served for many people. An important consideration for holding a banquet is ensuring you have adequate food and drink. This requires a specific calculation for each type of food and drink based on the number of people you expect at the banquet.
Things You'll Need:
- Calculator
- Add at least five to the number of guests you have invited. This provides the total number of plates upon which you will base your calculations. The additional plates are for uninvited guests and kitchen mishaps. Assume for this example that you are planning a banquet with 95 guests. You will therefore need to plan the banquet for at least 100 plates.
- Plan for 1/2 cup of soup or salad for each plate. Use the volume of the prepared dishes instead of the raw ingredients. You will need 100 x 0.5 = 50 cups of soup.
- Prepare 1/4 pound of the meat dish for each plate. This includes dishes consisting primarily of meat, poultry or fish. The volume of 1/4 of meat is approximately equal to your fist or a deck of cards. You will need 100 x 0.25 = 25 pounds of meat dishes.
- Add 1/4 of cooked vegetables or 1/2 cup of raw vegetables. Each plate should receive 1 cup of raw starch such as potatoes or 1/2 cup of cooked starch. You will need 100 x 0.25 = 25 cups of cooked vegetables.
- Provide a total of 4 ounces of dessert such as cake or ice cream for each guest. Each serving should be 2 ounces, allowing two servings for each guest. You will need a total of 100 x 4 = 400 ounces, or 25 pounds, of dessert.
- Plan for one cup each of coffee, soda and tea per plate. Ensure different types of soda are available, including diet and regular soda. A banquet also requires a quart of ice water for each plate. You will need 100 x 1 = 100 cups, or about six gallons, of each type of beverage.