What food items have you served that were a hit? The recent appetizer thread was very helpful. Any other suggestions of things that would appeal to both young and old grad party-goers?
I would do these:
And add a pasta salad and a big bowl of cut up fruit. Maybe a veggie tray with dip(s)
And cookies and brownies
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For both of our kids, we had an old fashioned cookout. Different kinds of burgers, hot dogs, corn on the cob, lots of chips and dip, etc. potato salad, Cole slaw, and cupcakes and cookies.
There was something for everyone!
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For D we had some apps, an assortment of wraps, salads, and dessert. This allowed us to easily accommodate friends’ dietary restrictions.
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For one we did a taco/nacho bar type thing.
For the the second child we did chicken wings, cheese potatoes, fruit, veggies - that kind of thing.
For the third child we took a trip to France instead. :). This was my favorite way to do a graduation!!!
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I like the cookout idea. I would add deviled eggs because they are always a hit.
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Wings and homemade bleu cheese dressing.
Dressing:
1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 cup mayo
A bunch of crumbled bleu cheese (gorgonzola works well)
1 TBSP lemon juice
1 garlic clove, minced
A bit of fresh parsley, chopped
Milk or buttermilk to thin it out (a TBSP at a time) to your desired consistency – or none at all, if you like it thick.
Easy-peasy: Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl and mix by hand (with a spoon.. not your hand…).
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Pizza. Something vegan. (Usually hummus and vegetables.) Something gluten free. (Labeled crackers.) Grapes and other easy to eat fruit.
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We had a taco bar. It went over really well.
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For our kids, we just had a nice dinner at a restaurant near the U for grad. We went on a nice train ride, LA to Seattle and then rented a car and drove down through all the national parks along the West Coast, staying several nights in each, stopping several days in SF to spend time with family, and on down to LA. (We had hoped and planned a trip to Europe but the volcano erupting in Iceland made is switch our plans.)
For HS, we co-hosted a family party with a cousin who graduated the same year as our child—one for S and one for D. They are fortunate to have cousins who graduated the same year. They didn’t want and we didn’t have party for their friends. One of the parties was at my brother/SisIL’s house and we hired a sushi-chef who had a sushi bar in the house, which was nice and fun. We also made a bunch of other dishes. The other party was at a country club and pretty reasonable since we split the cost.
The biggest hit at our party was individually wrapped iced cookies of the college logo. I found a local baker who did them for me and they were not expensive and really yummy.
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Thank you all for the suggestions! And thanks for the reminder to include vegan and gluten free options. I think I will focus on appetizers and try to find a local baker for the cute cookies, since my D25 has asked for those. Congrats to all the grads and parents!
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We had fruit on skewers that for some reason went like hotcakes! The biggest hit? Someone brought a pinata full of candy 
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We did an open house grad party last year. It was important to me to have food that could just be put out, stay out and be suitable for someone arriving promptly at 1pm or popping in for a few minutes before things wound down at 5pm. I went with sandwich platters and salads, bite-sized dessert treats and cut fruit. I put it all out at once (different tables) and just refreshed items as needed.
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