With the picnic season just around the corner, we all hope it is here to stay, with any luck. To make the moment last forever, the secret to a successful picnic is a lot of comprehensive planning. Whether you are planning a romantic picnic for you and your better half or thirty people, you can rest assured of an amazing time if you follow a few picnic planning pointers.
Whether you are planning a gourmet picnic basket in the field, a romantic beach picnic with delicious food, or just a simple tabletop spread in your local park, nothing depicts the summer season like picnics. After thorough research, our talented team at Corky’s Catering has come up with some tips on planning, sourcing, and hosting a perfect picnic.
Hosting a Perfect Picnic
From the beginning, you should think about the type of picnic you want to host. For your dinner outing or outdoor meals, consider whether you want a fancy or simple meal. Should it have an adult or family picnic set? Consider if you are hosting a fancy dinner for your foodie friends or crowd-pleasing, casual lunch relatives and friends. After identifying the style and guest group, you can now consider the most appropriate format.
Consider the Location
Depending on your theme, there are a few location options for a perfect picnic.
Dining on the Shore
A beach picnic is one of the most popular ideas for picnicking. You can pick from several themes including BBQ, artisan, Caribbean, or seafood, just to name a few. You can lay comfy blankets with cushions or beach chairs and use some shade umbrellas to block out the sun. You should also have a cooler to keep your drinks and food cool until it is serving time.
A folding picnic table for setting out the food above the beach sand is also important. Also, consider drinks like iced tea that do not lure wasps and ants like lemonade and other drinks. Additionally, choose refreshing and cold foods that are easily eatable with your fingers and do not need silverware. This reduces the chances of creating a mess.
The best types of foods for such settings include a variety of sandwiches. You can also bring a homey feeling with some mini corn, celery sticks, carrots, and barbecued chicken drumsticks, or get a little fancy with a lobster salad with French toasted bread. Fruit is also good for a beach picnic.
Picnicking in the Fields
A long table set for a picnic in the fields is another popular trend. It can be at a pastoral park, a winery field, a farm field after harvest season, or a locavore harvest dinner. Some ideas of the dishes appropriate for such picnic settings include basil, tomato, and buffalo mozzarella salad, pasta salad, egg salad, roasted pork tenderloin, and potato salad.
Our catering experts can help you eliminate the picnic area with solar lanterns, twinkle lights, and also expertly dress the table with organic botanicals. These may include creatively-placed fresh fruits like pears, apples, wildflower bouquets, fragrant lavender, and hops and herbs.
Picnic in the Meadow
A romantic picnic in the meadow is a classic. For this setting, our innovative catering team at Corky’s Catering will help you impress your mate. We will go all out with real silverware, wine glasses, cloth napkins, a mini wooden cutting board, a wicker basket, and traditional picnic blankets, just to name a few.
For picnic food staples, some ideal choices may include Brie and goat cheese, a baguette, grapes, olives, pate, smoked salmon, and heirloom apples. For dessert, Swiss or Belgian chocolate is perfect. If it is your thing, you can also bring your guitar, a nice Chianti, and a bottle of sparkling water to top it all.
Picnic Planning
If you are planning to host a simple picnic, make a quick list of the guests, menu, gear, and ingredients and start working on it. However, if you are planning a more elaborate picnic, you will need more time to plan each of these aspects. You can make a to-do list to ensure you do not miss anything.
Alternatively, leave it to professional catering experts to do all the work for you as you focus on other issues. We have supplies and equipment like plates and cutlery that you do not necessarily have at home for hosting elaborate picnics.
A Few more Picnic Planning Ideas
If you are a regular picnicker or plan an impromptu picnic, keeping a picnic kit ready is helpful. You can pack regular items like picnic-ready flatware, paper plates, a few board games, wet wipes, bug spray, and sunblock in a picnic container. You can also:
• Pack in two different containers. A picnic basket for nonperishable foods and items like tableware and a cooler for perishable foods and beverages and other types of cold food.
• Pack your items in reverse with the tablecloth on the top, the tableware and serving items, and then the nonperishable food at the bottom.
• Bring your plastic trash bags to carry home dirty silverware and dishes as well as garbage in case trash cans are not available at the picnic site.
Tips for Grilling
While sandwiches and other foods are al fresco diet, grilled foods are also appropriate. Here are a few picnic grilling tips:
• Before packing, freeze the meats to ensure they remain cold longer.
• Do not cook foods partially before going to the picnic site. Partially cooked food is a breeding ground for bacteria growth.
• plastic wrap raw meat, fish, and poultry in different airtight containers.
• If you are a deviled eggs fanatic you can place each egg in a cupcake holder when traveling.
Hire the Best Catering Services in Addison, IL
If you a looking to host a picnic, party, special event, wedding, or corporate event, Corky’s Chicago Catering has been offering unrivaled quality catering services in Chicago since 1978! With over 40 years of experience in planning events, we have the expertise and experience to turn your catered event into an invaluable memory. We have the best customer service, great pricing, and top-quality packages. Our services include:
• Corporate catering – This includes breakfast, lunch, and holiday catering.
• Social catering – Anniversary catering, birthday catering, and holiday parties.
• Wedding catering – For weddings, rehearsal dinners, and bar packages
• Picnic catering – Including drop off catering, company picnics, and pig roast catering
For more on planning the perfect picnic, visit Corky’s Chicago Catering at our office in Addison, IL. You can also call (630) 526-6418 to get a free quote.
