Baked potato bar for graduation

[bjscheel]

DD and her BFF want a baked potato bar at their reception. I'm guessing 100-200 people. Just thinking through the logistics. We will be at a church with large ovens, so I will bake them while setting up tables. I have a roaster I can keep filled at the counter, and maybe large coolers for storing more. Right now my concern is do I need to cut them open before putting in the roaster for serving? Or have them cut them open themselves? It would be nice to keep the kitchen work to a minimum, but is it best to have them already cut for the guests?

I think I'll do some testing to see if I want to bake them bare on the rack, or oil them and bake on baking sheets. I think I'll skip foil.

Any other tips or suggestions welcomed.

 

[low-key]

young people dont know how to make wise decisions, just get them a keg

 

[jevs]

I think I would let guests cut them open themselves.

A naked potato bar sounds like a great idea, I'll keep in in mind for the future

 

[bjscheel]

I thought they might keep better if we didn't cut them. And they'll be trickling in over 3 hours, so it's not like there is going to be one big line that needs to move quickly. But I didn't know what people normally do.

 

[tvguy]

Leave the potatoes whole to keep them hot and moist.

Wow, Graduation parties are something not in my experience. DW and I never had one. DD and DS didn't, and none of their friend did either. Just not common here anyways.

 

[klacey1]

I definitely wouldn't cut them. That sounds way too tricky to manage. If it's not too much extra work for you, I'd go the route of the oil/baking sheets (and sea salt!). It just makes the difference in taste, IMHO!
What a fun idea! I love all of these party "bars." Might have to steal this one in particular for my next get together!

 

[Wendy31]

I attended a small private school, &, at the end of the year, the school would host an Awards Banquet for grades 1-12 - the students and their families. My mom used to help the school's coordinator w/ the meal for the banquet. There were normally around 200 or so people in attendance.

And the meal was the same every year: tossed salad for the starter & then baked ham (already sliced), baked potatoes, green beans, & dinner for the main &, finally, some kind of pie or cake for dessert.

Anyway, they scrubbed the potatoes, wrapped them in foil, & then baked them. They were served on a plate w/ the ham & green beans - out of the foil but uncut. They unfoiled the potatoes right before they were ready to start plating the meals onto the individual plates. Butter & sour cream were on the dining tables. They did this for years & had it down to a science! LOL!

I know you said you didn't want to use foil, but it will help keep the potatoes hot longer - I like to prick the potato skin & put a little butter or oil & sea salt in the foil & then wrap the potato.

In a case such as yours, I don't even think it would be bad to keep the potatoes in the foil & let everyone unwrap their own right before putting their toppings on.

 

[Vijoge]

DH is a chef and has done a lot of catering. He says you really don't want to do this and agrees wholeheartedly with low-key.

 

[K and K's Mommy]

We do this once a year for our marching band. We buy the potatoes from a grocery store who bakes them for us. They come in foil. We keep them in coolers. With the exception of one kid (my own!) it is a hit with the kids.

 

[DaisyJ]

If you do decide to leave the potatoes uncut, make sure you have a place and utensils where people can cut them before they get to the toppings. People want to put toppings ON the potato, not next to it on the plate.

I would wrap them in foil, as they will keep better, and will be better protected from grimy hands.

 

[Imzadi]

I'm guessing 100-200 people. Just thinking through the logistics. We will be at a church with large ovens, so I will bake them while setting up tables. I have a roaster I can keep filled at the counter, and maybe large coolers for storing more.

And they'll be trickling in over 3 hours, so it's not like there is going to be one big line that needs to move quickly.

DH is a chef and has done a lot of catering. He says you really don't want to do this and agrees wholeheartedly with low-key.

I also used to work for a few different caterers. I would NOT rely on the church ovens to be working properly, evenly, and up to full temperature and cooking the potatoes THERE at the church. That is soooo asking for trouble. What happens if you find the ovens won't heat evenly? Or if you turn up the temp to 500 degrees but they are barely getting the potatoes warm? Or taking way too long to heat up, let alone cook? You will have partially baked potatoes or raw potatoes in the middle. You also don't want them FINALLY done by the third hour.

My suggestion, and what I've seen the catering companies do is pre-cook 3/4 of the way or almost fully cooked and use the ovens on-site to just heat up the potatoes or to finish cooking. This way if the on-site ovens aren't working properly or taking too long, you've taken the ONE factor that could cause the biggest problem and party disaster out of the equation. Pre-testing the church ovens with 2-3 potatoes is not the same as having an oven filled with 40 potatoes, on 2 racks, and trying to heat them all at once.

I would also wrap them individually in foil. Who knows what was cooked in those ovens the day before and a stinky residue is still in there, imparting flavors to the neutral potatoes. And people can individually pick up a potato without dirtying the others. There is always one guest, and you have teens, who will dig through to find the biggest or smallest potato, touching them all to get to it. OR while going for a second potato, the accidentally drop the one already on their plate into the batch, and it was already covered with toppings.

If you do decide to leave the potatoes uncut, make sure you have a place and utensils where people can cut them before they get to the toppings.

YES! Go to the dollar store and buy several paring knives and leave them just before or in front of the toppings bar so they can cut into their potatoes. And buy a several extra serving utensils. Some are put into a different toppings and get gunked up. You'll get teens who use the first serving spoon he picks up, keeps it to use in every topping he scoops into.

For toppings, make sure you have some protein toppings. And have a couple dairy-free substitutes like sour cream, for those with those issues. Maybe also, a fat-free sour cream.

Anyway, a baked potato bar sounds yummy! I'd be up for it. Your DD & her BFF made a good choice if you can pull it off without major hitches.

 

[Micca]

My suggestion, and what I've seen the catering companies do is pre-cook 3/4 of the way or almost fully cooked and use the ovens on-site to just heat up the potatoes or to finish cooking. This way if the on-site ovens aren't working properly or taking too long, you've taken the ONE factor that could cause the biggest problem and party disaster out of the equation. Pre-testing the church ovens with 2-3 potatoes is not the same as having an oven filled with 40 potatoes, on 2 racks, and trying to heat them all at once.

This is starting to sound complicated. Low Key, Vijoge's DH & I are tapping a keg and will think about it.

 

[shoney]

I would not cut them.

I did this for a summer BBQ. It did not get over with my group. Only one person ate one...the vegetarian.
i did have lots of other food...hamburgers, hot dogs, chicken, chili, various salads and stuff.

At the end of the night, my father said "who wants a baked potato at a bbq!" LOL

 

[AppleDumpling]

My suggestion is, make it a mashed potato bar instead. For that many people, it would be much easier than baked. Toppings can be the same.

Just boil and mash a large amount of potatoes (which could be done ahead of time and kept warm or reheated later) and have the guests scoop them themselves out of a big bowl/pan/chafing dish. I've had this at wedding receptions where they serve it in fancy martini or margarita glasses. You could buy some plastic stemware at a party store or just use regular bowls.

 

[tvguy]

Of course, I hope you have good toppings that can stand on their own for folks who can't eat potatoes (or rice).

 

[aristocatz]

My suggestion is, make it a mashed potato bar instead. For that many people, it would be much easier than baked. Toppings can be the same.

Just boil and mash a large amount of potatoes (which could be done ahead of time and kept warm or reheated later) and have the guests scoop them themselves out of a big bowl/pan/chafing dish. I've had this at wedding receptions where they serve it in fancy martini or margarita glasses. You could buy some plastic stemware at a party store or just use regular bowls.

I agree. I don't know a lot of teenagers who eat baked potatoes. Mashed potato bar sounds fun! It was kind of trendy with weddings a few years back, serving them in martini glasses like you mentioned. They sell plastic disposable glasses at party stores.

 

[kimblebee]

Another thing to keep in mind is everyone trying to cut their potato as they are eating. Will everyone be seated at a table or will it just be a lawn chair scattered around the area? Cutting a baked potato on your lap with plastic utensils is going to lead to a lot of dropped food.

 

[verleniahall]

PLEASES don't do this

We have done this the past 5 years for the Chamber for the Farmers' Market meal and people DO NOT like them - they are alot of work and messy

One of our members is a caterer and he HATES baked potato bars

 

[kuhltiffany]

Who has 200 people at a graduation party? That's bigger than a lot of weddings

 

[Allison]

Sounds like a good idea to me. We have a baked potato bar a lot here. I wouldn't cut them open.

What kind of toppings are you thinking? We usually have bacon, cheese, butter, chili, ham, smoked sausage, carmelized onions, salsa, taco meat. There are all sorts of possibilities.