The of Celebrating Your Grad
Graduation is a moment to celebrate growth, achievement, the support of loved ones, and new beginnings. Hosting a graduation party is a way to honor your graduate’s hard work while uniting family and friends to share in the celebration! It’s a chance to reflect on accomplishments, create lifelong memories, and send your grad off to their next adventures with love and support.
Fortunately, hosting a graduation party doesn’t have to be an intimidating process or a formal affair! In this blog post, we’ll break down how to host a fun and memorable graduation party. Plus, you’ll find sample menus and tips to make this your best party yet.
a Graduation Party
Celebrate this milestone in style with a well-planned graduation party! Here’s how to make it a memorable event.
Choose the Perfect Venue
When it comes to choosing your graduation party venue, there are plenty of options! Consider your guest count, creative vision, and budget. A few favorite graduation party venue ideas:
- Your home or backyard (or a loved one’s home, if they’re willing to host!): A backyard BBQ is a classic way to celebrate. With a projector and movie screen, you can turn the graduation party into a movie night or share a reel of their achievements over the years!
- Local city or state parks: Be sure to check with the park about applicable permits and rental processes!
- Event rental venues in metro Atlanta: These are the facilities where our team at Avalon Catering puts on top-notch events.
- Get creative! Treat your graduate and a few friends to a fun, age-appropriate adventure. Think: an escape room, bowling, museum or aquarium outing, mini golf, or go-karting. Then, have everyone come back to the house for food, dessert, and celebrations with family!
Create Your Vision
A little bit of brainstorming can help you set the tone and vision for your party. Ask yourself: do you imagine a casual, laid-back cookout? Or are you hoping to plan an elegant formal dinner? Maybe you imagine guests getting creative with interactive food stations and DIY dessert bars!
Browsing sites like Pinterest as well as entertaining magazines and cookbooks can help guide your choices.
Additionally, your caterer can help you navigate options and work with you to bring your vision to life. At Avalon Catering, we also offer full-scale event planning services so you can rest easy while our crew handles the logistics of your event!
Curate Your Guest List & Send Invitations
Invite the people who made an impact on your graduate’s journey. For instance, you might think of family members, close friends, neighbors, caregivers, teachers, mentors.
Invite those who would make the celebration even more meaningful. You may wish to include your graduate in the process of creating the guest list!
Depending on your party’s level of formality, you can share a printed invitation in the mail, or go with an e-vite. Websites like Paperless Post make it easy to create a beautiful e-vite and track RSVPs in one place.
Plan Fun Activities
Keep guests entertained with a photo booth or instant film camera, a guestbook to jot down memories of the grad, and nostalgic board games. You can also create a playlist of your grad’s favorite tunes to set the vibe.
With the right mix of people, food, and fun, your graduation party will be one for the books!
Grad Party
Sample Menu Ideas for a Crowd-Pleasing Celebration!
Graduation Party Sample Menu:
Southern Specialties from Avalon Catering
Appetizers:
- Pimento cheese + celery sticks with grape tomato garnish
- Classic deviled eggs with farmer pepper relish
- Hummus trio with pita bread and assorted crudités
Main Course: Brisket & Biscuit Station
- Texas-style BBQ beef brisket with BBQ sauce trio and chef’s house pickles
- Southern Swiss dairy buttermilk biscuits & aged American cheddar biscuits
- Heirloom tomato and cider braised greens
- Mac ‘n’ cheese
- Vegan BBQ baked beans with ancho chiles
Dessert:
- Graduation sheet cake with ice cream
- Fresh fruit platter
Beverages:
- Fresh sweet tea and unsweet tea with lemon wedges
- Raspberry lemonade with raspberries and lemon wheels
- Assorted soft drinks and bottled water
Dessert photos by Aeriel, our wonderful pastry chef! Learn more about her passion for baking and art with our blog post about Aeriel.
Graduation Party Sample Menu:
Classic Elegance from Avalon Catering
Passed Appetizers:
- Maryland-style crab cake with remoulade sauce
- Cornbread crouton, pimento cheese, and celery salsa
- Cumin coriander beef meatball with roasted tomato sauce and micro greens
Photo by Farrah Power Photography
Cheese Display
- Chef’s selection of local cheeses with house-made preserve, roasted nuts, dried fruits, locally-baked baguette, rosemary croccantini, and crisp crackers.
Main Course:
- Slow roasted oregano chicken with melted tomatoes
- Grilled seasonal vegetables in a lemon vinaigrette
- Chef’s selection of locally baked artisan breads and whipped butter
Dessert:
- Dessert platter with assorted cookies, fresh fruit, macarons, and bars (pictured above)
- Mixed berry summer fruit pies (pictured above)
Beverages:
- Caramelized lemonade with grilled lemon wedges
- Assorted soft drinks, San Pellegrino sparkling water, and Acqua Canna natural spring water
Catering Tips for a Party
Plan a Menu Everyone Will Love!
Celebrate your graduate with delicious food that everyone can enjoy! To accommodate loved ones’ dietary restrictions, offer a mix of vegetarian, gluten-free, and other dishes. That way, everyone can fill their plate and share in celebration.
This is one area where a caterer can make life easy! For instance: Avalon’s team can guide you through the process of choosing your menu to make sure you have the right amount and variety of menu items for your crowd.
During your menu selection process and when the big day arrives, our menus are always clearly labeled. That way, guests can easily see which dishes are suitable for their diet.
Choose Crowd-Pleasing Favorites for All Ages
With a few thoughtful catering choices, you can create a fun and seamless party for your grad and their guests!
Whether your graduate is finishing preschool, postgrad, or a grade in between, it’s smart to choose crowd-pleasing favorites that appeal to all ages. Think bite-sized sliders, fresh fruit, mac & cheese, and more.
Our catering team can work with you to plan a menu all your guests will enjoy, no matter their age or dietary restrictions!
Why Hire
Treat your guests to locally-sourced, sustainable dishes tailored to your unique event. From start to finish, our team is focused on making sure every dish is both delicious and every detail is considered!
Beyond exceptional cuisine, let our team take care of every detail with optional full-scale event planning services. Our professionals will bring your vision to life while you focus on supporting your graduate (and maybe paying those overdue library fines!). We’ll handle everything from tent, table, and chair rentals to décor, signage, and party favors.
With Avalon’s commitment to exceptional foods and a reputation for flawless events, you’ll be able to relax and enjoy the celebration.
