What’s You Best Tip for Feeding a Crowd on a Budget?
Who says hosting has to come with a hefty bill?
It’s the last day of Hip2Save’s Birthday Week! 🥳
All good things must come to an end, and we’ve reached the final day of Hip2Save’s birthday week. We hope you all have had just as much fun as we have! We appreciate each and every one of you for sharing your input in the comments and for being amazing members of our Hip Community. 💗
There’s still time to enter, so be sure to check out the previous giveaway prompts, too —
- What would you buy if you had $25 to spend on Amazon?
- What’s one thing you’ll gladly pay full price for?
- Which store has the best clearance section?
- What’s one grocery name brand you’d never switch from, no matter the price?
During our birthday giveaway, all you have to do is comment for a chance to win. This format is just like our monthly reader giveaway and makes for some great conversation among our Hip2Save community. The giveaway prompt posts will be going live each day now through Friday, and your comment will get you entered to win that day’s prize. Easy peasy!
Today, we’ve got one $100 Amazon eGift card up for grabs. Comment now through Sunday, June 29th 11:59 PM MT for your chance to win.
We want to hear from you!
Today’s Birthday Giveaway Question:
What’s your best tip for feeding a crowd on a budget?
Share in the comments section below for our Hip community to read. By leaving a comment, you are entering to win a $100 Amazon eGift card!
Entries for this giveaway are now closed.
How to Enter:
- Comment Below: Share your favorite way to feed a crowd on a budget.
- Duration: The commenting entry period starts on Friday, 6/27/25 at 7 AM MT and ends on Sunday, 6/29/25 at 11:59 PM MT.
- Eligibility: All approved comments within the entry period are eligible. Winning comments will be chosen at random. Readers may only win one time during the giveaway.
Winner Notifications:
Winners will be contacted via email at the email address associated with their Hip2Save account or the email used when leaving their comments. You do not need to include your email address within your comment. All giveaway correspondence will come from our giveaway team at giveaways@hip2save.com.
Winners will be contacted by Tuesday, July 1st with the details of their Amazon eGift Card.
Here are our Hip team’s favorite ways to feed a crowd on a budget…
“A baked potato bar is always fun, especially since everyone can customize their own! Bags of potatoes are always super inexpensive, then just add bowls of different toppings like cheese, butter, sour cream, chives/green onions, chili, taco meat, etc!” – Erika
“My go to is pasta (typically baked ziti) when I’m feeding a big crowd. It’s SO cheap, easy/quick to make, and you can pre-make it all beforehand, then just heat it up and not be in a rush day of trying to cook. Plus, sides are super easy too. Just grab a few salad kits and a few loaves of garlic bread and you’re good to go! Easy peasy.“ – Liz
“My daughter hosted her church group recently – over 25 kids. I tried putting a bunch of Nathan’s hot dogs in the slow cooker and that worked so well! 🌭 The taste was awesome, and they could dish up as desired with all the toppings. Cheap and so easy/good. I served chips and cut up watermelon, and they loved it.“ – Lina
We can’t wait to hear your brilliant hosting tips to feed a hungry crowd!
Thank you for celebrating our birthday all week long with us! 🎉 Now let’s get back to the deals…
For me, it’s as much about freeing myself to be part of the fun as it is budget. If I know in advance I’ll look for great deals on ground beef and block cheeses and make pans of lasagna ahead and freeze them. (I have 3 in the freezer now for an upcoming family reunion.) Then all I have to do is thaw them (I usually set a reminder to make sure I do that in plenty of time!!), pop them in the oven for 30-40 minutes and add a salad and some italian bread. Minimal effort for meal prep on the day of so I can enjoy the group.
Pot of Goulash
Pizza, is our family go to. When everyone shows up.
Spaghetti noodles and pasta sauce or spaghetti noodles with meat sauce can go a very long way. We usually buy a few bags of salad mix when on sale too.
My best tip for feeding a crowd is pasta, pasta, pasta, pasta. I like to make three different kinds, one with spice and flavor and chicken one with the same sauce vegetarian and one milder for the kids in the group and then we do a big huge salad. As far as dessert goes, we like to do a Sunday bar by whatever ice cream is on sale Some little candies and cookies and let people serve themselves.
walking tacos, barbecue, macaroni and potato salad
Pizza and salad!
Go to the garden. Pick cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, and dig up a lot of potatoes, cut cucumbers in slices and chops some onions. Add cucumbers and onions in a bowl and add a little mayonnaise and vinegar. Set aside. Bake tomatoe slices on parchment paper with spreader Parmesan. Cleans and cut potatoes in half. Lay parchment paper on a baking sheet. Add salt and olive oil over potatoes and then sprinkle well with Parmesan baked potatoes flat side down time done. Pick apples and slice in pieces Drizzle with caramel. Cost was only for Parmesan cheese, mayonnaise, olive oil Nd vinegar. Nice healthy meal
Mexican Arroz Con Pollo 😋
Homemade pizza
We have potlucks all the time at work, but no ovens. I buy the bulk french rolls (24 for $6) from Walmart, cook a family size package of frozen meatballs at home, and keep them warm in the crockpot with marinara sauce until it’s time to eat. With a bag of shredded mozzarella, it’s about $20 for 24 servings. They are slightly mini-sized (maybe like a 3/4 portion?) but I figure with chips, salad, and dessert it is plenty filling and a nice change of pace from pizza. I also second everybody who says Costco lasagna (if you have a way to keep it warm) and pulled pork on sliders or potatoes!
Chili is good for doing a crowd
We love a big brunch to feed many people. We serve egg casseroles, cinnamon rolls, fruit platter and cheeses.
Pot of chili and then everyone he can make what they want.. frito chili pie, chili with cornbread, chili baked potato. The options are endless.
If you are cooking for a nonprofit, Krusteaz will reimburse 50% of the cost of your pancake mix, up to $100!
Soup and French Bread
Pizza! With coupons and deals cheap and easy meal
My best tip is to plan around multiple allergies/diets in one meal to avoid expensive alternatives. The easiest way I have found to do that is a chili and baked potato bar. Meat eaters, vegetarians, gluten free, etc are all happy! I am fairly sure the idea came from Hip, but I have used it so many times!
I would have to say an Italian diner. Pasta,meatballs, garlic bread and salad feel alot of people on a budget. That’s my go to meal
I love a taco bar because it’s easy, cheaper, and people can customize it however they like! 😋
We will usually make our own pizzas or do a potluck with everyone bringing something (either a snack like chips and dip, beverages, a side dish or desert)
Vegan pizza or pasta with cookies or cupcakes as a dessert
I am feeding 27 people at the beach this summer with a baked potato bar and all the fixins!
For cost-effective meals for crowds, we do hamburgers, spaghetti or pizza. With all this talk about taco bar, will try that next. I actually like to splurge when it comes to feeding my guests, so typically I have food catered by Asian restaurant, Asian chef, or Afghan chef. We have lots of Afghan refugees in our community and love their food. It’s so fun to introduce Afghan food to those who haven’t had it.
Definitely a taco bar. Make different meats such as ground beef, chicken, and steak. Keep them warm in crock pots. Toppings are cheap for tacos. Make rice and beans for sides and done. Cheap and easy!
Tacos with a bunch of fixings
Make your own chili bowl. Big pot of chili (or slow cooker). The serve with baked potatoes and assorted toppings
Spaghetti or any kind of bbq meat on a bun!
Chicken broccoli pasta bake using rotisserie chicken easy to make a big pan and the hardest part is ripping apart the chicken.
Pizza or crockpot hot dogs! ðŸŒ
Loose meat sandwiches with chips. Easy and inexpensive.
Italian dishes…spaghetti and lasagna
Currently, there is a great deal on breakfast sandwiches at Panera, where you get four sandwiches for about $16! These would be great to serve at a brunch and you wouldn’t even have to cook! You can get 40 sandwiches for $160! That should make your crowd happy!
For our son’s grad party, we asked a student (who was also the son of a friend of mine) in a culinary program at the nearby skills center to give us a quote and ideas for a few different types of sandwiches. He came up with some delicious ideas and gave us a very fair quote for the 100 sandwiches. It worked out perfectly – low stress, delicious, and I had him make a small contact card to lay out near the platters which led to more business for him.
I love to prepare shredded pork tacos with different toppings, especially in the summer time when it’s too hot to turn on the oven or grill!
Taco bar
Have kids parties early – just serve snacks and cake!
A potato bar is my go-to — everyone can find something on there they like or can eat. It can be easily stretched when you have more people show up than what you were planning and its pretty cost effective!
I live in the South and we love to cook a big pot of jambalaya and side dish of white beans! Very reasonable to make and can feed a crowd!!
Pasta with made from scratch meat sauce
I love charcuterie trays and brunch casseroles!
Go buffet-style or DIY bars (taco bar, baked potato bar) to let people serve themselves. Rice, pasta, beans, potatoes, tortillas – these stretch meals far. Shop in bulk and plan your menu around what’s on sale that week.
make it yourself tacos with all the fixin’s
Home cooked meals are always cost efficient. Like fried rice or so
Big tray of baked beans, assorted cut veggies, rolls, hot dogs or brats, slice up a watermelon. Cupcakes! Always a hit, now I am thinking about the fourth! Simple and delicious!
I love doing “chipotle” style meal for crowds. It is easily customizable for allergies and personal preference.
I love doing a pasta casserole like lasagna.
Lots of spaghetti. It is a less expensive way to feed a crowd. It’s something almost everyone likes.
Depending on the occasion, I like to make breakfast foods…a breakfast casserole or waffles. Breakfast foods tend to be more affordable!
We host a group of young people each Sunday night for a meal and Bible Study. We have around 20, and we try to offer a variety of foods in our rotation. Their favorite thing seems to be a crockpot full of crack chicken with Hawaiian rolls, chips, and baked beans. I do a lot of crock pot meals, so I can really focus on the fellowship with them.