The summer season has officially fallen upon us, so it’s summer cookout party season! The time right now is ripe and perfect for a backyard bbq party with friends and family.
But doing the same thing every year can get quite boring, huh? But don’t worry because we have curated a list of the ten best backyard bbq party ideas that will spice up your parties this summer.
These ideas are unique and easy to execute at home. So, keep reading to learn about the ten backyard bbq ideas that will help you throw the best cookout party this summer!
Gardening Bench Transformed to be a Drinks Bar
Summer means waves of unbearable heat, which sometimes gets to us, making us parched. So, of course, a crucial part of your backyard bbq party will be the drinks you serve.
But just serving drinks at a bbq party is quite old school. So, to fix that monotonous tradition, let’s look at creating a drinks bar out of a gardening bench at home!
Yes, you read that right, a gardening bench turned into a drinks bar for your backyard bbq party. The image above features a gardening or potting bench turned into an amazing drinks bar.
All you have to do is take your regular gardening or potting bench and wipe it squeaky clean. Then, add some decorations that match the theme of the rest of your party, for example, a vase of blue artificial flowers!
Now, pour some ice into the drink potting cavity and add an ice scoop. Hang down your drink glasses from the top shelf of the gardening bench carefully.
Then, set up all of your drink bottles on the shelves of the gardening bench and the desk area itself. Ensure you include all the ingredients and add-ons for your drinks so that guests can mix and match, i.e., make their drinks.
And just like that, you’re done making your own diy drinks bar out of a gardening bench! Not only is it unique and different, but it is also easier to clean up and allows your guests to take their pick without you having to extend the drinks menu.
Berry Dessert Spread Bar set on a Table
No party is complete without the deserts. Of course not. But it can get quite boring just creating the same old cupcakes or a cake for your parties.
Instead of doing that, why not opt for an amazing berry dessert spread bar? A spread bar is a collection of food items in the same category.
The food items are all placed onto one big serving platter aesthetically for guests to enjoy. Some decorations are also added to match the rest of the party favors.
It is the perfect idea to spruce up your backyard bbq party and add uniqueness. So, let’s look at the image above, which features a stunning berry dessert spread bar.
The berry dessert spread bar includes a plethora of berry-flavored desserts that have been set out on a huge white platter. The dessert items in the picture are berry whoopie pies, a blueberry pie, a raspberry roll cake, some jars of different berry flavored drinks, and a jar of mixed berry syrup.
Not only is the berry dessert spread bar aesthetically pleasing, but it is also cohesive and includes many delicious dessert items. You can take inspiration from this idea and create your desert spread bar with different desert items to add something unique to your backyard bbq party.
French Fries with Dip Platter
French fries are a universal junk food or snack that no one in the world can resist. French fries are delicious and the perfect snack item for any party that you can think of.
Typically, backyard bbq parties do not include snack items, but it’s time to do something different. So, why not create a snack platter, specifically french fries, with a dip platter for your guests to enjoy?
The image above features an amazing french fries platter with dips to complement it. The platter has been filled with various fries, such as classic potato french fries, curly fries, crinkle-cut fries, onion rings, sweet potato fries, truffle fries, tater tots, and waffle fries.
There are a variety of dips in small bowls set in a circle in the middle of the platter, which looks very aesthetic. The dips included in the platter are the classic ketchup, mayonnaise, ranch dressing, honey mustard sauce, cheese sauce, barbecue sauce, hot sriracha sauce, green hot sauce, garlic aioli sauce, etc.
It is the perfect snack platter for guests to enjoy while they walk around and mingle with other guests. It serves as a light appetizer which is amazing to eat before the main course, which is the bbq food items, duh!
Set out a Grazing Board
While french fries are universally loved and adored junk food, some people oppose it and prefer not to have them. For those people, it is best to opt for something everyone likes: fruits, cheese, and crackers!
Having a french fry with dips platter is perfect for a backyard bbq party, but if there will be kids and people who do not like junk food, the second best thing is to opt for a grazing board as it is unique and will spruce things up greatly. Now, what is a grazing board?
A grazing board is a platter or tray full of food items that serve as light snacks that are used to temporarily satiate our flavor buds before the main course is served. It is different from appetizers, but it does the same job.
The image above features a fantastic grazing board, a tray that is so aesthetically pleasing and perfect for a backyard bbq party. The grazing board in the image features a bunch of different fruits, some varieties of cheeses, and crackers.
The types of fruits that can be seen on the grazing board shown above are red grapes, kiwi slices, raspberries, blueberries, cranberries, cherries, bar dates, clementines, pomegranates, passion fruit, olives, pickles, etc. As for the other items, we can see some meat items such as salami, pepperoni, beef jerky, prosciutto, etc.
There are some Ritz, Wheat Thins, etc., along with a small amount of almonds and croutons for the crackers. As for the types of cheeses put on the grazing board, there is cheddar cheese, swiss cheese, pepper jack cheese, blue cheese, Colby jack cheese, manchego, gruyere, aged gouda, mozzarella slices, chunks of parmesan, etc.
The whole grazing board is tied together with a bowl of bbq sauce, which matches the party! The whole tray has been put together beautifully with various snacks that everyone will enjoy.
Make an Ice-y Popsicles Display Stand to Beat the Heat!
As mentioned before, the summer season has loads of heat waves. And, sometimes, it gets so intense that all we want to do is eat popsicles all day.
Since backyard bbq parties are, of course, held in a backyard where it is open and often does not have a roof, it can get really hot. So, what other way to cool off your guests is to supply them with an amazing popsicle stand that will help them “chill out!”
The popsicle display stand will not only help your guests to chill out but also serve as a unique idea to make your party stand out and be different. So, let’s look at the image above, which features a fantastic popsicle display stand.
The popsicle display stand is a white bucket decorated with rainbow popsicle cutouts on a string. A band of striped and rainbow-colored paper has also been attached to the bucket.
To put the popsicles in the bucket, you have to fill the bucket up with lots of ice. To ensure the ice doesn’t melt, add a generous amount of rock salt. And then, you can add your popsicles to complete your stunning popsicle stand!
There are a lot of popsicle flavors out there, such as orange, strawberry, watermelon, lime, blueberry, raspberry, lemon, etc. But, of course, you can make your popsicles at home and customize them however you like.
Make a Chalkboard Menu from Scratch
We all know that hosting a backyard bbq party with friends and family means a great menu with many items to be cooked. The worst part is having to relay the information about all the food items on the menu individually to everyone.
But, there is a simple solution that is unique and also acts as a decoration plus point for your backyard bbq party. It is to make a DIY chalkboard menu and use that to display the food items for the party!
The image shown above features a creative DIY chalkboard menu that is framed and looks very aesthetically pleasing. The chalkboard menu featured in the picture above is a DIY project, and you can also make it at home.
You’ll need a large rectangular picture frame, a perfectly sized piece of plywood to fit inside the picture frame, white acrylic paint, chalkboard paint, and chalk sticks. Start by taking your perfectly cut piece of plywood and painting it evenly with chalkboard paint.
Let that dry down completely, and then go in with your white acrylic paint to write “Menu” on the top of the menu board. Then, fit the plywood into your large picture frame and go to town with your chalk sticks!
And just like that, you’re done making your DIY chalkboard menu at home; it’s simple and easy. You can write down your food items on the menu easily on the chalkboard menu and won’t have to go through the hassle of letting everyone know individually. The best part is that it’s reusable, and you can erase the chalk writings to replace them with whatever you like; imagination is the limit!
FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)
1. What makes a BBQ party truly great?
Ans: The key to making a great BBQ party is to keep it casual and relaxed. Overdoing it can cause the atmosphere to be more formal.
2. What is the best time to start a BBQ party?
Ans: The best time to start a BBQ party is around 2 pm.
3. How do I plan a BBQ party with friends and family?
Ans: To plan a BBQ party with friends and family, let them know a week before the party date to ensure everyone can attend. It would help if you also had a set food menu for the party to avoid any issues.
4. Which is the most popular type of BBQ?
Ans: The Texas Style BBQ is the most popular type of BBQ.
5. What should a guest bring to a BBQ party?
Ans: A guest can bring a side dish like a baked potato salad, play it safe, and some salsa dip with chips! Or, they can also bring some desserts like a fruit cake or cupcakes.
Conclusion
Summer cookout parties this season will be awesome because of many new ideas. Your imagination is the limit of what you can do to make your backyard bbq party unique and do something out of the box.
But it can take a lot of work to choose what to do for your backyard bbq party from the plethora of ideas out there. So, read up on the six best backyard bbq party ideas above and get some inspiration or take your pick to have your own amazing and unique summer cookout party with your friends and family!