Tips for Producing Powerful Potlucks

Michael Fowlkes
MDI Contributor

EDITOR’S NOTE: Over the years Michael Fowlkes of San Diego MDI has put on over 30 potlucks for Super Bowl and other events. He is known for it in these parts. Here are some helpful tips for planning a potluck. 

Tips For Planning a Potluck 

1. First off, get a day and location and time,
2. Then make a grid of the type of food that you want. i.e. main dish, side dishes, munchies, desserts, drinks, salads, etc. This is a list of whatever you want to have there. 
3. Make your list of people who you want to attend.
4. Create a flyer and send it out. Make sure you have directions on how to get to the location of the potluck. And be clear about the fact that itis a potluck. And lastly, communicate that they will need to RSVP and mention what they will be bringing.
5. Create a grid with the different categories of food to track who is coming and what they are bringing.
6. The hosts need to be clear about what they personally are providing for the potluck. That way the guests can be clear on what they would bring to help augment the host’s plan. 
7. Are you providing all the condiments, utensils and cups and ice? You need to decide on that. If not, then put it on the list of things to bring.
8. Try to make sure that you have some level of balance of enough main dishes, drinks, desserts and so forth, for the number of people you have coming to the potluck.
9. This really helps you to know what you need. So that when someone calls you and says, “What do you need?” or “What do you need me to bring?” you can tell them and manage it so that you have enough of a balance and enough for everyone.
10. You will need to plan out where the food and drinks will go. Do you need additional tables, coolers, serving trays, paper plates, utensils, napkins?
11. Make sure that based on the potluck, you arrange where all the different dishes will go. 
12. If people bring a crock pot or something that needs to be plugged in, you should have power strips or extension cords to plug them in. 
13. Basically, you really need to envision what the flow is for your potluck and how you want to set things up.
14. And most of all … have fun!

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