Thanksgiving Drink and Food Calculator
For 100 guests, a full Thanksgiving bar comes to 41 bottles of wine, 4 cases of beer, 6 bottles of champagne, and 6 bottles of spirits, about 352 drinks, with a 15 percent buffer already worked into every number. Wine leads here at 39.1 percent of the pour, ahead of beer and spirits, which are tied at 26.1 percent each, and champagne, the smallest at 8.7 percent. That lean toward wine fits how the day is usually served: guests are seated at a table for a few hours rather than moving around with a can in hand. The total runs about 101 drinks at 25 guests and 653 at 200, moving the wine count from 12 bottles to 75.
The food table uses the same 100-guest base, but treat those numbers with caution. They assume the dish is the entire meal, and at Thanksgiving it rarely is: the turkey and the sides are dinner, and something like 12 pizzas is really an extra spread.
See the whole bar for a Thanksgiving at 100 guests About 352 drinks, wine, beer, spirits and champagne together.
| Drink | 25 guests | 50 guests | 75 guests | 100 guests | 150 guests | 200 guests |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wine | 12 bottles | 22 bottles | 32 bottles | 41 bottles | 60 bottles | 75 bottles |
| Beer | 1 case | 2 cases | 3 cases | 4 cases | 6 cases | 7 cases |
| Champagne | 2 bottles | 3 bottles | 5 bottles | 6 bottles | 8 bottles | 10 bottles |
| Spirits | 2 bottles | 3 bottles | 5 bottles | 6 bottles | 9 bottles | 11 bottles |
Every figure is that drink's share of a full bar, with a 15 percent buffer included. Each page also shows what you would need if it were the only alcohol served.
| Food | 25 guests | 50 guests | 75 guests | 100 guests | 150 guests | 200 guests |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pizza | 4 pizzas | 6 pizzas | 9 pizzas | 12 pizzas | 17 pizzas | 21 pizzas |
| Wings | 11 lbs | 21 lbs | 32 lbs | 40 lbs | 59 lbs | 74 lbs |
| Tacos | 3 dozen | 4 dozen | 6 dozen | 8 dozen | 12 dozen | 14 dozen |
| Sliders | 4 dozen | 7 dozen | 10 dozen | 13 dozen | 19 dozen | 23 dozen |
| Appetizers | 9 platters | 17 platters | 25 platters | 32 platters | 47 platters | 59 platters |
| BBQ/Pulled Pork | 5 lbs | 9 lbs | 14 lbs | 17 lbs | 25 lbs | 31 lbs |
Food figures assume that dish is the main food. Serving several dishes together lowers each one.
Planning notes
- Wine consumption peaks during dinner - have bottles ready at the table.
- Pre-dinner cocktails should be light so people can enjoy the meal.
Food calculators
Every number here comes from the same model, explained in full on the methodology page.