Bake These Upscale Summer Picnic Ideas into Your Custom Menu
How will you capture the attention and appetites of your picnic guests this summer? Step out of the ordinary by designing a custom picnic menu that puts on a show. Our clam and lobster bakes are a fun way to treat guests to a mouthwatering meal. Let our friendly chefs crack open shells and create memories your guests will never forget.
Hand out the bibs and good times for your guests to enjoy these mouthwatering summer picnic menus.
Clam and Lobster Bake Picnic Menu Ideas
If you’ve planned or even just attended a clam or lobster bake, then you know they are complex events—it takes careful organization of menus and staff to pull off a stellar show. That’s why our clam and lobster bakes are pre-set to guarantee successful picnics from appetizers and salads through entrees and desserts.
Sneak Peak: Chilled Raw Clam Bar
Give your guests a delicious sample of your custom menu by setting up a chilled raw clam bar. Our professionals meticulously display littleneck clams on the half shell on ice with cocktail sauce and lemon wedges. And we are happy to elevate this first course by adding jumbo shrimp cocktails, oysters and crab claws. We can give your guests as elaborate a welcome as you see fit.
Multi-Tiered Appetizer Bars
Picnics are simple in nature, but their menus can be as complex and enticing as you like. Start off your clam or lobster bake with a delicious assortment of crisp vegetables, fresh fruit, exciting dips like salsa, guacamole and hummus, crackers and tortilla chips.
Light Summer Salads
Every guest is sure to find exactly the fresh and healthy side salad they desire with either our clam or lobster bake. Our New England Summer Clam Bake and Down East Shore-Style Lobster Bake offer a medley of three summer salads such as:
- Cold Pesto Tortellini Salad
- Black Bean, Corn and Avocado Salad
- Orzo and Feta Salad
- Garden Salad with House-Made Dressing
- Chive-Dijon Potato Salad
Mouthwatering Summer Picnic Buffets
Clam bakes call for scrumptious sides like our hickory BBQ baked beans with maple bacon, Italian baked ziti with three cheeses and Tuscan grilled chicken quarters. And don’t forget corn on the cob—fresh from two farms right down the street from Birch Hill Estate. We love to pick up crates of these local treasures to bring out later in the day at our clients’ picnics.
Thinking of a having a Down East Shore-Style Lobster Bake? We include chicken or beef kabobs with chunks of red and green peppers, pineapple, mushroom, tomatoes and onions. Add in the wonderful vegetable rice pilaf and baked potato bar with all the toppings that are included in our lobster bake menu and your guests will have no problem filling out their plates.
The Big Show: Fresh Clams or Lobsters
Our chefs put on quite a performance when they serve up hot steamed clams and lobsters. Sourced between Massachusetts and Maine, these delicacies are as fresh as they get! Whether you opt for a bakers dozen of raw or steamed Rhode Island clams served with drawn butter and cocktail sauce or 1 ¼ lb. freshly steamed Maine lobster tails, guests will see them cracked open and cooked right before their eyes.
Pick Your Own Dessert
Whether you choose to set out a beautiful assortment of jumbo cookies, gourmet brownies and fresh fruit or bring out a make-your-own ice cream sundae bar, your guests will enjoy a sweet ending to their clam/lobster bake experience. Looking for an exceptional lead into your outstanding picnic entertainment? Our fried dough or strawberry shortcake bars provide just that! With their choice of drink and dessert in hand, guests will be ready to head off to your picnic games!
Elevate the Ambiance of Your Albany Picnic
Your custom menu provides a steady supply of captivating sights and experiences, and the right décor and entertainment will cement these memories in your guests’ minds.
Custom Décor for Your Albany Picnic Venue
Wherever your picnic vision takes you, we will be there to transform the location to match your picnic theme and menu. Everything from tablecloths to napkins and bibs can be customized to include company colors and logos or your event date and celebratory note. If you plan to bring your picnic theme to the pavilions on Birch Hill’s 70 wooded acres, you will have no shortage of space and picnic tables on which to display your style. Birch Hill Estate is a beautiful open canvas for your picnic vision.
Seaside-Inspired Picnic Games
When working with your complimentary Birch Hill event coordinator, you’ll explore a wide variety of activities suited to your picnic theme. Our experienced consultants love to personalize your picnic plans until your vision is complete. We can imagine some water-filled games taking center stage when a clam/lobster bake takes your guests’ imaginations out to the sea.
Our favorite Upstate New York water-based picnic activities include:
- Water balloons
- Slip ‘n slide
- Dunk tank
- Water wars
We hope you’ve enjoyed this sample of our favorite Albany picnic ideas. To see what other creative picnic plans 80 years of event experience can bring to your event vision, contact us online or give us a call at 518.732.4444.