Tool

Appetizer calculator: how many bites to make per person

Enter how many adults and children are coming, whether a meal follows and how many hours the party lasts, and we tell you how many savoury and sweet bites to make, how many different appetizers to spread them over and how many drinks and how much ice to buy. The figures are a reference: adjust them to your group's appetite.

For 20 people you need

Bites in total 340 17 per adult; children, half

Cold savoury

140 bites
Hot savoury

140 bites
Sweet

60 bites

Different appetizers: 5 (cold: 2, hot: 2, sweet: 1)
Pieces of each appetizer: cold: 70, hot: 70, sweet: 60

To drink

Cocktails with alcohol (adults): 80 glasses
Soft drinks or water: 15 L
Ice: 10 kg

If you make recipes from this site

Each recipe covers one of your appetizers and each unit counts as one piece.

Sopaipillas 4 times the recipe (80 units)
Fried cheese empanadas 6 times the recipe (72 units)
Baked empanadas de pino 6 times the recipe (72 units)
Chilean alfajores 3 times the recipe (60 units)
Calzones rotos 3 times the recipe (60 units)
Butter cookies 3 times the recipe (72 units)

Reference figures: if you would rather have leftovers, add 10 %. A full-size empanada fills more than one bite; if you make them cocktail-size, the same dough gives more.

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How many bites for a party of 10 to 100 people

Amounts for adults in the two most common cases: 1 hour of appetizers before a meal, and a 3-hour party where the appetizers replace the meal. For children or another length, use the calculator above.

Bites and appetizers by number of adults
Adults	Before a meal, 1 h (bites)	3-hour party: savoury	3-hour party: sweet	Different appetizers
10	60	140	30	4
15	90	210	45	5
20	120	280	60	5
25	150	350	75	6
30	180	420	90	6
40	240	560	120	6
50	300	700	150	8
60	360	840	180	8
80	480	1,120	240	8
100	600	1,400	300	8

How we calculate

Appetizers before a meal: 6 savoury bites per adult in the first hour and 2 for each further hour, with no sweets, because dessert comes at the end of the meal.
Appetizers instead of a meal: 8 savoury bites per adult in the first hour and 3 for each further hour, plus 2 sweet bites up to 2 hours and 3 from 3 hours.
Children: half of an adult, as in the asado calculator.
Savoury bites: half cold and half hot.
Different appetizers: 4 for up to 10 people, 5 up to 20, 6 up to 45 and 8 for larger groups; when there are sweets, 1 or 2 of them are sweet.
Drinks: 2 cocktails per adult in the first hour and 1 for each further hour; a 250 ml glass of soft drink or water per person per hour, and 0.5 kg of ice per person.

These are references, not measurements: every group eats differently. They match the figures in this site's guides (6 to 8 bites per person when a meal follows and 12 to 15 when the appetizers are the meal) and the catering rules of these sources:

How to organise the party

Few appetizers, large batches Four or five well-made appetizers go further than ten half-done ones. The calculator tells you how many pieces each one needs.
Get ahead with what freezes Empanadas can be shaped and frozen raw, then fried or baked on the day; sopaipilla dough can be cut and kept covered in the fridge.
Serve hot food in waves Fry and bake once the guests have arrived and bring out the trays a few at a time: better to run out and refill than to serve everything cold.
Sauces on the side Pebre and chancho en piedra go in small bowls with bread alongside: a crisp bite sitting in sauce goes soggy in minutes.

How to cite this calculator

If you use these figures in an article, a blog post or a presentation, you can cite them like this, with a link to this page:

Source: appetizer calculator by foodtastico.cl (https://foodtastico.cl/en/appetizer-calculator).

Frequently asked questions

Common questions about party food amounts

Short answers, with the same reference figures the calculator uses.

How many appetizers per person should I plan?

It depends on whether a meal follows. If the appetizers come before a meal, 6 savoury bites per adult in the first hour and 2 more for each further hour. If the appetizers are the meal, 8 in the first hour and 3 for each further hour, plus 2 or 3 sweet bites: at a 3-hour party that is 14 savoury and 3 sweet bites per adult. Children eat half.

How many bites should I make for 20 people?

For 20 adults at a 3-hour party where the appetizers replace the meal, 340 bites: 280 savoury (140 cold and 140 hot) and 60 sweet, spread over 5 appetizers, 2 cold, 2 hot and 1 sweet, with about 70 pieces of each savoury one. For 1 hour of appetizers before a meal, 120 savoury bites are enough.

And for 50 or 100 people?

At a 3-hour party where the appetizers are the meal, 50 adults need 700 savoury and 150 sweet bites across 8 appetizers, and 100 adults need 1,400 savoury and 300 sweet. The table above gives the figures for 10 to 100 people.

How many sweet bites per person?

If the appetizers are the meal, 2 sweet bites per adult up to 2 hours and 3 from 3 hours: alfajores, calzones rotos or cookies that can be eaten by hand. If a meal follows, dessert comes at the end and the calculator counts no sweets with the appetizers.

How many different appetizers should I make?

4 for a group of up to 10 people, 5 up to 20, 6 up to 45 and 8 for larger groups. More variety makes people eat a little more, not less, and multiplies the work: better to make a few things well in large batches.

How many drinks per person?

For cocktails with alcohol, 2 per adult in the first hour and 1 for each further hour: 4 glasses at a 3-hour party. For soft drinks or water, a 250 ml glass per person per hour, plus 0.5 kg of ice per person to keep everything cold.

What can I make ahead?

Empanadas can be shaped and frozen raw, sopaipilla dough can be cut and kept covered in the fridge, and alfajores keep for days in a jar. Fresh salsas and ceviche are made on the day, and fried food goes out in batches once the guests have arrived.