Steak BBQ - Good Idea?

excelblue · #1 08-28-2010, 11:46 PM

So, I randomly had this crazy fundraiser idea: obtain some USDA prime steak and throw this BBQ. Advertise it well in advance, charge $10/person, and have them all RSVP. Then, we run to Costco, get USDA prime beef for $6/lb, add in some veggies and sausages, etc. This creates a profit margin of ~30%.

What do you guys think of this idea? Is it feasible? Have you done anything similar?

nittanygirl · #2 08-29-2010, 10:53 AM

$6/16 oz in a lb = $0.375 per ounce, so giving appx 6 oz steaks to everyone would be about $2.25 per person in steak so that's not really too bad. Depending on what veggies you want.
But as far as profit margin goes you're gonna want to factor in plates, napkins, cups, drinks, ice, charcoal and everything along with your veggies to get a more accurate overall PM. These things add up faster than you think. I would personally skip the sausages and just do a steak fry to keep this actually worth doing profit-wise. Go with cheap vegetables, zucchini from the farmers market, potatoes, etc... maybe a quick salad because that is really easy and cheap or skip veggies and do pasta because it is reallllllllyyyy cheap (think of the money Olive Garden makes charging you $14 for a pasta & chicken dish that costs $2 to make).

Also, instead of RSVPing and paying at the door, it might benefit you to actually sell tickets, so in case people don't show up/it rains and people don't want to come, you still have the money from them/for their steak and aren't stuck with all those costs.

Could be a very fun idea though

agzg · #3 08-29-2010, 11:16 AM

My dad's in Lion's club and they do a Steak and Lobster Bake every year. It's a similar idea, and it's SUPER popular in my hometown.

I second nittanygirl's advice and super stress the selling tickets part. You might want to make it bring your own drink, be sure not to SELL alcohol there. If you do BYOB, you will still need to card. If you provide soda, water, lemonade, etc., then I believe you'll be absolving yourself of that responsibility.

Make sure you don't sell more tickets than you can accomodate (for example, if you can fit and seat 50 people, do not sell 100 tickets). Consider to-go packages.

Perhaps the brothers can each bring a desert item.

nittanygirl · #4 08-29-2010, 11:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by agzg

You might want to make it bring your own drink, be sure not to SELL alcohol there. If you do BYOB, you will still need to card. If you provide soda, water, lemonade, etc., then I believe you'll be absolving yourself of that responsibility.

I thought about this too but with BYOB you run into the problem that even if you card people, those who are of age might pass it on to underages, and that's a lot of work to keep up with. You don't want underage drinking associated with your fraternity.
If you get drinks from Sam's Club/Costco it really probably won't be that bad. You could hand everyone a little (regular size tear off) ticket when they get there good for one drink, to help regulate people not taking more than they should because I've seen that happen as well

agzg · #5 08-29-2010, 11:38 AM

Don't forget to wrap in the cost of table/chair rental, should you need it (if you're serving people a steak dinner, they will want to sit down at a table rather than on a couch to eat from their laps).

DubaiSis · #6 08-29-2010, 12:24 PM

My guess is $10/ticket isn't going to cut it, but this is good life training. Being able to cost a project is something a lot of career fields require. Just make sure you don't leave out ANYTHING. And if it works, it goes on the resume! If it doesn't, well, it can be lost to the ages pretty quickly.