Great party food platters will score big points with your guests. With the big game only days away, you might be scrambling to the nearest store in search of the best meat and cheese spreads, assorted fruit platters, and dippable veggies to keep your friends and fam from going hungry.
To simplify your shopping experience, we did the research and found out what popular grocery stores have on offer for party platters—including price, size, and variety of snacks. Be warned: Most grocery stores require a lead time of a day or so. We strongly recommend buckling down and getting your game day ducks in a row.
Kroger Party Platters: Best Budget
Are you reading this Sunday morning and hoping to solve a last-minute food crisis? Well, you’re in luck: Kroger offers snack platters you can grab immediately, at a lower price point. They might not be the most aesthetically crafted food spreads of the bunch, but if you need to feed a small army in a pinch, these are some great options for cheap party food platters.
Kroger Veggie Tray with Dip: Starting at $13.99 for a 40 oz tray, this is one of the most cost-effective vegetable platters we found. You’re absolutely getting bang for your buck here with baby carrots, grape tomatoes, celery, broccoli, and “dip,” and that’s what matters.
Kroger Cubed Cheese Platter: Look, a good party spread has cubed cheese. We don’t make the rules. Kroger’s cheese platter includes colby jack, pepper jack, monterey cheese, and a selection of grapes. You get 40 oz of cheese for $23, and that is nothing to sneeze at.
Kroger Cocktail Shrimp Platter: $16 for 60 shrimp and a side of cocktail sauce? Kroger’s shrimp cocktail platter is a value you can’t beat. It may not hold the extravagance of Whole Foods, but frankly, sea bugs are sea bugs—especially if you slather them in enough sauce. You know you’re going to eat them, and so will your guests.
Fresh Cut Fruit Large Party Tray: Kroger’s fruit platter has strawberries, pineapple, mango, grapes, and watermelon. Does it come in the eye-sore of a plastic container? Sure, but at least you’re not slicing your own fruit. At 72 oz for $19.99, this fruit plate makes a great addition to any game day spread.
Albertsons Party Platters: Best for Large Parties
The party platters at Vons (and other Albertsons-owned grocery stores) are prepared fresh—so fresh, in fact, you have to place orders 48 hours in advance. (Lead times may vary by location.) Each tray is beautifully crafted and definitely a crowd pleaser. Most of their trays come in two sizes (16 or 18 inch), and the larger of the two claims to serve 25-30 people.
Vegetable & Dip Tray: Look at all those vibrant colors! This veggie platter comes with grape tomatoes, freshly cut cucumber, broccoli, celery, snap peas, carrots, cauliflower, and two servings of ranch dip. So basically, a small garden for $34.99. Pretty reasonable, if you ask me.
Deli Fruit 18 Inch Tray: Personally, I just love how Vons’ fruit plate is arranged. Grapes, strawberries, pineapple, blueberries, honeydew, and mandarin oranges surround a centerpiece of sliced watermelon. Seriously, honeydew has never looked so enticing. At $50, it’s on the pricier side, but given this could feed 30 people, seems worth it to me.
Deli Spinach Dip Large Boule Tray: Consider this your sign to buy spinach dip in a boule. I mean, look at this thing—a giant spinach dip bread bowl surrounded by toasted bread slices? It’s both elegant and comfortingly homey at the same time. It’s $24.99, so likely more expensive than any old spinach dip and crackers, but again: it comes in a bread bowl, you guys. That’s not something you can pick up at any old grocery store.
Sprouts: Best Variety
Like Albertsons, Sprouts’ party platters and catering trays require a 48-hour lead time. Their selection, however, is fairly priced and well worth the wait. Here’s a few of our favorites (all claiming to serve between 12-16 people).
Fresh Vegetable Tray: Sprouts fresh vegetable platter has some unique additions, like red and gold peppers, as well as a choice of ranch dip, regular hummus, or red pepper hummus. It’s $29.99, which may appear cheaper than Vons—but keep in mind that Vons claims to serve twice as many people.
Antipasto Tray: Sprouts’ Italian antipasto platter includes capicola, hard salami, sharp and mild provolone, pepperazzi and pepperoncini peppers, marinated artichoke hearts, olive jubilee, and a Caprese salad. It’s basically a meat and cheese spread, but fancy. And not, like, Red Lobster fancy. European fancy. At $45, if there’s anyone at your game day soiree you’d like to impress, I implore you to try this.
All Wrapped Up Sandwich Tray: It’s not all about the finger food. Sprouts has a few options for different sandwich trays, including their All Wrapped Up platter, served with customizable deli meats (turkey, ham, roast beef, chicken, or hummus), cream cheese, sliced tomatoes, and lettuce, all rolled up in a lavash wraps. For $50, you’ve got lunch provisions ready to go.
Cooked Shrimp Platter: Sprouts’ cooked shrimp platter claims to offer “colossal” shrimp peeled and deveined with tail on. I mean, my mouth is watering. It comes with sliced lemon as well, which is just an added touch I appreciate, personally. These come in two sizes—one for $20 serving 4-5 people, and the other for $40 serving 12-16. Neither beat Kroger’s price, but will they beat Kroger’s taste? Good question. If only we had a shrimp cocktail ranking on the horizon…
Whole Foods: Best Luxe
Whole Foods may not have a huge selection of typical snack food platters at their disposal (like veggies and dips), but they have certainly cornered the market on deli catering and savory appetizers. And yes, you guessed it, these also typically require a two-day lead time. If you’re willing to spend, here’s what we recommend.
Classic Antipasti Platter: If we were to compare the Sprouts Antipasto platter to this Whole Foods Antipasti platter, we might say this one costs more and offers less variety. However, if Whole Foods is your grocer of choice, chances are you’re particularly interested in the quality of your food, and this $50 platter that serves eight will not disappoint you on that front. It features high quality soppressata, Genoa salami, prosciutto, provolone, fresh mozzarella, olives, artichoke hearts, and roasted reppers.
Brioche Slider Platter: This is the fanciest version of a grocery store sandwich platter you can buy. It’s stacked with eight Ham and Jam, eight Curry Chicken, and eight Pimento Cheese and Tomato sandwiches, all served on brioche buns. Whole Foods is known for being a little pricey, but this platter offers 24 delicious sandwiches for $50—that’s a bargain!
Fresh Fruit Platter: If you want to make Whole Foods your one-stop shop for game day, make sure to pick up their fresh fruit platter as well! At $30, it’s slightly more expensive than others on the list, but it includes blueberries and pineapple if that helps.
Publix: Best Regional
Publix has basically any platter you could possibly dream of, especially when you consider the fact that most of them are customizable. As expected, they need 24-hour advance notice, however, if you’re in a pinch, they suggest you call your local store and they’ll see what they can do.
Publix Deli Dip Variety Platter: The Publix Deli Dip Variety Platter is perfect for when you have picky party guests and can’t find a platter that accommodates everyone’s wishes. It’s a choose-your-own-adventure sort of platter where you pick three dips, two vegetables, and two snacks from an array of options. The platter comes in a small size that serves eight for $19.99, as well as a medium serves 20 and costs $27.99.
Publix Deli Fresh Fruit Platter: There’s something about this platter that makes it incredibly visually appealing. Maybe it’s the fact that the watermelon, cantaloupe, pineapple, honeydew, and strawberries are all cut to be exactly the same size. It serves 28 for $39.99, making it the best value large fruit platter on the list!
Publix Deli Bread Bowl Platter: This platter is for the people who are done with vegetables on game day. It features not one but two full size bread bowls filled with dips of your choosing from a lineup of buffalo chicken dip, spinach dip, artichoke and spinach dip, jalapeno popper dip, cheddar jack spread, or Cedar’s tzatziki. As long as your crowd isn’t gluten free, I can guarantee this $24.99 platter will be a fan favorite at your game day soirée.
What about Costco Party Platters? They do those too, right??
Great question, reader. After some recon, we’ve discovered that Costco does indeed prepare a variety of customizable party platters for members to enjoy. But, they like to do things old school, apparently. If you want to order a Costco party platter, you have to visit the store. There’s not a ton of official information on their website, but my sources tell me their 2024 menu includes croissant sandwiches, shrimp platters, chicken and Swiss cheese lavash sandwiches, and a meat and cheese platter. They also request a 24-hour lead time on their orders, which, hey, better than two days! You’ve probably still got time, right?
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