My family has always thrown a Fourth of July party the Saturday before the actual Fourth of July. Some of our traditions are an epic water balloon fight, plenty of kegs of beer, and an extraordinary firework. The most important custom though has always been the food and its display. We usually have something catered like chicken, sandwiches, potato salads, sushi, etc. I recall a pig roaster being hired one year, a nice alternative but very expensive. Last years Fourth of July party though was a total success. We threw a clambake celebration and everyone enjoyed it very much.

I would recommend doing with the seafood route to anybody thinking of throwing a summer celebration similar to what we do. Let's face it- its never really "cheap" to hire professional catering for a party. But, if you have already made the decision to cater anyway, the seafood route isn't much more expensive than the traditional chicken/potato salad, macaroni, or whatever other boring food the caterers typically tend to provide.

For the last couple of years there have been approximately 200 people to our 4th of July parties. Experience tells us that it is not likely for all 200 to be there at the same time, but an overall estimate for this year is the same as usual. I wouldn't suggest throwing a clambake celebration with less than 40 guests, due to it being a little wasteful. If you expect more than 40 participants though, a party of this kind might be fun!

The clambake celebration that we hosted was obviously through a catering company. We ordered a full menu, including clams, mussels, lobsters, and quahogs. They bring over live lobster, and kill/cook them in front of you. Half of the fun (both for the children and the adults) is to watch the showmanship of the chefs doing this. They also have a lot of rocks and seafood laid out that they serve the food on top of.

When we purchased, we chose the "standard clambake," but they also offered a "New England clambake." The difference in price between the two choices was negligible but the New England one seemed to have more items from that area. The standard clambake was perfectly fine for my needs. I don't have any experience to comment on the New England clambake but I wouldn't mind trying it.

We are excited to once again throw a clambake celebration for this year's 4th of July Party, and it is already all planned. July cannot come soon enough! It was such a big hit that we couldn't even consider doing anything else food-wise. The fireworks, beer, and water balloon fight will also stick around though!