Get The BBQ Season Started

The arrival of summer means many things such as warm weather, going on vacation, and most importantly for some people, the beginning of BBQ season. Summer is the perfect time for gathering family and friends in your backyard to feast on delicious food and enjoy the perfect weather together. With a little bit of planning and preparation, you can make your backyard BBQ the event of the year.

One of the most important things to consider in order to ensure your backyard soiree goes off without a hitch is bug control. Nothing turns a festive event into a pest-filled nightmare faster than a swarm of ants or mosquitoes crashing the party. The best defense against mosquitoes is to strategically place several repellent candles and torches in the BBQ proximity. Try to keep food covered as much as possible with plastic wrap or tupperware containers to keep ants away. If you can dedicate a covered area to be your serving area, this will also be a big help in terms of keeping bugs to a minimum.

When it comes time to set about selecting your menu offerings, don’t forget about one of the most important BBQ components, the drink selection. Nothing kicks off a BBQ better than a cold, refreshing beverage.

Make sure you have a wide variety of options, including both alcoholic and non-alcoholic choices. Wine and beer are always standard; step your BBQ up a notch and offer several choices so that all of your guests will find what they like. You may even want to consider whipping up a batch of frozen cocktails such as margaritas or daiquiris. Throw in some seasonal fresh fruit and you will surely become the hit of the party.

Deciding what to grill for the main course should not be a complicated decision; keeping it simple makes things easier for everyone. Hamburgers and hot dogs usually get the job done; if you are itching for more of a variety consider marinating some chicken breasts or grilling up some delicious beef and vegetable kebabs. Whatever you decide on will surely turn out tasty and flavorful, one of the beautiful things about BBQ’ing is that food just tastes better grilled over an open flame and it’s pretty difficult to mess it up.

As your guests begin to arrive and settle in, make sure to have plenty of snacks available for munching and accompanying that first round of drinks. These in no way need to be anything fancy, in fact a few bowls of chips or pretzels and maybe even a fresh vegetable tray with dip will do the trick. Another BBQ favorite that you might want to consider adding to the spread is sliced watermelon. There is nothing that says summer more than a big juicy bite of perfectly ripe watermelon.

Nothing accompanies a BBQ better than all the delicious traditional side dishes such as coleslaw, potato and macaroni salad and baked beans. Whether you decide to buy them pre-made or make them from scratch, these dishes are a must-have for any successful backyard BBQ.

With a little bit of planning and preparation, you can be sure that your backyard BBQ will be the event of the season. Make the most out of the summer and get started planning your own gathering today.

Byron Jonas invariably uses shade canopies for his frontyard bbqs. There is nothing like instant marquees to remove the heat out of the Australian summer.