Planning guide
The Backyard Party Guide
You do not need a venue to throw a real party. Here is the rental math for 20 to 50 guests at home, what to do about weather, and how to decide between pickup and delivery.
Graduation cookout, baby shower, retirement dinner, a birthday that ends in zero — the best Memphis parties happen in backyards. And here is something people are often surprised to learn: you do not need a big order to rent from us. One table and eight chairs is a real order at Party Connection — small orders are always welcome here.
The math, by guest count
Divide your headcount by 8. That is your table count with room to breathe.
- 20 guests: three 60″ rounds ($10 each) or three 8′ banquets ($10 each), plus 20 to 24 folding chairs ($1.95 each — white or black). Total table-and-chair cost: well under $100.
- 35 guests: four to five 60″ rounds and 40 chairs. Round up on chairs — somebody always brings a plus-one.
- 50 guests: six or seven 60″ rounds, or five to six 8′ banquets if your yard is more long than wide. 55 chairs.
Want nicer seats? Natural wood and white resin folding chairs are $3.95 on our table and chair rental page. Then add one or two extra 8′ banquets for the food and drinks — they always fill up.
Not every backyard party is a dinner, either. For a come-and-go open house or a cocktail hour, swap most of the rounds for bistro tables ($12 each) — one for every 8 to 10 guests — and keep a single 60″ round for the folks who need a real seat. Standing parties feel fuller with less furniture, which is good news for small patios and better news for budgets. Baby showers, bridal showers, and gender-reveal parties live in this same 20-to-50 zone — a few rounds in the theme color, a gift table, and the yard is set.
The 50-guest dinner, priced out
Here is the biggest version as a real order, every line from the 2026 price list and confirmed on your quote:
| Item | Qty | Each | Line |
|---|---|---|---|
| 60″ round tables | 7 | $10.00 | $70.00 |
| White folding chairs | 55 | $1.95 | $107.25 |
| 120″ round linens, floor length | 7 | $13.50 | $94.50 |
| 8′ banquets — food and drinks | 2 | $10.00 | $20.00 |
| 60×120″ banquet linens | 2 | $8.50 | $17.00 |
That is $308.75 for a fully dressed backyard dinner for fifty, before delivery — and the same room is a one-tap starting list in our Backyard Dinner for 50 package. Go lap-length instead of floor-length — 90″ rounds at $8.50 — and the same yard is $273.75. That is the whole charm of backyard parties: the numbers stay small because the pieces are honest.
Linens make it a party
Bare plastic tables say cookout. Linens say occasion. From our 2026 price list, in polyester: a 90″ round gives a 60″ table a lap-length drop for $8.50, a 120″ round goes to the floor for $13.50, and a 60×120″ covers an 8′ banquet lap-length for $8.50. Napkins are $0.65 each, in 55 colors. Our linen size chart pairs every table with every drop length so nothing arrives too short.
Real dishes, or paper?
Paper plates are fine for barbecue. But if the party has a cake moment or a toast, real dishes cost less than people think: china plates are $0.70, glass plates the same $0.70, needlepoint flatware is $0.65 a piece, water goblets and champagne flutes are $0.65. Set fifty places with a plate, fork, knife, and goblet for $132.50. Afterward you rinse everything free of food and crate it — we do the washing. And cloth napkins at $0.65 upgrade even a paper-plate cookout.
The food and drink stations
The food table works harder than any table at the party. Give it real equipment:
- 8-qt. chafers ($25 standard, $30 crown) keep the mains hot for hours; two usually cover a home buffet, with ladles, tongs, and servers at $3 a set
- The 120-qt. cooler ($35) swallows a party's worth of ice and cans — or ask us about the galvanized drink tub for the prettier version of the same job
- Glass beverage dispensers (ask us) make tea and lemonade self-serve, so you are not playing bartender at your own party
- The frozen drink machine ($350) is the celebrity rental of Memphis summer — it needs a standard outlet and a shaded spot, and it will be the most photographed thing at the party that is not the guest of honor
The kids' table is real equipment too
If the guest list includes cousins under ten, skip the wobbly card table: the 6′ children's banquet table is $10 and children's white wood chairs are $2 each — a real kids' table for under $30. High chairs and booster seats are in the catalog as well; ask us when you book.
The weather talk — honest version
We are not going to pretend Memphis weather negotiates. So plan the party you can move. Your covered patio, carport, or garage is your rain plan; so is the living room with the furniture pushed back. Decide before you send invitations where the food table and the seating go if the sky opens, and you will never have to make that call in a panic. Folding tables and chairs move fast — that is the point of them.
Heat is the other honest conversation. In July and August, put the seating where your yard's shade actually falls at party time — not where it falls at noon. For spring and fall evenings, the patio heater with propane ($200) is the difference between guests leaving at 7 and staying until 10. October in Memphis is prime backyard season right up until the sun drops — the heater buys you the rest of the night.
Pickup or delivery?
Pickup is the budget move, and for a small order it is easy. Rental rates cover one day or weekend use: pick up on the business day nearest your event and return the next business day — for a Saturday party, that usually means load up Friday and bring it back Monday. Folding tables and chairs ride flat; a 60″ round is a five-foot circle, so an SUV with the seats down handles a small order, while a full 50-guest order wants a truck bed or a second trip. Measure before you commit to hauling seven tables. The showroom is at 174 Collins Street in Midtown, open Monday through Friday, 9am to 4pm.
Delivery runs Monday through Friday 9am to 4pm and Saturday 9am to noon, and is quoted by distance and order size. One thing to know for backyards: standard delivery is first-floor, no stairs, within 50 feet of the delivery vehicle, to an easily accessible area. If your yard is a long haul from the curb, gated, or downhill around back, tell us when you book — difficult access or distance past 50 feet carries an additional charge, and we would rather quote it right than surprise you.
Before it goes back
Two small chores protect your deposit math: fold the tables and chairs and leave them under cover, and rinse any dishes or glassware free of food and crate them. Excessively dirty returns can carry a cleaning charge of up to 100% of the rental rate — a five-minute rinse the night of is the cheapest insurance in the party business. We have got you covered.
One table or seven — build your backyard quote and we will confirm prices and availability for your date.
