Summer weddings are always a great time. People are in the mood to kick back and have a great party, and seeing a beautiful wedding only adds to the enjoyment. Make your party even more enjoyable for your guests by including a special surprise gift at the reception. A really fun idea for a summer wedding is to have an ice cream bar.
An ice cream bar is easy to install, and it’s such a good idea, you’ll wonder why more couples don’t. It can be a fairly simple DIY affair, or you can hire someone to be your bar staff. If you really want to be classy, bring special ice cream flavors as a wonderful gift. Believe me, it won’t just be your flower girls in their cute little girl dresses and jewelry who swarm the ice cream station; You will find many adults who return for a few seconds!
Most ice cream is really about the ingredients, so there is no need to have a wide variety of ice cream flavors on hand. You would do well to have only chocolate, vanilla, strawberry, and coffee ice cream at the station. Flavors can be served in large bowls with scoops, or you may find it tidier to have pre-cooked dishes that guests can choose from. Just be sure to keep the ice cream chilled so it doesn’t get thick before everyone has a chance to have their dessert.
Dressings are where you should really go overboard and wow your guests. Certainly, you will need the basics like hot chocolate, whipped cream, and cherries. From there, indulge in your own sweet tooth fantasies! Oreo cookie chunks and chocolate chip cookies are delicious toppings, as are brownie chunks. There are many delicious treats that are perfect to include in your ice cream bar, such as M & Ms (maybe in your wedding colors), sprinkles (or “jimmies” depending on where you live), Reeses Pieces, Heath bar crumbles , and cup chunks of peanut butter.
Don’t stop there! You can also take other syrups like caramel and strawberry. Prepare a nice selection of sliced fruits for guests who want to pretend they are eating something healthy. Strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, and pineapple are great options. And of course you will need some bananas for those who want to make banana split. You can even place broken pieces of waffle cones for guests to mix with their ice cream. Nuts are typically included in ice cream stations as well, but be sensitive to possible allergies. Keep the nuts on the far end of the line and give each bowl of toppings its own scoop so there is no cross contamination. The last thing you want to know is that your favorite niece had to go straight from your reception to the nearest hospital for an allergic reaction, all dressed in her special dress and girlish jewelry!
Decorate your ice cream bar to coordinate with the rest of your wedding reception decor. For a country-style wedding, set the station on an old wooden table decorated with handmade fabric pennants. For a more formal wedding, use elegant crystal bowls to hold the ingredients. If your style is retro chic, create an ice cream bar with the vibe of a 1950s soda fountain, complete with a waiter dressed as a soda pop. For a tropical-themed wedding, make your station look like a thatched-roof tiki hut. There are so many ways you can decorate a wedding ice cream bar and since it will be a fairly small area, you can do a lot without spending a lot on decorating. Your ice cream bar will be a delight for both the eyes and the palate; Your guests are sure to love it!