Next Year: Thanksgiving 630

The bbq was a charcoal 22" Weber Kettle. It's done by moving the ignited coals to each side of the grate and placing the turkey in the center of the grill so it cooks with indirect heat. No roasting pan but we placed a drip pan on the grate between the coals under the turkey. It cooks with the cover on the bbq but with the vents about 1-2 open. You can toss some water-soaked wood chips on the coals to get some smoke flavor. I don't remember how long it took but it was less time than required for oven roasting. This is my favorite way to cook a turkey for both ease and flavor. You can Google for more info.

They have 2 Wolf ranges so there was no shortage of oven space. The 2 other turkeys were roasted there.

What we rented was nothing that fancy or expensive. More like standard restaurant dinnerware and flatware, glbuttware, etc. It's a good compromise between disposable (which we have used) and high end.

The chafers come standard with a single insert pan. It's advisable to plan out what is going into the chafers so you can obtain the most suitable inserts. They come in all different sizes. Also you need to set up the chafers and light the fuel about an hour before putting the food into them.

We found that you have to impress the importance of punctuality on people that are helping out or bringing food. And with some people, I'm not averse to telling them that they're expected an hour earlier than necessary. ;-).

We rented standard bar quality stemware and glbuttes.

I guess that's an advantage for CA. The weather has only turned against us a couple times. We rented 2 space heaters one year. It's a large home but still gets a bit crowded and awkward with 50-60 people eating inside.

Good luck!