Picnic Packing List: What to Bring for a Perfect Outdoor Meal

Warm weather, sunshine and plenty of good food make summer picnics with friends and family memorable. Instead of defaulting to basic sandwiches and fruit, create a more indulgent, flavorful menu. Pack your blanket and sunscreen, and add these standout food and drink items to your next outdoor meal for a tasty upgrade.

Social Hour Cocktails

Sip something compact but potent with Social Hour Cocktails. The brand offers three ready-to-drink varieties—Gin & Tonic, Whiskey Mule and Pacific Spritz—each canned for convenience. Alcohol by volume varies by flavor, but every can delivers bold, well-balanced taste. Founded by bartending veterans Julie Reiner and Tom Macy, Social Hour uses premium ingredients sourced from New York, making these drinks an elegant complement to picnic fare.

Social Hour Canned Cocktails

Courtesy of Ford Media Lab

Melly’s Meatball Mix

Upgrade park fare by bringing homemade meatballs made with Melly’s Meatball Mix. This spice packet blends Italian herbs and seasonings to produce tender, flavorful meatballs that are easy to prepare and a reliable crowd-pleaser. The mixes are available in both regular and gluten-free versions, so they suit guests with dietary restrictions without sacrificing taste.

Mellys meatball mix

Courtesy of ChicExec

Good and Tasty Bakes

No picnic is complete without dessert. Good and Tasty Bakes crafts cheesecakes using natural ingredients sourced from farms in the western United States, avoiding artificial flavors, corn syrup and hydrogenated oils. The company is certified by the Gluten-Free Certification Organization, so guests with celiac disease or gluten intolerance can enjoy dessert with confidence.

cheesecake

Courtesy of ChicExecs