What to Serve with a Baked Potato Bar: More than 30 Potato Toppers

Do you ever wonder what to serve with a baked potato bar? Next time you’re looking for a simple meal idea, consider making baked potatoes and putting them out with a variety of flavorful toppings.

You can use russet potatoes, Idaho potatoes, sweet potatoes, or whatever type you have in your potato bin. For topping ideas, check out some of the leftovers and condiments you have in your refrigerator and pantry.

If you’re feeling industrious, you can include other forms of potatoes for even more choices. These waffle fries are fun with a variety of toppings. Or you might like these baked Hasselback sweet potatoes from Julia’s Simply Southern. They’re easy to make yet deliver quite a bit of visual impact.

If you have enough of a variety, even picky eaters will find something they like. The best part about this is that everyone can make their own potato exactly the way they like it.

Potato Toppings

When you’re looking for baked potato bar ideas, it’s a good idea to start with what you have on hand. You might not need to go to the grocery store for additional ingredients. Make note of everyone’s favorite toppings so you’ll have them next time. But even if you do need to pick up a few potato bar toppings, you probably won’t much. That makes this an extremely budget-friendly dinner.

Here are some of our standard favorite baked potato bar ideas:

• Butter – Some people may only want butter on their potato with the toppings on the side. 
• Sour cream – This is a staple that I like on my potato, no matter what else I add.
• Chopped green onion – These are good raw.
• Sliced red onion – You can either serve this raw or sauté it in butter or olive oil.
• Green, yellow, and red peppers – I love sliced peppers because they add so much color, flavor, and nutrition to everything.
• Diced tomatoes – Tomatoes are delicious on almost anything.
• Broccoli – Serve either fresh or steamed broccoli florets.
• Mushrooms – You can marinate the mushrooms or slice fresh ones. Either option is great!
• Shredded cheddar cheese – We like cheddar cheese, but you can also have other types, such as Colby, jack, or mozzarella.
• Bacon bits – These traditional potato toppers are a must-have on a baked potato bar. You can fry and crumble bacon or buy ready-made bacon bits in the salad dressing aisle.
• Black pepper – Freshly ground black pepper is best.

More Unusual Potato Bar Toppings

There are some toppings you might not think about that you can add to the potato bar. These are some that will have your guests doing a double-take:

• Cream cheese – The smooth texture and flavor add richness to the potato.
• Goat cheese – The tart, earthy flavor of goat cheese provides balance to some of the other ingredients. Also, a lot of people who can’t tolerate cow’s milk can have products made from goat’s milk.
• Barbecue sauce – There are some people who love barbecue sauce on everything.
• Salsa – This is perfect for those who enjoy south-of-the-border flavors. In fact, you might be surprise by how many people will love this one.

• Buffalo sauce – Make sure you have something for those who love a little spicy kick.
• Tortilla chips – Serve some whole and others crumbled.
• Croutons – Add some crunch to potato bar.
• Kosher salt or Himalayan pink salt – I typically use the pink Himalayan salt, but kosher salt is good too.
• Jalapeños – You can use sliced fresh jalapeños or peppers from a jar. Regardless of which you use, anyone who likes extra heat will love this topping.

Loaded Baked Potato

If you want to take your potato bar up a notch, add more protein and other substantial toppings. You can buy many of these foods ready-made or prepare them yourself in your slow cooker, Instant Pot, or Crock Pot.

It’s easy to bake a bunch of potatoes at one time on a baking sheet. After they’re done, place potatoes in a napkin-lined basket or large bowl with a set of tongs to make it easy for guests. Set medium and small bowls of the add-ons and condiments around the table so your guests can easy access them.

Here are some more toppings we enjoy:

• Ground beef or other ground meat toppings
• Chili con carne (leftover homemade chili or canned chili)

• Shredded barbecue pork or beef
• Shredded rotisserie chicken
• Marinated mushrooms

• Red or white kidney beans
• Cottage cheese
• Cubed or crumbled tofu
• Black beans

Family Dinner Baked Potato Bar

If you have a large family, this will quickly become one of your favorite dinners. In fact, don’t be surprised if everyone wants this on the regular weekly meal rotation. Serve them a baked potato bar periodically, and they’ll all be happy.

The fun part is seeing how many different toppings you can come up with. Ask everyone in your family to suggest something new for the next baked potato bar. As a result, you might get some very interesting toppings.

Eliminate Party-Day Stress with a Baked Potato Bar

A baked potato bar is an easy peasy way to serve food at a game day party. It’s also a simple way to enhance a casual party theme. It’s the perfect way to impress party guests with a delicious meal that even the pickiest eaters will love. In fact, you might be surprised by some of the things they’ll choose.

More Easy Delicious Meal Ideas to Feed a Large Crowd

Whether you have a large family or you’re cooking for guests, it’s nice to have some meals that can serve a crowd. Here are some that are easy, delicious, and budget-friendly.

Chicken and Gravy Over Mashed Potatoes – Dump the chicken and gravy ingredients into your slow cooker, turn it on, and come back later to a delicious main dish that you can serve over mashed potatoes. You can also serve it with rice or noodles if you prefer.

Slow Cooker Chicken Pepper Pot – The bright colors and yummy aroma are a preview of what you’re about to taste. This is flavorful and can also be served as a stew or soup.

Beef and Bean Enchilada Casserole – This one-pan dinner really hits the spot when you’re in the mood for Tex Mex.

Classic Baked Mac and Cheese Casserole – Serve this as a main dish or side dish. It doesn’t matter because it’s good either way.

Smothered Potatoes and Sausage – This skillet dinner tastes great right after you cook it, and it makes wonderful leftovers. As a matter of fact, some people think it’s even better the next day.

Summer Sausage Platter – Add a charcuterie board with summer sausage and other deliciously savory treats to take your next event to the next level!

Party at the Potato Bar

A potato bar is fun, and everyone gets to enjoy exactly what they like. Add as many potato toppings as you can get on the table, and everyone is sure to go away happy!

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