I can't take credit. Two dear friends in L.A. started doing it years ago, with similar results, and it sounded so great we just copied it.
Except they make the meatballs from scratch, which I don't have time for. Decent bulk frozen meatballs + excellent Victoria jarred sauce from Costco to the rescue. My Italian wife tarts up the jarred sauce a bit with fresh aromatics and chunks of canned San Marzano tomatoes, and the end result is acceptable even to her exceptionally picky palette... Add a big stack of cheap, mismatched thrift-store china plates and silverware, and dinner for 30 takes us about an hour to prep + an hour to clean up after total.
Except they make the meatballs from scratch, which I don't have time for. Decent bulk frozen meatballs + excellent Victoria jarred sauce from Costco to the rescue. My Italian wife tarts up the jarred sauce a bit with fresh aromatics and chunks of canned San Marzano tomatoes, and the end result is acceptable even to her exceptionally picky palette... Add a big stack of cheap, mismatched thrift-store china plates and silverware, and dinner for 30 takes us about an hour to prep + an hour to clean up after total.