Need help planning a small plates menu for 16 people - what to make and how much?

Hello there! I hope this is the right place for this kind of question, I did a search to see how many of these threads were in this sub and saw a good amount.

I recently got married (eloped) and want to throw a "party" (celebration of marriage) to alert people of this and bring the families together. We're kind of surprising people with this, so they don't try to bring gifts and stuff.

I currently have a guest list of 16 people and to my knowledge, I am the only one with dietary preferences (I am pescetarian). I'm making all of the food myself since I have a passion for cooking.

I am looking to make a sort of small plates type menu with a good mix of everything, and hopefully the small plates can lend themselves to some good fajita/taco making. I'm looking for stuff that is relatively cheap to make, and can be made at least a day in advance. I also aim to be able to eat most of the menu, with a few items outside of my diet.

So here is my rough idea list so far:

• Yuca fries (have been craving these)
• Patatas Bravas (craving these too)
• Shrimp - either skewered or available to put in a tortilla
• Pulled Pork - a mojo sauce with lots of onions and peppers
• Sauteed Mushrooms - available to put in a tortilla, with garlic
• Arepitas with cheese
• Long stromboli - I know this is a bit out of place but one of my guests goes nuts for my pizzas, so this is for them mostly and I'm happy to oblige

Some other ideas I have, but don't have a true plating/recipe for are something with polenta or tofu, some dips, maybe something a bit cheesy, empanaditas, spinach artichoke rolls, a DIY crostini plate.

I'm wanting to include some Venezuelan dishes since half of my guests are from there. As for the other half of the guests, they more meat and potatoes type people. I'm the only "food person" in the family, so extravagant dishes aren't worth the effort, unfortunately. I guess I'm going for a rustic Italian, Spanish and Venezuelan cuisine. I'm not sure if that information is helpful!

I found a formula online that went something like # guests x # hours x how close to dinner time/is dinner being served = number of small items to make

Any ideas for other plates/foods or general tips for amounts? Any help is so appreciated!

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