Can I just serve cake at a B'day party or do I have to serve a meal?

[Anonymous]

Well, OP, how about an update? What did you do in the end? cake only or you added some food?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just curious. Are the cake only posters all white? I'm south Asian and we always serve food at all of our kids parties. We go so far as to have adult food and kid food. Around here it seems that it's pretty common for mainly white folks to serve cake and possibly chips with juice boxes.

Persian poster here and I agree with you - that we always serve food at all of our kid parties. Both a kid-friendly option and a heartier adult option. The cake-only parties mainly seem to be white families. I don't know if it's a cultural thing, but Persians love feeding people and I don't know that I've ever been to a birthday where they haven't had a great spread.

Another ethnic parent here that serves lots and lots of food. I also feed kids that come over for play dates full meals. White parents are very appreciative and always compliment/thank us for great food, but they continue on with their cake only parties. One would think they would be shamed into reciprocating, but the boldness of pigging out at our parties where they bring the entire family and then invite us over only to serve cheap cake and water is appalling.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just curious. Are the cake only posters all white? I'm south Asian and we always serve food at all of our kids parties. We go so far as to have adult food and kid food. Around here it seems that it's pretty common for mainly white folks to serve cake and possibly chips with juice boxes.

I serve tons of food to everyone at our in home parties, as do all my friends. I'm white, our closest friends that do home parties are white, Central American, Dominican, and Swedish. When we threw a party for our 1 year old this year, we had 60 people and so many racks of ribs and side dishes that we ended up having to freeze 10 extra racks of ribs.

That said, I'm having my DD's party at a venue this year. It's a bakery. So they have baked goods. You can't bring in outside food due to their licensing. She's elementary school aged as are all her friends. I scheduled the party to run from 3-4:30. The kids will have cake from the bakery and I'm sure they can eat the treats they make as well if they want. I think that's fine given the venue, timeframe, and age of the children. If I wanted to do real food, we could not do this kind of party and it's what my DD has been asking for since she attended a class at the bakery last year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just curious. Are the cake only posters all white? I'm south Asian and we always serve food at all of our kids parties. We go so far as to have adult food and kid food. Around here it seems that it's pretty common for mainly white folks to serve cake and possibly chips with juice boxes.

Persian poster here and I agree with you - that we always serve food at all of our kid parties. Both a kid-friendly option and a heartier adult option. The cake-only parties mainly seem to be white families. I don't know if it's a cultural thing, but Persians love feeding people and I don't know that I've ever been to a birthday where they haven't had a great spread.

Another ethnic parent here that serves lots and lots of food. I also feed kids that come over for play dates full meals. White parents are very appreciative and always compliment/thank us for great food, but they continue on with their cake only parties. One would think they would be shamed into reciprocating, but the boldness of pigging out at our parties where they bring the entire family and then invite us over only to serve cheap cake and water is appalling.

WASP here and I always serve tons of food at parties, so don't blame this on white people. I too get annoyed when people don't serve enough food and assume they are trying to be cheap. Just no. Best kids birthday party I went to was catered by Guapos, with a quesadilla and taco bar and margarita machine!!!! So much food.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just curious. Are the cake only posters all white? I'm south Asian and we always serve food at all of our kids parties. We go so far as to have adult food and kid food. Around here it seems that it's pretty common for mainly white folks to serve cake and possibly chips with juice boxes.

Persian poster here and I agree with you - that we always serve food at all of our kid parties. Both a kid-friendly option and a heartier adult option. The cake-only parties mainly seem to be white families. I don't know if it's a cultural thing, but Persians love feeding people and I don't know that I've ever been to a birthday where they haven't had a great spread.

Another ethnic parent here that serves lots and lots of food. I also feed kids that come over for play dates full meals. White parents are very appreciative and always compliment/thank us for great food, but they continue on with their cake only parties. One would think they would be shamed into reciprocating, but the boldness of pigging out at our parties where they bring the entire family and then invite us over only to serve cheap cake and water is appalling.

WASP here and I always serve tons of food at parties, so don't blame this on white people. I too get annoyed when people don't serve enough food and assume they are trying to be cheap. Just no. Best kids birthday party I went to was catered by Guapos, with a quesadilla and taco bar and margarita machine!!!! So much food.

Well, now you're talking about two entirely different kinds of parties. If I host a home birthday party where the parents are also going to be present, I absolutely offer a full spread. (I'm white, lol.) But the OP is having a kids party at a laser tag/bounce house place where you have to purchase the food they sell there and she said it's not good.

This thread has gone off the rails and we're now comparing apples to oranges.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just curious. Are the cake only posters all white? I'm south Asian and we always serve food at all of our kids parties. We go so far as to have adult food and kid food. Around here it seems that it's pretty common for mainly white folks to serve cake and possibly chips with juice boxes.

Persian poster here and I agree with you - that we always serve food at all of our kid parties. Both a kid-friendly option and a heartier adult option. The cake-only parties mainly seem to be white families. I don't know if it's a cultural thing, but Persians love feeding people and I don't know that I've ever been to a birthday where they haven't had a great spread.

Another ethnic parent here that serves lots and lots of food. I also feed kids that come over for play dates full meals. White parents are very appreciative and always compliment/thank us for great food, but they continue on with their cake only parties. One would think they would be shamed into reciprocating, but the boldness of pigging out at our parties where they bring the entire family and then invite us over only to serve cheap cake and water is appalling.

Oh good grief with the white people this and white people that crap. When my oldest was 5 he went to an Indian classmate's birthday party. The party ran from 5-8pm and the ONLY food they served was tortilla chips and water. There wasn't even a birthday cake...they brought out a cupcake with candles for the birthday girl to eat while the other kids watched. Should I conclude from this that all Indians are terrible hosts? Or should I conclude that just these particular people are terrible hosts?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just curious. Are the cake only posters all white? I'm south Asian and we always serve food at all of our kids parties. We go so far as to have adult food and kid food. Around here it seems that it's pretty common for mainly white folks to serve cake and possibly chips with juice boxes.

Persian poster here and I agree with you - that we always serve food at all of our kid parties. Both a kid-friendly option and a heartier adult option. The cake-only parties mainly seem to be white families. I don't know if it's a cultural thing, but Persians love feeding people and I don't know that I've ever been to a birthday where they haven't had a great spread.

I'm white/Jewish and have never been to a no food party. I can't imagine having a party without food, including for the parents.

Cake is food.

Its desert, not full food. Its tacky not to at least have veggies, fruit and snack food.

It's tackier to believe that you know best what other people "should" offer to their guests. Simply decline the invitation if it's too shocking or beneath you to let your child play with friends for an hour and a half and be offered a mere slice of cake for refreshment.

+1