Nah- among my group of friends, this is the norm. We have all talked about how the adults never really eat the food anyway. We are all in agreement that the kids really just need a treat. We can save the good stuff for our adult gatherings! |
Sorry, but I dislike the non meal parties tool. It does look cheap and like you couldn’t be bothered to actually provide real food. Kids end up stuffing themselves with a ton a crappy snacks and cupcakes, then don’t want to eat an actual real meal after the party at mealtime. |
I remember attending a 5pm party once for a 3yo. I thought of course they would serve dinner. It is dinnertime. We left and could not believe they did not serve a bunch of toddlers dinner from 5-7. I have attended kid parties where parents are not even offered water. Now I have 3 kids and oldest is 12. I don't care about food anymore. My kids can wait an hour and they at least can cake. |
| My favorite timeslot to host a kid party is 2-4 because I hate the food/money waste that I've experienced with mealtime parties. The kids are too hyped up to sit and eat more than a bite or two (they just want to play with their friends) and the moms won't touch the pizza because OMG FAT OMG CARBS. Cheese and crackers, some cut fruit and veggies/dip are perfect for a mid-afternoon kid party. |
| And if there are potentially kids with food allergies invited to the party, not having it at a mealtime will help their parents' stress levels significantly. Navigating cupcakes and crackers is one thing, but kids running around with sticky fingers from food from a place like Zoes, which is full of common allergens, would be very stressful. |
I seriously don't care both as the host or the invitee if a birthday party is not held during lunch |
I once held a party from 2-4 and decided to serve fruit and snacks. I had too much of an assortment and it was a pain to transport. I wished I just ordered pizza. My kids have attended parties at similar afternoon times and most kids eat, including my kids. |
| You can’t win here. Anytime somebody here talks about serving pizza at a between-mealtime party people start screeching about how this is why this country is fat as hell and nobody needs pizza during a 2 hour window between lunch and dinner. |
Op here. Our party is at 10:30. There is no exact end time but I plan to serve food. |
What's the age group and where are you serving the meal? In the house with everyone seated, or buffet, or in the yard, or . . ..? |
Private indoor party venue. I was picturing leaving food out and allowing guests to eat at their leisure or to take food home if they didn’t feel comfortable eating at the party. Or we could seat all kids at the end of the party and serve pizza and cake. |
I wouldn't do something like a taco bar in that setting. I think it's too slow if you're paying for entertainment at a venue, and I think it's just got the potential to be really messy. I think something that you can serve to kids on plates, or a buffet with finger foods. I think people might feel more comfortable with Do you have a way to heat things there? If not, I think for plated either nuggets or pizza would work well. For a buffet fruit, cheese sticks, bagels (maybe already made up wtih cream cheese, and a few without), muffins, cheese sticks . . . If you can heat things, grilled cheese and quesadillas have both been a hit with my kids at parties. |
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Platters of sandwiches: PBJ, hummus/bagel, cheese.
Bowl of fruit Bags of chips Done. |
How about sandwiches from Panera or Paris baguette? |
Seat all kids and serve pizza. Don’t give this anymore thought |