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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I had a picky toddler who became a picky child who became a picky teen. He is now 15 and still only eats about 8 foods. I am glad we didn't start catering to him when he was young or else it would have been 15 years of bringing special foods and cooking separate meals. He is still alive and thriving so those meals at friends or family where he just picked a nothing didn't harm him.

I could probably count on one hand the number of times he has eaten dinner with us in his life. He joins us at the table but doesn't eat the food.[/quote]
This is an important point. I think some posters here are missing the distinction between how to handle a picky eater in general vs. how to handle them at a friends' house.

It is *never* okay to say that you think what a host is serving is "disgusting". That's rude, and a parent who condones that is not parenting well. I was a very picky eater growing up, and my mom would never have asked a host to make something special for me (and we socialized with other families almost weekly). If there was food in the spread I would eat, she would let me eat just that one thing without making a scene. And she would have me eat something before or after to stave off hunger. I think sometimes she offered to bring a dish (for everyone) that she knew I would like, but she'd ask in advance and not get upset if a host said no (but most hosts would not). I'm glad she did this instead of teaching me to expect a meal catered to me, because it taught me to navigate meals in the real world when you can't always have something special for you.

I agree with PPs that sometimes kids are just picky, and there's nothing you can do to expand their tastes...but there's a lot you can do around how you manage that pickiness. As to the OP's friend though, it's pretty weird to be so extreme over a 3 y.o...though if I were her I would have asked in advance if I could bring a dish. Since it sounds like this friend would say no, I would have fed my kid in advance or declined.[/quote]

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