Anonymous
11/18/2025 20:31
Subject: Can guests take home leftovers if they've cooked the dish?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I have zero interest in leftovers, so when I host I try to pawn stuff off on everyone else. I will usually just throw a little bit of each dish into containers and stop thinking about it forever. However, if you really want to take the rest of your creamed corn home with you, I'm happy to oblige.
Soooo American.
Not fighting over food? That's okay with me.
Who said anyone is “fighting”? It’s a way to share their togetherness.
Arguing over who deserves the leftovers or otherwise feeling resentful about them? That's not togetherness I need.
You don’t get it. Fighting and “arguing” never happens. What kind of family/friends do you have??
The kind who don't care about who does or doesn't get leftovers. What's "sooooo American" here? Not wanting them in the first place?
Your mindset
So not wanting them? More for you then. I'm glad someone will eat them, but I don't want them.
Anonymous
11/18/2025 20:27
Subject: Can guests take home leftovers if they've cooked the dish?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I have zero interest in leftovers, so when I host I try to pawn stuff off on everyone else. I will usually just throw a little bit of each dish into containers and stop thinking about it forever. However, if you really want to take the rest of your creamed corn home with you, I'm happy to oblige.
Soooo American.
Not fighting over food? That's okay with me.
Who said anyone is “fighting”? It’s a way to share their togetherness.
Arguing over who deserves the leftovers or otherwise feeling resentful about them? That's not togetherness I need.
You don’t get it. Fighting and “arguing” never happens. What kind of family/friends do you have??
The kind who don't care about who does or doesn't get leftovers. What's "sooooo American" here? Not wanting them in the first place?
Your mindset
Anonymous
11/18/2025 20:26
Subject: Can guests take home leftovers if they've cooked the dish?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I have zero interest in leftovers, so when I host I try to pawn stuff off on everyone else. I will usually just throw a little bit of each dish into containers and stop thinking about it forever. However, if you really want to take the rest of your creamed corn home with you, I'm happy to oblige.
Soooo American.
Not fighting over food? That's okay with me.
Who said anyone is “fighting”? It’s a way to share their togetherness.
Arguing over who deserves the leftovers or otherwise feeling resentful about them? That's not togetherness I need.
You don’t get it. Fighting and “arguing” never happens. What kind of family/friends do you have??
The kind who don't care about who does or doesn't get leftovers. What's "sooooo American" here? Not wanting them in the first place?
Anonymous
11/18/2025 20:15
Subject: Re:Can guests take home leftovers if they've cooked the dish?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:To answer your title question, no. Stop trying to take home food! To answer the question in the body of the post about if it's potluck, I don't know - bc I would never attend a potluck.
You sound terrible. I happily give away food. I don’t care at all…if you leave it I will eat it, if you take it good!
Why wouldn't you attend a potluck? Are you not confident in your ability to cook?
I wouldn't attend a potluck because I don't have confidence in other people's cleanliness or food safety.. I've seen way too many people's cats walking on kitchen counters, way too many people walk out of public bathrooms without washing their hands, etc.
Meow!
Anonymous
11/18/2025 20:14
Subject: Can guests take home leftovers if they've cooked the dish?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I have zero interest in leftovers, so when I host I try to pawn stuff off on everyone else. I will usually just throw a little bit of each dish into containers and stop thinking about it forever. However, if you really want to take the rest of your creamed corn home with you, I'm happy to oblige.
Soooo American.
Not fighting over food? That's okay with me.
Who said anyone is “fighting”? It’s a way to share their togetherness.
Arguing over who deserves the leftovers or otherwise feeling resentful about them? That's not togetherness I need.
You don’t get it. Fighting and “arguing” never happens. What kind of family/friends do you have??
Anonymous
11/18/2025 20:10
Subject: Can guests take home leftovers if they've cooked the dish?
When I host I prefer that people take their contributions home. I don’t need a mishmash of leftovers clogging the fridge.
Anonymous
11/18/2025 17:20
Subject: Can guests take home leftovers if they've cooked the dish?
I typically get out saran wrap and cover the various dishes and ask the people to bring them home with whatever leftover food in it. This way I don’t need to clean their serving dish.
Anonymous
11/18/2025 17:17
Subject: Can guests take home leftovers if they've cooked the dish?
My family always asks if anyone wants leftovers. It’s not a big deal.
Anonymous
11/18/2025 17:17
Subject: Can guests take home leftovers if they've cooked the dish?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:
Cooks have first dibs on their own dishes.
Actually, hosts have first dibs on leftovers and can offer them back to the cook/divvy them up to guests/or keep them. I usually return the guests' containers with any food inside that night so we won't have to arrange a pick up.
Nope. The host does not have dibs on food they have not prepared. The host may or may not receive a host gift, depending on whether the event is rotated between homes, or is between people who are very close to each other and therefore under no formal etiquette rules.
But just because you're hosting doesn't make you automatically the recipient of the food that people bring to your house.
Anonymous
11/18/2025 17:14
Subject: Can guests take home leftovers if they've cooked the dish?
I host people for the entire weekend although some guests are local. I invite everyone over for Friday leftovers.
Anonymous
11/18/2025 16:50
Subject: Can guests take home leftovers if they've cooked the dish?
If there is extra food left over, it is always offered up to guests to take home in doggy bags. So it would be weird if Aunt Carol was like "ok cool, im packing up the rest of the stuffing and taking it back home" and leaving none for everyone else. But if no one wanted it, or there was still a lot left over after everyone got their doggy bag, I'd 100% offer them to take it home. Less work for the host to clean and store.
Anonymous
11/18/2025 16:47
Subject: Can guests take home leftovers if they've cooked the dish?
It's a conversation. We are heading out of town tomorrow...you keep it. Maybe the boys will eat it as a late night snack if you take it home? I don't think anyone should assume anything.
Anonymous
11/18/2025 16:44
Subject: Re:Can guests take home leftovers if they've cooked the dish?
Anonymous wrote:I think the host should invite the people who brought the food to take it home if they would like, and the polite reply is "are you sure? You're welcome to keep it." Then the host should say something like "it was so delicious, but we've got so much food, our fridge is absolutely heaving." Once both parties have sufficiently encouraged the other party to take/keep the food, the people who made it can take it. At least this is how it plays out in my circles.
This sounds like every potluck I’ve ever attended!
If I’m bringing a dish that’s a favorite of my kids to a potluck, I’ll double the recipe and keep half at home.
Anonymous
11/18/2025 15:23
Subject: Can guests take home leftovers if they've cooked the dish?
Our parents are all older. We make extra, and put together freezer packs of various elements of the meal. It’s like meal prepping for them to make their lives easier. The only irritating part is if they start giving it away to appear generous-which they are- but really need the meal-making relief themselves.
Anonymous
11/18/2025 14:50
Subject: Can guests take home leftovers if they've cooked the dish?
If you bring it and/or it is a potluck, bring the food in a reusable dish. Then after the meal, ask "do you have something I can put the rest of this in or do you want me to take it home?"