Family friends around for dinner Saturday night- can i do a roast?

I’m in the no camp.

Too heavy for a Saturday night and it will also be a bit crap if they were planning on having a roast in their own house the following day.

I think it's more about suggesting different flavours in case they're having a more traditional one Sunday. That's all.

I would eat a roast dinner any night of the week very happily

If you love a roast dinner and you're skilled at making it, then there's nothing to stop you serving it any time. It's a great meal when done well.

But if you're worried everyone will be having something similar on the Sunday and want to make something different then as others have suggested maybe consider a twist on a classic roast.

For example, roast a chicken with a barbecue style spice rub, make some little roast potatoes with Cajun seasoning, and have veg that suit the theme, e.g., corn on the cob, greens, sweet potato. Serve a homemade barbecue sauce instead of gravy.

Or roast a chicken with Moroccan spices, and serve it with a pile of aromatic cous cous and other suitable accompaniments.

Can you do a roast but with slightly different tweaks so gammon, roasted mixed root veg, parsley sauce not gravy etc??

Yum! Can I come to yours for dinner? 😛😂

I LOVE a roast dinner but I wouldn't do one, or fancy eating one, on a Saturday night if I am being honest.

Saturday nights I love something I wouldn't normally have in the week like a homemade curry with all the accompaniments.

Well a roast would be welcome by me! Roast Beef in particular with yummy Yorkshire puds

I love a roast!

Could you maybe make it a bit more Saturday night dinner by doing a roast but a different theme?

What about a roasted Greek style leg of lamb, with roast potatoes, Greek salad, roast Mediterranean veg, tzatziki… maybe a bit of flatbread on the side

Laughing at how the middle eastern cuisine is somehow superior.

I don't think anyone said it's superior - just that IMO it has more of a Saturday night with friends feel, along with Thai or Mexican dishes

@PistachioTiramisu I’ve never cooked a roast of any kind on any day apart from Sunday, with the exception of Christmas Day. I don’t have the time to cook two separate meals on a week night, which I would have to do if I roasted a chicken for my husband.

All those who say a roast should only be served on Sunday, do you never have a roast chicken during the week? I would be thrilled to be served roast beef or chicken on a Saturday. I don't agree with PP who have suggested anything very spicy or unusual vegetables - personally I would be unable to eat anything like that, but of course if you know your friends like that type of food, it's a good idea.

I love a roast, but I would do one or two curries the day before, or lasagne etc so that on the day it is just sides.

I love a roast but there is something off about having it on a Saturday night. I think because to me it is followed by a nap!

The other day I did a delicious slow cooker brisket. We had it piled in soft rolls with sautéed onions and a little bowl of dipping gravy each. I would probably opt for something like this with roast potatoes to be eaten with fingers on the side and corn on the cobs.

I love a roast any day of of the week, even better if I hadn’t had to cook it myself, go for it

I'd do a piece of roast meat but different sides. So maybe spiced roast lamb with potatoes wedges and a Greek salad and tzatziki. . Or slow cooked pork with dauphinois potatoes and tender stem broccoli. Something like that.

I love the advice to avoid a roast by doing a roast with different carbs and veggies as somehow not a roast and so magically lighter

I think the answers you are getting depend on whether people love a roast or not. I am in the former category. In fact I often cook a roast on Saturday night and then have another one on Sunday or Monday with the left over meat. My mouth is watering now. Laughing at how the middle eastern cuisine is somehow superior. I love all cuisines but you can't beat a roast and it's definitely not just for Sundays.

Nonsense, not everyone can have a roast on a Sunday. Mine are usually a Saturday as it suits our life’s better!

I think it’s too heavy for an evening meal tbh, I need a few hours of either vegging out on a sofa or going for a country walk to feel like I’ve digested a roast?

Nooooo! The one thing better than a Sunday roast is NO Sunday roast. The day I left home at 18 was the day I swore I would never eat another Sunday roast again - even though my mum was an excellent cook roast meat, potatoes, and gravy turn my stomach. Fifty years later I eat roast turkey at Xmas and Easter and roast chicken maybe twice a year, but I’ve never willingly eaten a traditional roast apart from that. I’ve never been tempted by my husband’s roast beef, lamb, or pork, and I don’t think I could eat a roast potato if my life depended on. It.

But you can absolutely mimic the cooking process - do a leg or shoulder of lamb with Middle Eastern sort of spices, serve with flatbreads, hummus, olives, salad.
I ca me on to say DP and I do something similar on Christmas Eve: we roast a really good free-range chicken (have done a large whole fish before too). It definitely feels 'special' enough for a Saturday dinner. We usually have quinoa with flaked almonds, herbs and pomegranate seeds, which looks beautiful. And salad/veg, yoghurt, harissa, olives etc.

I’d be disappointed but maybe that’s because I wouldn’t even choose a roast dinner on a Sunday.
Saturday nights with friends tends to be curries, Mexican, Thai or even just pizza and salad if I’m feeling lazy. My husband would be happy with a roast but that’s because we never make them at home.

I did flattened turkey breast stuffed with sausage meat stuffing and wrapped in pancetta and served sliced (you wrap about 4 breasts at a time into a roll) served with roast spuds etc and brussel sprout gratin and everyone loved it. You can prep in advance and just bung in the oven.

I think fine, albeit I don't usually have one on a Sunday.

It's also a practical choice for guests as long as you don't mind the prep, since you're serving several different things. Someone who doesn't like potatoes might have extra broccoli instead