Just checking-if you were planning a weekend with friends at someone's house and I said

[BertrandRussell]

"shall we do a pot luck supper on
Saturday night?" what would you think I meaner?

I'd think everyone was to bring a dish and there'd be no conferring so you could get a mix of anything. I've done it a few times, it's fun. In a smaller group I'd get people to bring either a starter, main or dessert.

As an aside, my Irish MIL considered it the height of rudeness to invite people to eat at your house but ask them to bring food. She was utterly aghast at the concept

Are we playing pool?

I'd never heard of that.

I don't think it's saying leftovers. The question "shall we?" Suggests forethought is going into Saturdays meal so without having further information I would take it to mean each invitee or group of invitees chooses a different dish and prepares it for everyone

I'd assume it meant everyone brings something, but I'd never heard the term 'pot luck' used in that context until I moved to the US.

I'd assume you meant everyone brings a dish.
Taking pot luck would be a different thing.

I've never heard the expression, I assume you had no set plans to eat anything specific and we would cook something on the day?

I would think everyone brings a different part of the meal.

Or if you are all staying somewhere maybe everyone is responsible for getting and preparing a different part of the meal so the responsibility/cost doesn't just fall to one party.

This is interesting! We're a big group- we spend a couple of weekends a year together. Nobody has far to travel and we usually have a barbecue on the Saturday night. We were thinking of something different, and I suggested a pot luck supper-meaning everybody bring a dish. I was going suggest the "hosts" provide salad and jacket potatoes, but I didn't get that far because nobody knew what I meant-most people though I meant cobble together a meal from what was available. This is the second d time something similar has happened to me- so I must be me that's out of step!

Are you from foreign, Bertrand?

Rest of my comment.... I've only ever heard it on American television so would guess bringing a dish.

I would assume cobble together from fridge/freezer remnants. Have never heard pot luck to mean everyone bring something. Irish/Londoner if it makes a difference.

I presume I’d know you/the situation well enough to know which option you meant. The situation and how you phrased it would assume you meant everyone bring a dish. I’d have suggested a takeaway instead, I hate messing about taking a dish.

What was the first time? I would think everyone bring a dish.

I’d have no idea what you meant either!

I know it, because I used to work with lots of Americans!

Everyone brings a dish.

Not usual to hear it in the UK, although it seems to be catching on!

I’d have known what you meant. Does this mean I watch too much American TV?

I say 'pot luck supper' when I look in the fridge and cupboards and just make something out of what's available. However, if someone I was going to stay with said it I would take it to mean Pot Luck Supper in the American sense where everyone brings a dish of something.

I was totally befuddled by being invited to a 'Safari Supper' once, it was not what I thought it was going to be.

It is really an american phrase - never heard it except as "cobble together nice things from the fridge/pantry" until I moved here.

I would also think cobble together something from what's in the house. And I would think it was a bit presumptuous if it wasn't your house!

I was totally befuddled by being invited to a 'Safari Supper' once, it was not what I thought it was going to be.

What was it??? Did you have to kill your food?

If I said it to a partner I would mean let's make what we can from left-overs, whatever's in the fridge and cupboards. If I were saying it to friends I would presume it meant we all should bring a dish and hope there aren't 6 pots of roast potatoes.

CassandraCross if I got invited to a safari supper I’d expect to be eating something like zebra ( and I’d have a sandwich before I arrived!) what on Earth is it?

If you said “we’ll have to take pot luck” I would expect to take my chances on whatever was knocking about your fridge/freezer. If you said “a pot luck supper” I would know to bring a dish, but only because my teenage years were mostly spent reading American YA books.

I would assume everyone brought a dish and id be surrounded by attractive gay men when I got there 😂