Ideas for a really nice lunch at home

[Bemyclementine]

For Dsis birthday. DM normally does the birthday lunch but it has ended up (over the years) bring more children's party food and dsis would like something different.

I would love a proper grown up grazing table - but on plates.please!

If you are cooking duck breast, dauphinoise potatoes and veg.

C'mon give us a little bit more to work with : ages and stages, preferences, numbers, time of year, time you have to prepare it ?

Buffet or sit down meal? Budget constraints?

For ease I would do a cold lunch. Lovely cheeses, charcuterie, pate, crusty bread, olives etc.

Buffet or cooked? How many people and ages? Formal or informal?

If she doesn't want 'party food' vibes, a nice, sit down, more formal meal might be nice.

Whose going? Just adults or kids too?
Do you want to cook? Roast dinner? Curry with rice/Nan/poppadums and onion bhajis? Lasagne with salad and garlic bread.
or - nice bread with a selection of cheeses and cold meats. Pickles and chutneys and post crisps! Pate?
or - make a grown up afternoon tea style lunch.

@Dyslexicwonder sorry yes more info would be useful! Hust family, 4 kids, 5 adults

Today. I will go shopping en route. I dobt think she wants a full on cooked meal. Happy to do stuff the kids will like separately.

Informal too

I'd just do a big pot of something, beef bourgignone, chicken casserole, chilli or similar, a pot of rice or dauphinoise and a couple of salads or a dish of roasted veg. Keep it simple. Loads of different plates (back to party food again) end up looking messy very quickly.

Olives, nice crisps to go with drinks and buy a lovely cake.

I'd do a selection of cheeses, cold Italian/Spanish meats, olives, caper berries, stuffed peppers, different kinds of hummus, selection of different breads and crackers - grazing platter/mezze type thing for the adults. And some salad.
If the kids won't eat that then do kiddy party food for them separately - usual nonsense of party ring biscuits, cheese and pineapple hedgehog, sausage rolls, mini triangle sandwiches minus crusts, mushroom vol-au-vents etc etc

Ooh yes some patès and posh crisps too! Can we have a photo when you've done it, please?

@shrunkenhead that sounds amazing, I'm going with that.

Crusty bread, good cheese, olives, ham, smoked salmon etc. Like a nice Boxing Day buffet!

This is good, a hot gammon is a nice addition if you have time, not expensive or difficult to cook, I would do some jacket potatoes alongside.