Kids party etiquette

[BirthdayFoodHelp]

What food would you serve at a kids party at home between 2 to 4.30pm?

I'm not from the UK so typically at this time we'd just have cake/sweet stuff.

Would you serve savoury stuff like crisps/sandwiches as well? Closer to 2pm or closer to 5pm (would it basically replace dinner?).

Also, if it's a birthday at home with just a few friends, we would open the presents after the cake/blowing candles. But i've never seen presents being open at a party here, so would it be right not to open them while guests are here?

Thank you for enlightening me!

I'd open the gifts when the guests arrive - presumably they'll hand over the gifts at that point. The birthday girl /boy should be schooled in saying polite "thank yous" as they open them.

At that time of day I'd serve both savory and sweet foods, at around 3-30pm if the party is going until 4-30pm.

I'd put sandwiches, sausage rolls, crisps out as well as cakes, fruit, biscuits etc. I would also save the presents for when the friends went home, depending on how many friends- 2 or 3, maybe open them when they are given, but any more than that and I'd save opening them for the evening/ next day. I tend to serve the food around halfway through a party regardless of what time it starts, it's enough time for the kids to start getting fractious and bored, then enough time after to play again. I wouldnt expect the food to replace a dinner but we eat late as a family anyway (6.30 ish).

I'm not from the UK so typically at this time we'd just have cake/sweet stuff.

Not possible. That would be classed as an "unhealthy snack" and only the UK do this.

Jk.
You usually do the food in the last half/third of the party in my experience, and presents are taken away to open later (with a thankyou text to the giver if you can)

Ah interesting, it's only 2 or 3 friends so seems like opening presents is OK. Will practice polite thank yous with DC again beforehand!

Ah OK so the food is just a snack basically but should be a mix of sweet and savoury. Around 3.30 sounds good. I'll make sausage rolls and sandwiches.

Haha we eat so much more sweet stuff than the UK but are somehow a healthier nation overall, go figure! (Though I shouldn't count myself in the "we" as I've been here so long I'm practically British. Just lack the experience in child birthday parties, it's my first DC!)

For young primary age children, I would serve sandwiches (jam and cheese - I find all veggie food is easier), pizza and jelly if I was going all out, party rings, popcorn, breadsticks and the semi-obligatory and usually ignored veggie platter. Pom bears are also popular. Choice of water or orange/blackcurrant squash).

I personally think it's best to open presents afterwards in case there's quite a large disparity in the size or expense of presents or presents are duplicated.