British version of an American "Pot Luck lunch"

[Thudercatsrule]

Evening wise mumsnetters,

I'm trying to organise a Christmas lunch in work where everyone brings a dish or snacks etc, but i dont know how to phrase it! They call it Pot Luck is the US.

I'm going to book a meeting room, some decorations and then just want everyone to chat and mingle and hopefully get secret santa going as well.

I need to do a poster/email invite.....but am totally stuck on what to say.

So......any ideas please?

Thanks so much everyone!

Would never have thought of “bring and share” that’s perfect.

i do love Fuddle though 😊

We call.it a buffet

Yes, it's a good old fuddle. This is one of the terms I won't drop after living in the E Midlands, even though nobody knows what I'm talking about 😄

I'm from Yorkshire and never heard of a fuddle.Im from South Yorkshire though so maybe it's a popular term in another part

Jacobs table, not join here. But would understand a bring and share. As others have said, write a list of foods “desert, crisps, drinks, cutlery, paper plates “ etc and get people to sign their name near one

Yorkshire here too. In my area we'd call this a pooled tea (or lunch). Very popular at village activities.

In Yorkshire, it's fuddle.

Wow I've never heard of Jacobs join or fiddle, even though I'm from the north east and have been a churchgoer in various places so exposed to a LOT of shared suppers done this way.

We call them Bring and Swear in our house (even though we like them a lot🙂)

Fuddle is a Midlands thing and have lived in both West and East Midlands, I’m off to one on 5 December.

It's known as a Jacob's Joint here in Lancashire.

What would you call it?

Never heard any of the terms except pot luck. Not even Bring and Share - though since your next instruction will be, 'Please bring a salad' or 'Please bring a dessert', I'd know what you meant!

Personally, since pot luck seems to be the most universally understood term, I'd use that.

Bring and share here too. We put up a list with everyone's name on so they can write what they are going to bring. That way the last people to sign up can see what is missing and (hopefully) bring that. It is also useful to note on the list if there are people who have allergies or who are vegetarian/vegan or who can't eat certain things for religious reasons, so that you don't get 30 egg and bacon quiches which can't be eaten by vegetarians, vegans, moslems, jews or anyone who is gluten or egg intolerant.
Our office had a lovely Argentinian lady who made the most wonderful frittata, one person who always made egg mayonnaise sandwiches (😫) and one who was famous for a certain cake she made every time. The men tended to go to the supermarket and bring back loads of packets of cold meats.

Munch and mingle.

Fuddle is used in the East Midlands too.

Jacobs join, never heard of it being called anything else but a Jacobs join.

Wow, literally never heard of fuddle or Jacob's join. (Londoner.) I'd have no idea what they were if I was invited to one. You learn something new every day.

Pot luck may be an American term but I'm instantly familiar with it and know what it means. Americanised culture I guess.

To me, pot luck means taking my chances so if you said it was a pot luck lunch, I’d think food was provided but it was pot luck as to what it would be.

I’ve done this in workplaces and it would be ‘bring a dish’ or ‘bring and share’
never heard of Jacobs join or fuddle!!
def heard if pot luck so would understand that too.
And 100% allocate categories.

Aww I love a fuddle! Used to organise the work one every year

eta… East Midlands

I don’t think I’ve heard of any of these before! A bring and share lunch is self explanatory though, I think if someone invited me to one of those I’d know what was expected of me.
if someone invited me to a fuddle I’d politely decline 😂 thinking it was going to involve something outdoorsy and wet 😂

I've always said "Jacobs Join". I come from Lancashire but now live in Wales where no one knows what Jacobs Join is 😂

We used to do this and called it ‘Bring and Share’ lunch

When I went to one they said “bring a plate” and there was a list to say if you planned to bring sweet or savoury.

I call it pot luck.

I've done a few and never had doubling up of dishes. But that jeopardy is part of the fun.

Enjoy!