To think this is really tight?

[Snap8TheCat]

Dd went to a birthday party after school on Friday, official invitation and everything. She came home and changed and went to the little girl’s house at 4pm so definitely a party and not just a play date. She was one of about 7/8 guests.

We duly bought a present (£12) and card as indeed you should and dd came home with not so much as a sniff of birthday cake. She said there was a cake and they sang happy birthday but it wasn’t sliced up and offered.

They played pass the parcel and the birthday child won

The rest was just playing in the child’s playroom which is fine, dd said she had a good time.

I just think the whole thing is a bit cheeky. There is a bit of background with this family and piss taking but isn’t it a bit greedy to accept presents and not even give a slice of cake?

Yes, it's tight.

I think they were having family over later or the next day and wanted to save the cake. I remember one woman bought an extremely elaborate cake to a playgroup for everyone to sing happy birthday and for the little one to blow the candles out. Then she put the cake back in the box and produced an Asda traybake saying 'cake is for the family only'.

I always tell.my kids they are not going to win the prizes at their parties, I tell them it's rude and grabby., they'll have enough presents to open later.
They have never complained. However, I always do them a party bag.

Maybe DD had fairy cake there instead? If she ate something and had fun (which she did), I'd call it a success. Lack of birthday cake or party bag home wouldn't bother me.

I always but a cheaper supermarket birthday cake to cut into generous portions and send home in party bags. We've sometimes have many turns to sing or blow out candles and that's a lot of slobber. Less germs and organised. (Shrug).

My DC wouldn't win games at their own party, I'm not bothered if others allow it.

I always bake and decorate cupcakes specially for the party bags, to save me the hassle of cutting up and wrapping up cake in the 10 minutes between blowing the candles out and everyone wanting to leave. And there I was thinking I was being terribly organised with the party bags all ready to go
Didn't realise that cupcakes were deemed inferior!

Reminds me of a family at my sons preschool. Invited everyone for a birthday tea at local restaurant. Parents all paid for their own kids meals. No party bags and they happily took all the gifts.
Same parents were polishing off the buffet at my sons party

YANBU
We were invited to a 1st birthday party - adults and all - the son of one of my DHs family friends.

The school hall was free as the mum worked there but they hired a bouncy castle and spent probably most on food as there was a lot of adults.

Cue pass the parcel, and they stopped the music on the birthday boy and his sister constantly.

When it came to the cake, they cut a large made to order blue fresh cream cake. When it came to serving the cake the mum was giving out slices from a green cake, the cheap large rectangular £10 ones from Costco. At the same time there was a few bowls with the blue cake (nothing special about this cake - i.e. Vegan, or dairy free etc)
My DS who at the time was 3, said Mummy I don't want the green cake I want the blue one.
She point blank refused. I said could he just have a small slice. She said no.
I said fine he won't have any then.
Basically as I watched her she was giving out the more expensive cake to her immediate family and the cheap one to everyone else. 😡
Fine but is giving one slice to a small child going to kill you?

A birthday party without cake is just a party.

Maybe they had guests coming around later and wanted to save the cake for then?

My brother thought we were loaded because we lived in what he considered a 'big' house. In fact our disposable income was miniscule because we had prioritised paying a massive mortgage on the 'big' house over having other things. As a policy it paid off in the end but we did have some very lean years.

Not giving cake to take home is fine.

Cutting a cake in front of children and then not giving them any cake at all to eat at the party is just bizarre!

They may have simply forgotten. It happens.

I went to dozens of parties as a child. Most of them have blended together with the passing of time. But one still stands out.

The mother lit the candles on the cake, took heaps of photos of the cake and then refused to cut it up because the father (who was at work) hadn't had a chance to see it with the candles on. He apparently had seen it in the morning before leaving for work - just minus the candles. Cue many disappointed and confused children (and several parent helpers giving each other looks as if to say WTF?). Why not show him one of the many photos you just took?!

Nothing like that has ever happened since at any party I've been to and I still think it was "off" all these years later.

Bet they just didn't want to share it, emmy. As if the absent daddy would have been upset not to see a kids cake with fecking candles on it!

Kids never really eat cake anyway. Usually they're so stuffed with other junk by then they've no interest in my experience.

But in answer to the op, if your kid had fun, I personally wouldn't care about the rest.