Over/under Catering

[itstrue]

We had an extended family lunch yesterday.

I was told that the lunch would contain chicken, coleslaw and buns. I was asked to bring buns and garlic bread for 11 people.

I provided 3 buns per person. Buns were a small hand size each and a small garlic bread per person.

One family member went on and on about how I had brought too much. So much so that I was really embarrassed and upset.

AIBU or is this an abnormal amount to bring for such an event?

Sounds right to me, and so what if it turned out to be too much? You can take it home, have sandwiches for lunch next week, spaghetti bolognaise with garlic bread. Sorted.

Someone was just trying to get you on the back foot. Was it chicken person by any chance?

Don't let them upset you. I'd rather be over catered for or over cater than food being tight.

3 small buns plus a bit of garlic bread per person with some chicken and coleslaw is a normal sized meal so no you didn't bring too much imo. How much chicken and coleslaw was there ?

Better for there to be a bit left over than not enough.
Why did you have to bring the buns AND the garlic bread if there were 11 people? Or were the majority children otherwise someone else should have brought one or the other anyway.
So what if there are some left over, they can always be eaten later anyway. Other person is weird. Ignore them.

Someone was just trying to get you on the back foot. Was it chicken person by any chance

Yes it was the chicken person! She cooked 1 chicken and probably 20 chicken nibbles.

I did take buns and garlic bread home but mostly because it wasn't put out for people to eat!

I know it probably seems like an over reaction but I was really told off about the amount I'd brought!

Why did you have to bring the buns AND the garlic bread if there were 11 people?

There were three family groups attending. I got buns and garlic bread (no choice as I was told what to bring). Another did chicken and coleslaw. And the third family brought oven chips - one 750gran bag for 11 people! But that's another story!

Chicken person saw that you brought an appropriate amount, and realised that they had not catered for 11 would be highlighted.

Not your problem OP, people who are stingy with food really annoy me. If it’s affordability, say something, if you’re being cheap, fuck off, I’ll feed myself and anyone else who is hungry, pasta bake anyone? 🙄🙄🙄

One chicken and 20 chicken nibbles for 11 people! That's appalling. Less than 2 nibbles plus a (very) small bit of chicken per person is really stingy.
She was trying to deflect attention from herself to you.
And with less than 75 grams of chips per person it sounds like a miserable meal. At least they could fill up a bit on the buns and bread you brought.

She would have looked at her measly one chicken and 20 nibbles and realised that no way could those buns be filled with that amount! So she tried to divert the blame to you rather than herself. Given the number I would have taken two chickens plus a supply of the nibbles for the children and to top up any shortfall in the chicken.

You are completely right and she is as tight as a duck's arse.

Oh! I didn't think that she could be redirecting on to me. But yes there so wasn't enough chicken to go around so that could be the reason. I was also chip less!

Definitely too little chicken and chips to go round! Especially with kids. Before I had kids and hosted a lunch with 3 I was shocked at how much they ate. Wondered why the mother wasn't tucking in 😂
Even if you were providing all the food it's so hard to get right. My mum hosts different groups in her home frequently (friend, family, hobby groups) and its impossible to get right. Sometimes people barely eat anything and others pile high their plates! Better to be under than over and if you're over it saves some cooking for a few days x

I reckon an average chicken severed r or 5 for a meal, especially big men
They definitely eat a quarter easily in my house. 4- 6 nuggets for a 7yo child, if they're 10 or 11 year olds they're likely to want about 12 IME. Id be doing 3 bags of chops and a couple of salads too. Sounds like uou have stingy relations.
Did you get deserts at least?
If you can afford yo I'd show them up by doing it properly next time you host. You can do it on s low budget if you're very careful.

Around here, catering plenty per person is called country women’s catering.

Don’t ever be shamed into thinking that people might be hungry and catering to match is a bad thing. Well done on your decision making.

You bought the right amount and chicken person was being stingy. Was it your mum?

Wow love chicken and a small bag of oven chips for eleven people! You're the only one who got the amount right and to always be generous in catering, left overs of that kind will always get eaten for lunches etc. Was it the infamous MN chicken that can serve a family of five for a week??

*one chicken!

Id have done about 4 large chickens and a couple of big bags of chicken nuggets for the kids plus a few bags of oven chips i doubt there would be left overs either if she'd done that much plus your rolls and garlic bread! What a stingy woman

OP you took a decent amount. The others did not take enough food! Never under cater. You should always be eating leftovers after a party, it's a sign you provided plenty :)

In my family providing 1 chicken and 20 nibbles for 11 people would result in someone being sent out on the spot for more food.

It's not you op!

Some people just don't like food. Chicken person sounds like a stingy fucker.

You certainly took the right amount of food, I’ve been catering for guests this weekend and have clearly bought too much but my guests are happy, they had plenty of choice, everything can be eaten up this week or frozen and I was able to take a load of cakes into work to share and give some items to the local Food Bank ... no problem at all. I would be furious if anyone told me I had ‘over catered’ .

I am a shameless overcaterer. The thought of not having enough food makes me feel very uncomfortable. Leftovers always get eaten and frankly people tend to end up eating most things, I don’t see the big deal. Nothing worse than not having enough food, chicken lady and chips lady should be thoroughly ashamed. Clearly deflecting onto you.

It certainly isn't you OP - chicken person is deflecting.
I have a fear of undercatering - my mums fault, she always made enough food to serve the street!
(One Xmas I had 4 unexpected guests on the day - I was able to (over)feed them and still had leftovers!)

You brought far too much bread, but the person who went on about it was rude. I would have thought most people would have one or two bread items, so about twice as much as needed.

Doesn't sound like enough chicken unless the chicken nibbles were the size of a whole thigh or half a breast, which most aren't.

I think that's a lot of bread per person. Personally I would only have had one roll and the garlic bread. (and I am not a small person)

But that's a much lesser issue than there being way too little chicken and chips. That's total madness. It's much better (in fact imo almost essential just in case a couple of people eat more than expected) to overcater than to undercater.

One chicken and 750g of chips for 11 people? Yikes. I would personally expect to need to do two large chickens and so would do three, to make sure there was enough.

You weren't the problem there.

If it gets raised again, I would just say 'it's better to have too much food than too little. I got hardly any chicken, and no chips!'