To think most people *haven't* eaten dinner by 6pm??

[JumboShiitake]

According to DP "most people" have eaten dinner by 6pm.

Referring to adults, not children.

He's obsessed with eating at a time I consider pretty early.

I'm giving him the side eye

I eat when I'm hungry, not according to the clock

Don’t you work?

I eat when I'm hungry, not according to the clock and yes, I work. What a weird question.

@DicklessWonder

I eat when I'm hungry, not according to the clock and yes, I work. What a weird question.

you know the poster meant that there are only so many jobs that allow you to eat at work or whilst working when you feel like it

@DicklessWonder

I eat when I'm hungry, not according to the clock and yes, I work. What a weird question.

Why weird? It might come as a surprise to you (a revelation even) but the majority of employed people have set lunch breaks. Do you see cashiers eating egg Mayo sandwiches whilst scanning your food? Or nurses in ICU eating spaghetti Bol whilst on shift? Or teachers tucking into a bag of crisps in front of the whiteboard? Obviously not. Great if you don’t work or have a flexible job...Hardly a revolutionary idea though 💡

I should have added that even when I manage a miracle and dinner or ready at or around 6, that's when we sit down to start eating - we are never finished before 6.

For me dinner would be served anytime from 6pm until 8pm. The only people I know who have dinner earlier are the very young or the very old.

I'd be interested to know if anyone with experience of living in a country where people typically eat later, e.g. in Spain, would say there is less variation generally?

I think we've had everything from 4.30 to about midnight on this thread *

• not counting posters who have to eat to fit round shift work

@SchrodingersImmigrant

I love how even eating times can be a class thing in the UK

I know. And it's such a load of utter rot.

I guess the working class like me can only plan their meals around their work and commuting times

while the Upper Class has flexible diaries and help.

So I am imagine class can have something to do with it for some.

I live in Portugal and I have yet to see anyone mention dinner before 8.

Except older people, or large group dinners, so that dinner actually starts at 8. :)
Most restaurants don't even open before 7.

We can spot the British tourists in the restaurants because it's the families leaving when everyone else is arriving.

@JumboShiitake I'm Spanish and I'd say there is still some variation but probably not as much as on this thread!

No one in Spain eats dinner at 6pm because kids finish school at 5, so by 6 you've only just eaten your after-school snack. All activities such as dance school, clubs, sports take place after school. I was in school 9am-5pm and from the age of 6, in music school or other activities from 5:30 until 8/9pm. That's a completely normal schedule for children. Most schools have a longer lunch break (1.5/2h), some kids go home to eat their lunch and have some down time, or it's outdoors play time 1:30-3pm if you stay in school.

I'd say 7:30pm is an early dinner in Spain. Most families eat together around 9pm. Rarely do children eat earlier than their parents so they can go to bed. At the weekends it can be even later, in summer it's more like 10/10:30pm. Christmas dinner never starts before 9-9:30pm. It's a completely different culture and kids aren't treated differently just because of their age. Everyone eats and goes to sleep roughly at the same time.

We can spot the British tourists in the restaurants because it's the families leaving when everyone else is arriving.

This is so true
Wandering around the city at 12pm looking for a place that can serve lunch (when most restaurants haven't even opened their kitchens yet), is another way of branding yourself in Southern Europe.

I'd say 7:30pm is an early dinner in Spain. Most families eat together around 9pm. Rarely do children eat earlier than their parents so they can go to bed

Yeah, I live in Portugal and this is one English custom I've held onto. I LOVE having a few child-free hours every evening. I don't think I'd be able to survive without it.

When they get a bit older and more independent I'll probably switch to the local way, but for now when they demand my full attention every waking hour, I'd rather have some time to myself.

@WhiteLittleDots

I'd say 7:30pm is an early dinner in Spain. Most families eat together around 9pm. Rarely do children eat earlier than their parents so they can go to bed

Yeah, I live in Portugal and this is one English custom I've held onto. I LOVE having a few child-free hours every evening. I don't think I'd be able to survive without it.

When they get a bit older and more independent I'll probably switch to the local way, but for now when they demand my full attention every waking hour, I'd rather have some time to myself.

Are school times different in these countries.

I know that when mine were little and had to get up at 7am to get to school by 6pm they were starting to get really tired and were in bed between 7pm-8pm every night.

Only when on holiday and could allow them to sleep in or have a nap mid afternoon could we keep them up later at night.

@Iknowwhatudidlastsummer

I guess the working class like me can only plan their meals around their work and commuting times

while the Upper Class has flexible diaries and help.

So I am imagine class can have something to do with it for some.

I think you missed the point that the ORIGIN was to do with differences in work and social patterns.

So it became the norm in some communities to eat earlier and in some later.

Unless something comes along to change that, those habits tend to remain.

And communities do tend to follow patterns. If you live somewhere where everyone goes in for tea at 5:30, you find you start to fall in to that pattern more. If you live somewhere where dinner isn't til 7pm, you start to follow that too.

It is just humans being humans.

And I love the chip on the shoulder about it too

Are school times different in these countries.

They don't start much later, no. Primary schools in Spain are 9-5, give or take half an hour depending on each school.

No one goes to bed at 7, normal bedtime for young kids is around 9:30-10pm. It's a different pace of life... both adults and children tend to have a longer lunch break (what traditionally would be a siesta but obviously that's not an option during the week for most). But 10pm-7am still gives you 11h of sleep which is more than enough.

10pm to 7am = 9 hours.

7-7.30 here - used to be more like 8-8.30 but pulled it forward to eat with the kids now they are a bit older.

"But 10pm-7am still gives you 11h of sleep"

Is that in Spanish currency🤔

Thought that was 9 hrs...

To maybe add to the class thing, when I was at university (Oxbridge) we had two seatings of dinner in my college, 6 and 7.15 and some of my friends always went to the 7.15 one because 6 was too early. Obviously students keep different hours to working adults though!

Sorry, that's 9h - I counted from 8pm for some reason 😂

Point still standing, 9h is a reasonable amount of sleep and kids grow up just fine on that schedule.

@blowinahoolie

"But 10pm-7am still gives you 11h of sleep"

Is that in Spanish currency🤔

Thought that was 9 hrs...

which would not have been enough for dd at primary age.

comefromaway same for my DC. Nine hours not enough for them. More like 11/12 hours.

Our dinner or tea as we call it is from 5 onwards to 6.30 depending on how hungry we are must admit I like every done by seven.

Weekends are later but, in the main we eat between 6.30 & 7.30. DS's8&10 eat with us and I'd rather they had an hour or so after dinner before bath/shower etc. In bed by 9pm. Plus, I want chores over with before whatever starts at 9pm on TV!
When they were little, they ate before us and we ate when they were in bed so 7.30-8pm.
These days, the boredom has necessitated an additional twixt meal though!
When I was young, we at 5pm. Dad went out to work at 7am, ate lunch at 12 and was home and hungry at 5!