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

The outrage here for people who just prefer having their evening meal earlier than what is perceived suitable How very dare they!

You must be gobbling it down like a loon, be a child or very elderly or at least just so regimented and uptight. Cos it's just not possible that people do what suits them or their families the best.

I'm not British so the class connotations sometimes escape me. This is one of them. In my home country (Scandinavia) people tend to eat early but kids do finish school as early as 12pm on some days and most office & factory based jobs finish at 4pm so dinner between 5-6pm is a norm.

I love Mediterranean food but I don't think I'd ever settle in Spain, Portugal etc. Eating at 10pm is just too late for me. But neither preference is wrong.

@SchrodingersImmigrant but what's the point in a mid afternoon snack? How's that any different to people complaining that if the eat dinner early they end up having a late evening snack?
I'd rather eat my dinner a bit earlier, be all cleared up and done ready to enjoy my evening.

Macaroni46
Those of you who eat dinner late, are you not starving? I get really hungry if I haven't eaten by 7.30.
But then I work in a school where lunch is at 12.
......
Most people have tea around 4pm, I always had a short break then and a small bite to eat, even at work.

I usually did have dinner between 7-7.30pm and my child ate with us from the age of two.

[quote Macaroni46]@SchrodingersImmigrant but what's the point in a mid afternoon snack? How's that any different to people complaining that if the eat dinner early they end up having a late evening snack?
I'd rather eat my dinner a bit earlier, be all cleared up and done ready to enjoy my evening. [/quote]
I didn't say it's in any way different 🤷🏻
I answered a question whether people are starving. I am not because I have a bit of yogurt and fruit. I am nkt dissing anyone's choices here

Also. I like fruit and yogurt and unless I have it as a snack I can't realky have it because it's not a proper meal😂 I am now not sure whether I have a snack to eat dinner later or I eat dinner later to have the snack😂

Dinner before 6 is unusual, unless you are a child or an old person.

Those of you who eat dinner late, are you not starving? I get really hungry if I haven't eaten by 7.30.

No, but then I have lunch at 2-2:30pm. Sometimes later. It's 9pm where I live and I still haven't had dinner, I'm not actually hungry (I did have a tangerine at 5pm). I will start looking in the cupboards around 9:30 with the aim of being finished by 10

We eat between 5-6, because we like to sit and eat as a family and the children are ravenous if we eat any later

We eat dinner at 5pm with our children. Kitchen is cleaned by 7pm and then we can relax once kids are in bed

"I love Mediterranean food but I don't think I'd ever settle in Spain, Portugal etc. Eating at 10pm is just too late for me. But neither preference is wrong."

Yes, but Spaniards have lunch much later too so it works out. What doesn't make sense for me is having lunch at 1 and then dinner at 8.30 or 9 and it's too close to bedtime too.
My problem is that when I'm used to eating at 6 or 7, I find eating out hard. Meet at 7.30, you're not usually eating until well past 8 and if I need to snack before, I still have the full meal afterwards so it leads to overeating.

In our 30s and our ideal dinner time is 5.30 but must eat before 6.30.

I work Flexi though and finish work at 3.30.

Do people who eat later have a big snack around 4? I would be starving by 6.

I don't particularly want a long evening (in Covid times) - what do you do all evening? If I've finished eating & clearing up by 8pm that gives an hour for a bit of tv, very occasionally a film, reading .... maybe I am dull but I struggle to fill my evenings now, especially if you can't get out for a walk at this time of year. A bath doesn't take that long .... genuinely interested in what you all do every evening .
Pre Covid I would be out at various activities, groups, Book Club etc but it's all so boring now.

Pre lockdown 8pm, now it's 5:30 with the kids

What time are you going to bed if you eat after 8? We eat about 6pm, we enjoy eating with kids and I find my indigestion is greatly improved. It's not that I overeat, but I find it uncomfortable lying down soon after eating and I'm usually in bed between 9 and 10.

I also enjoy relaxing for a couple of hours after dinner has been cleared away, I'd spend my evenings cooking or being about to start cooking if we ate later. I enjoy going 'off-shift' by about 7!

For all those 'I'd be so hungry if I ate earlier/later people', have you ever tried doing it the other way consistently for a week or two? When I went from eating dinner at 8.30 to 6 I woke up at 5am starving hungry for the first few mornings and always felt like I needed an evening snack, but my body just adjusted after a bit and both stopped happening. Similarly when I did 16:8 fasting it was so hard to not eat until 11am for about a week, and then you get used to it and stop noticing. Your body adjusts to whatever schedule you establish as the norm.

When I was able to walk to work, I would always eat by 5-5:30. When I had to commute, I didn't eat until about 7PM. I much prefer an early dinner. In my mind, 5PM is dinner time unless you are eating out. If I was booking a table in a restaurant, I'd probably say 7PM is more normal.

@Hardbackwriter

For all those 'I'd be so hungry if I ate earlier/later people', have you ever tried doing it the other way consistently for a week or two? When I went from eating dinner at 8.30 to 6 I woke up at 5am starving hungry for the first few mornings and always felt like I needed an evening snack, but my body just adjusted after a bit and both stopped happening. Similarly when I did 16:8 fasting it was so hard to not eat until 11am for about a week, and then you get used to it and stop noticing. Your body adjusts to whatever schedule you establish as the norm.

This is true. Few months ago I made a conscious effort not to snack after the evening meal and yes at first I had cravings at about 9pm but they eventually go away. It's just your mind playing tricks.

Lots of people eat really late but I personally eat about 4. Depending on how late you work I suppose. My digestive system begs not to eat late, I can't sleep with food still digesting

We have dinner at approx 5.30pm, I work part time, Hubby home from work at 5pm as he starts work at 7.45 am, one Daughter doing uni work from home and other Daughter home from school placement at 5pm (also uni student studying to be Primary School Teacher).

I do consider us as fortunate at the moment.

@ddot but aren’t you still digesting/full from lunch at 4pm?!

Patty pan
No I have big-ish meal at lunch and something little about 4.
Bit different for me as i dont have a stomach.

My sister eats after 6

Pattypan
That was for you

We’re up early so breakfast around 6:30am, lunch/dinner by 12 and tea by 5pm (we're in northern England so it’s breakfast, dinner and tea for us!!).

We eat an early tea because we’re lucky to both be home from work by 4:15 (school/NHS jobs so we’re both still working), we all eat early in the middle of the day so we’re ready and we like to be cleaned up and ready for the children to be in the bath at 6:30.

Each to their own, not sure why it has to be attributed to class/age or anything else.

I have dinner at 12/1pm. Tea happens at 6/6:30pm.