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

Well, surprisingly, not everyone keeps those hours. Some people work 6-2 or 8-4 etc. Some people live much closer to work than 1 hour away.

Some people use slow cookers so their tea is ready for them when they get home. Some people WFH and/or have a flexible schedule so might do more work in the evening.

We eat at 5pm.

I never thought about this till now. We usually eat between 5.30 - 6.30 depending what time I'm in from work. Used to eat much later before DD came along, so I guess we just got into the habit of earlier just to eat as a family before she went to bed. She's older now so maybe we ought to push it back again, this might help me stop snacking at night!! Yeah... Gosh, I'm glad I read this thread 😊

I'm in a white collar job in the north. My commute is 11 mins. I usually finish work at 5 so start cooking as soon as I get in. Most weekday meals are really simple to cook so don't take long. Plus I eat something very small at my desk at 12 whilst still working, don't have a break and I'm really hungry by 5.

We all eat at 7 - adults & children. I always 9used to) find it all a horrible rush on play dates having to give them dinner and get them home by 6/6.30.

I just cannot conceive eating at 8. I just can’t do it. You must spend 1/2 an hour clearing up, and by the time you’ve eaten it it must be 9:30?

So no time to relax before bed? I love that long stretch of time after tea and before bed.

And those who eat at 9. What time do you go to bed?! How can you go on a full stomach?

"So no time to relax before bed? I love that long stretch of time after tea and before bed."

Same here, can't understand why folk would want to faff around in a kitchen at this time of night. It's jammies on and settling down with tea

This thread has been an absolute eye opener.

But surely it depends on your schedule, personally I just couldn't imagine eating at 6pm ... in normal times I manage a shop, by the time I've closed up, done the banking, got things ready for the next day etc etc it is usually 6pm ... I would often get a bit of shopping on the way home, if the weathers nice I prefer to walk home rather than drive so wouldn't get in until 6.45 at the earliest ... I don't want to start cooking the minute I walk in the door so dinner would be around 8ish.

Even now although I'm furloughed and DH is WFH he doesn't leave his 'office' until at least 6.30 so we tend to eat around the same time.

I actually prefer to have a 'main meal' at lunch time but that's rarely practical.

We've always eaten as a family so when the kids were little we'd have dinner between 5.30-6 or they'd be hungry and fractious. Then as they got older it got later. Now they are teens it's usually around 7 or 8. Depends on what activities (over zoom atm) they have though.

If we eat at 6 instead of 5, I get grumpy at the loss of my evening time.

We eat between 6.30 and 7pm.

’DH is WFH he doesn't leave his 'office' until at least 6.30’

Yep. This was standard for my ex and when you add on the tube + train he was home between 7:30 and 8 pm. If I’d have worked those hours too we’d have been eating closer to 9pm.

We eat at the geriatric time of 4.30 at the minute, however that is because of my toddler and the fact that she won't eat if we are. (She has to eat early otherwise it causes her tummy issues in the night) before her we would eat anytime between 6.30-8pm.

Though to add dh can be home from work anytime between 4 and 7pm so will plate his up and he eats when he's back.

I just cannot conceive eating at 8. I just can’t do it. You must spend 1/2 an hour clearing up, and by the time you’ve eaten it it must be 9:30

Why would it take 1/2 hour to clear up. Everything goes in the dishwasher.
I usually go to bed at around 2.30-3am. The joy of insomnia. I don’t think I am in the house before 8pm some nights.
We were out still till 10.30pm doing deliveries last week.

Pre-lockdown, it was often around 9pm before we ate, as we both worked long hours and had to get back from London.

Now he's working from home and I'm not able to work at all, we eat with the DC, usually between 6 and 7pm.

When she was still alive, my grandma rang me one evening at around 7, said "I thought I'd wait till you'd finished your dinner", and was genuinely horrified to learn that not only had we not eaten dinner, but I hadn't even started cooking it yet. I had to explain that not only was I just in the door (I don't think I'd even taken my coat off), DH wasn't due home for another hour. Her mind was genuinely boggled by the very idea.

@elizabethdraper

We eat between 5 and 6pm

I think it is weird that people sont eat with their children. It is really important family time in our house. From 6months old everyone sits at the table and talk about our day

Same here. Its really important for us to all eat as a family, its where we have a good chat about our days with no distractions.

Obviously not all can, but to us it's really important.

Why would it take 1/2 hour to clear up. Everything goes in the dishwasher.
Not everyone has a dishwasher! I miss having a house with one, washing up and drying feels like it takes forever

@Lweji

We still eat at TEA at 5:30 to 6:00. As did my ex Dh who was proper posh. As does every person l know.

Well, yes, because you eat at tea time.

Dinner is later.

Supper is even later.

Not always...

I eat dinner at my dinner time - 5.30-6.30.

White collar worker in the north but it's always been breakfast lunch and dinner for me

@Lweji

We still eat at TEA at 5:30 to 6:00. As did my ex Dh who was proper posh. As does every person l know.

Well, yes, because you eat at tea time.

Dinner is later.

Supper is even later.

I also don't know anyone that has supper.

"If we eat at 6 instead of 5, I get grumpy at the loss of my evening time."

Same here Wax.

We prob have dinner slightly earlier now we don't have to commute as previously wasn't home till after 6 but even know maybe start cooking about 6/6.30. My parents have dinner between 4.30 & 5 every night!!

Re. relaxing before bed - I take the opposite view, if you are cooking at 5 then how do you have time to wind down after work? I need at least half an hour after work to relax before doing anything! 8 is more like the middle of the evening so time to relax both sides.

@WaxOnFeckOff

If we eat at 6 instead of 5, I get grumpy at the loss of my evening time.

Isn't eating part of your evening time?