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

[Goodbye2020Hello2021]

When you go out for an evening meal, do you honestly ask for a Tea reservation?

Restaurants have breakfast, lunch and dinner menus but yes, if I wanted an early evening/late afternoon slot I would ask for something around teatime. 🤷🏻‍♀️

[Goodbye2020Hello2021]

Also... *Shall we go out for tea?’ means shall we eat out somewhere casual so that nobody has to cook. This would be between 5-6pm usually.

[BonnieDundee]

I would.just ask for a table at X time.

Does it honestly.matter what people call their evening meal? We all know what we mean by dinner tea supper etc. As if people who have spoken about supper for the last 40 years are going to say oh yeah, a random poster told me on MN that its dinner so I'll start calling it dinner

[Goodbye2020Hello2021]

Our lunchtime supervisors are still referred to as ‘dinner-ladies’ by the children... doesn’t seem to matter how many times staff refer to them as supervisors...

[Goodbye2020Hello2021]

Or the other way round BonnieDundee

[KLCD]

We eat around 4:30-5:30pm. Our kids like to sleep around 6:30-7pm and we all eat together.

The only exception is when we order a takeaway and we will eat around 7-8 x

[redandwhite1]

Some nights we have it with our DS so is at 6.30 then other nights not so it's more 8 once he's in bed

I defo couldn't eat at 5 as we work til 5-5.30

[MilesJuppIsMyBitch]

These are my favourite kind of MN thread. Getting a window into attitudes and lifestyles that we otherwise wouldn't. Love it.

[Iknowwhatudidlastsummer]

If you have tea/diner/last meal of the day at 5pm, what do you do on holiday?

Do you completely change your usual schedule?

[blowinahoolie]

Agree Miles it's like some kind of parallel universe 😂

[blowinahoolie]

"If you have tea/diner/last meal of the day at 5pm, what do you do on holiday?

Do you completely change your usual schedule?"

We go to a restaurant abroad at lunchtime for main meal and buy food from a supermarket to feed everyone back at hotel room around dinner/tea time so kids can settle down away from the heat and sleep at their normal times. Did this in Italy a few years ago now. We can adapt to new situations quite easily

[Templetree]

@blowinahoolie

Agree Miles it's like some kind of parallel universe 😂

It most certainly is !
Never ever heard lunch called dinner.

I have heard people call their dinner -tea.
Its similar to saying willy or belly to me, sounds quite childish.

[Iknowwhatudidlastsummer]

blowinahoolie

if that works, that's the point of holidays!

I have to admit, in hotter countries, I don't even take the kids back in the sun until 5pm so we would struggle with early diners.

[TheNinny]

We arent even in until 6pm. Dinner/tea for 16 month old is right at 6.15 ish. Usually ive pre-papared stuff so just have to reheat. She gets a snack/light tea at around 4pm-4.30 when at nursery or a snack same time when in the house.

[Gwenhwyfar]

@blowinahoolie

Agree Miles it's like some kind of parallel universe 😂

Yeah, but the whole 'one hour's commute is nothing' and 'we eat dinner at 8.30' is quite strange to a lot of people as well and always touted as the norm on MN.

[MilesJuppIsMyBitch]

But threads like this challenge people on both sides of the tea/dinner late/early divide. That's what's so great about them

I've definitely spotted unthinking prejudice in myself from threads on here over the years.

[waxed]

@TriciaMcMillan

DH downstairs cooking dinner now. Unusual for us to have sat down before 8pm. Is he Northern and this is a weird 'tea' thing??

It's a different name for the meal, it doesn't mean northerners eat at a different time

I mean I suppose some might but that's true of everyone

[Iknowwhatudidlastsummer]

Are restaurants even opened at 5pm?

It sounds so weird to eat early because most people are still working at that time anyway, and not just in London, plus you couldn't find a table even if you wanted one.

[Spacecudet]

I have breakfast at 6:30, lunch at 11:30 and dinner at 18:00. As a family we don't really snack at all so our meals are evenly spread. I go to bed about 22:00, and would feel uncomfortable if I ate later. I have 3 DS, and it's nice to spend time with them after dinner, and then get some grown up time once they are in bed. I don't think I'd change the timings without DS though, works for me and DH. We're in our forties.

[stripeyIIIIItscmsfkmf]

If there's one thing I know about mumsnet it's that people here simply cannot comprehend other people doing things differently to them.

[MilesJuppIsMyBitch]

If there's one thing I know about Mumsnet, it's that it teaches people how differently other people do think about things.

I think often what you see on here is the disbelief as they process it. (I'd include myself in that).

[blowinahoolie]

"I have to admit, in hotter countries, I don't even take the kids back in the sun until 5pm so we would struggle with early diners."

We stayed in the shade during the day with them. Temperatures were too hot even for myself as an adult. We did find that leaving eating out late wasn't going to work for them as they were too tired and it was stressful for all involved so eating the main meal at lunch time worked best. The further into the day you go with small DC the more exhausted they get in a hot country. Even abroad, still up very early.

[Iknowwhatudidlastsummer]

@stripeyIIIIItscmsfkmf

If there's one thing I know about mumsnet it's that people here simply cannot comprehend other people doing things differently to them.

but there's a practical element. Everything is opened -or at push just closing - at 6pm. It's not unreasonable to think that people can't be at work and having diner at the same time.

Of course there are shift workers and unemployed people, but it doesn't change anything. It would be like faking surprise that a 10am leisurely breakfast surprises people. Most people couldn't have breakfast mid-morning even if they wanted to.

[WaxOnFeckOff]

When we are abroad we just adapt based on where we want to eat and what we are doing. If we have a a trip into the city, we do a nice big main meal at 1/2ish and a later dinner that will depend on whether we are self catering or not as to what and when we have it.

We tend to sleep in later so might have a buffet type lunch at 11/12ish with fresh bread from the shop if we are self catering and then if going out we'll either go at 5/6ish to a place that's open all day or book the earliest slot on one only open in the evening.

If it's a hotel with set times we just do latest breakfast and earliest dinner and might just have a light snack in-between.

Have done all inclusive a fair bit when DC were younger and generally food available all day so just eat whenever hungry. DC might have an early "tea" and then come back up into room and chill while DH and i shower and change and DC generally do too and will come back down for a snack while we eat dinner and then they will usually find some other kids and go off and play while we finish up.

[CustardySergeant]

@peboh

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.

Do you mean she won't eat if you aren't, because otherwise I can't see why you have to eat at 4.30 because you have a toddler.