Competitive last to the table -lighthearted

[crochetmonkey74]

My best friend is the best person on earth, I love her dearly but her and her entire family (except for one sister who rolls her eyes with me in solidarity) have this terrible habit of just faffing so bloody much once the dinner is on the table. Literally, they try to be the last ones to sit down like it's a badge of honour how much of a martyr you can be. Today, she put pizzas down then went AND TRIED A DRESS ON THAT SHE HAD BOUGHT. So either you eat without her, so you've scoffed it all before she has had one bite or it goes cold while you wait. Then once she finally sits down, she interrupts Conversations with "did you want more drink?" "Did you need more salad" NO JUST SIT DOWN AND ENJOY A MEAL AND JOIN THE CONVERSATION. Then her mum who is last to finish will say sorry for still eating and she's always been a slow eater. You are not slow you just did 15 minutes of faffing, texting and not starting your bloody dinner. Its almost like a badge of honour not to be the first one to eatI was brought up totally different, you had to come to the table while it was hot. Lighthearted but also AAAAGGGHHH

Agghh does no one else have this??
Please tell me its not just me!

Growing up in our house was a "snooze, you lose".
Switch your food with hers so you have all the best bits and she will soon stop faffing. 😁😁😆

My MIL was the same. I remember cooking omelettes for lunch once. Cooked hers and served it. "Oh, I'll just go and butter some more bread."

No! Sit down and eat the fucking omelette!

No, it’s not just you! A now ex-friend would, without fail, wait for the precise moment I put a meal on the table to decide he needed the toilet.

It got to the point that I once said ‘I’m dishing up in about five minutes if you need the loo’, which made me feel like I was talking to a child. He said no, he was fine. I put the food out and got a sheepish look in return. ‘I’ll be quick…’

(BTW, this is not why I ditched him as a friend 😆)

I grew up in a house with 3 brothers, you ate quick, guarded your plate and kept your eyes open for snatching fingers 😂 so really can't relate to this.

Do they not like eating hot food? Isn't everything Lukewarm by the time they get to it?

Everything Is cold by the time they get to it and they have no hurry , so if we get fish and chips, they dish it out and THEN Start buttering bread/getting drinks/ketchup. I hate lukewarm food so it drives me mad

I am afraid that I would eat mine once everyone's was on the table, and whilst it was still warm. Anyone faffing would do so at their own peril! Hopefully, they would stop being so rude once they realised that they would have a lesser choice/the best bits would've gone/their food would be cold/lateness wouldn't make them the centre of attention and, next time, would sit down promptly.

Yeah, after the first time I'd stop waiting. In our house whoever is cooking does a 5 minute warning so that the table can be set, hands washed, drinks poured etc before we sit down.

Glad I'm not mad! It can just be really uncomfortable as you either eat by yourself and have practically finished by the time they sit down (embarrassing) or you wait politely and watch all the food go cold so you don't enjoy your dinner as much.

I noticed my mother has started doing this but we aren't expected to wait. So I have a choice, cold food, or my dad and I having half empty plates by the time she sits down. I raised it, and the reaction from both parents was a combination of denial and annoyance. It infuriated me because not only was she missing the warm food but she was also missing the conversation.

Yes I definitely couldn't raise it as in their eyes, they are being selfless by everyone eating before them, there's a lot of martyrdom.