How do you serve dinner?

[theoriginaltms]

I usually just plate it up in the kitchen same as a Sunday roast but am I doing it all wrong? Should I lay it all on the table and let everybody help thereselves like on the tele? 😂

Our table isn't big enough for that, so I lay it out in the kitchen and everyone serves themselves buffet style, walking round my u shaped kitchen and takes it to the table, as I can't keep up with who likes peas, who wants gravy, how many spuds etc.

Yes, we do that for all roasts (and cooked meals generally).

2 tables together L shaped. White serving dishes along the middles.
Guests help themselves.
Usually 12 of us.

12!!??? I couldn't imagine the pressure of cooking for that many. I just have my dad over Christmas so that makes 5 of us 3 adults 2 children.

I will this year put it all out and let everybody serve there own, then they can have as much or as little as they want

Do you do courses like starter main desert or just go straight in for the big Christmas dinner?

Serving dishes on the end of the kitchen island which is next to the dining table. We have an open plan kitchen/ dining room. So buffet style.

I stick it all on the table and everyone helps themselves.

My Nan cooks for 14 of us! Ours is plated up for us which is the same for Sunday dinners too. She makes the best dinners ever and they are an absolute mountain! 😍

We don’t have a starter. I put everything into warmed serving dishes in the middle of the table, so people can help themselves.

I want to go for an Indian this year, but DH won’t.

We have veg soup starter then a break then dinner then later on some dessert. We have ours at dinner time (6ish) rather than lunchtime

I put turkey, stuffing, chipolatoes on plates for maximum heat. Veg, gravy, bread sauce etc on table to help yourself. After that I bring a plate of turkey etc through for extra if folk want.

New Year (Scottish) steak pie, tatties and veg plated in kitchen and taken to table.

Late lunch, no starter.

Serving dishes down the middle of the table, and people serve themselves.

The same at New Year, for about a dozen people, and late evening.

It’s a buffet style in the kitchen here - leftover meat and roast potatoes get put in the middle of the table.

For the past few years we have had starter at early lunchtime - noon. Smoked salmon and prawn salad.
Then main late afternoon- 4ish
We have pudding in the evening.

We are 12. I put everything on the kitchen island and people help themselves buffet style. The dining table is in the same room.

My parents used to put serving dishes in the middle of the table. But our table is narrower. But actually the main reason is that it used to be a bit chaotic and rather than people serving themselves everyone used to serve everyone else and often people didn't really get the amounts of food they wanted or it was arranged a bit all over the place. Plus a need fewer fancy serving dishes warmed up this way as more things (not all) stay in cooking dishes.

We hand round canapes instead of having a sit down starter.

We all usually just snack but I serve dinner quite early compared to many on here about 1 o'clock. With no starter just straight in with the BIG main dinner that my plates are too small to fit on, im definitely getting bigger plates this year.

No starter, everything on the table to serve yourself, turkey carved at the table. We’re usually about 12-15 people.

What does your dinner plate have on?
I do... turkey, beef, gammon, mash potato, roast potatoes, roasted carrots and parsnips, broccoli, cabbage, peas, stuffing, yorkies and of course pigs in blankets.

I cook again Boxing Day all the same but use the meat from Christmas Day.

Does that sound about right? None of us like sprouts

We only have Turkey (no beef or gammon). I'm the only one having sprouts

Everything in serving dishes which I do anyway every night. My mum has always done this at meal times and I've just carried it on. We are 24 for Christmas this year

We pass the dishes around for everyone to help themselves and then they are left up on the sideboard for people to help themselves to seconds.
We would put them on the table but there’s no room.

Depends on numbers.

This year there are only 7 of us, so I'll serve the turkey onto plates in the kitchen, and all the veggies and trimmings will go on the table for people to serve themselves.

Last year we had 15, on an L-shaped table, so I plated everything up in the kitchen. Trying to pass round dishes of spuds etc at the table would have been a nightmare.

@bellsbuss 24!? Wow that's a lot will people help with bringing dishes or will you do all the cooking?

I put ours on serving plates for everyone to help themselves, but there's only 4 of us and we don't have as many food options as you OP. We have turkey, sometimes leftover gammon if I've done that on Christmas Eve, parsnips, roast potatoes, pigs in blankets, stuffing, sprouts with pancetta and peas & chantenay carrots. I plate the meats altogether, the parsnips & potatoes, and the peas & carrots to save space.