All inclusives: what’s your buffet strategy?

[Juicesausagecake]

Help! I used to be good at this!

Am currently on an all-inclusive, and may have lost my mojo. I blame the need to feed the kids with healthy food (cucumber, tomato, melon etc. on a little plastic plate), and am not rinsing managing the buffet as effectively as I would have in times of yore.

How do you approach it?

Come on @backinthebox, let's not turn this into hotel snobbery - it's meant to be fun!

This is ALWAYS my intention.

It has NEVER worked yet.

… and how do you stop them throwing away uneaten food when you go back up? With a big sign that says, ‘Hands off my nosh’?

I just tried to set up baby and ds5 at the table (had peeled and quartered hard boiled eggs, buttered buns, erected melon wedges 🍉 etc), and nipped back with the children for a sausage and …

all gone 😭. I had to start again. 😭

The sausage was hubristic, wasn’t it?

How do I approach it???
I'm on holiday I get a grip!

My friend's son nailed a 3 course chocolate breakfast one morning - chocolate ball cereal (like big cocoa pops), pancake with more chocolate sauce than pancake and a pain au chocolate. I think we managed to convince him that a slide of melon was also a good idea but he was quite proud of himself for his feast!

… but after you’ve got the grip @lastminutedotcom22 what is it that you eat?

I am imagining that someone with your level of grip is going for the white egg omelette. And no pudding.

Get your moneys worth 😂

Oh yes DS did similar on an activity holiday in France, meanwhile his lovely sensible friend had a protein based breakfast with extra cheese < he was very excited about the cheese>.

DS then proceeded to have a sugar based meltdown at lunchtime at the grand old age of 12 .
Will be interesting this time round as he's now well into his body building and mostly eats protein weetabix < chocolate chip flavour though as some habits never die>

White egg omlette 🤣🤣🤣

At least you know what not to go for

OP, re the nabbing of food before you've finished eating it, leave knife & fork balanced against plate to look like you're about to continue eating.

Abroad I’d avoid eggs and salad. Went to Spain Yeats ago and mr and eldest ended up with d&v for last 5 days of a 8 day stay - bloody awful. In one hotel room, couldn’t get out to get medicine

Talking of which and the idea of doing a good recce early doors ... we stayed in a lovely AI in paphos a few years ago with an really high standard of food and always space outdoors surrounded by lush greenery to enjoy it.

What we didn't realise until the second week is the more formal bar area upstairs was open for coffee (even better than the one served at the breakfast buffet) early, was virtually empty, had balcony seating and gorgeous service. And also did bloody Mary's

So we started having our post breakfast coffee there in peace reading our books and DH had a proper freshly made Bloody Mary.

That's something so nice about AI - you can make every meal last ages just by taking your time.

I REALLY want to go on an AI holiday now.

Oh an OP - can I just say that as well as giving me a laugh this thread (well most posts ) makes a lovely refreshing change from the snobby AI threads doing the rounds. Thank you!

Oh and that lovely bar served warm fresh squashy almond croissants too!
It was heaven.

I have sworn off AI until dc have a more varied palate. Took them when they were small (less than 6) and they start off well and excited, but then end up on plain pasta and crackers for lunch and dinner...they did get slightly better on the last one and had some grilled meat too and maybe rice, but honestly I couldn't bear the cost of AI for them to just eat this. Maybe in a few years when they are teenagers it will be worth it 😀

@tellmewhentheLangshiplandscoz where is the AI that serves the croissants this might be on the list if I do go again!

This is the polar opposite of the little boy at the start of the thread who ate a big pile of cucumbers. Probably with the same outcome 🤣

I can't for the life of me remember .., I'll ask DH and get back to you

I’m going in to the field again @HandbagsnGladrags . I will see if the balancing pyramid of cutlery saves the plate from being taken away. Thanks for the tip.

And I saw a lovely salad in The Times earlier (figs, goat’s cheese, chilli and walnut), and I am going to try to make that.

Blah it was Elias Beach.

@tellmewhentheLangshiplandscoz thanks am off to google

We've just got back from our first ever AI holiday with 2 teens. It was grand.

Our strategy was thus:
Day 1 - overeat everything like a kid in a sweet shop. Feel a bit sick.

Day 2 - mill around the buffet for a while trying to be more selective, all end up starting and finishing at different times. Only 2 out of 4 of us actually sit down to eat at any one time. Overdo it on the puddings.

Day 3 - get a grip. Get drinks and find a table first. Eat courses together and have a proper 3 course meal and coffee - at dinner anyway - rather than piling random combinations of food onto a plate together. Go for whatever is the special / looks the freshest and most local. Avoid anything that you would routinely eat at home. But also have the pizza on pizza night as an extra, newly invented pizza course because it's bloody lovely and freshly made. Choose 1 or 2 puddings (or cheese if you're Dh) one of which is always baklava. You can never have too much baklava on a week in Greece, it seems.

If you want the ultimate in all inclusive resorts, try an Ikos in Greece or a Barut in Turkey. Absolutely top notch and no buffet strategy required.

I was starting to get a grip @mamaduckbone (we were on day 4) but then they curveballed me with Oriental night: sushi, bao buns, duck pancakes and Bombay potatoes. With multiple whippy desserts in assorted colours for pudding.

What was I to do? Behind every corner they were ‘live’ cooking something totally naff (and culturally inappropriate, of course) but utterly irresistible.

And ds5 told a joke on the stage and won a dance competition. And dh put Baileys in my hot chocolate!