what do you do when you have put on a lunch and guests children wont eat it?

[shoptilidrop]

My dh invited one of his old friends over for lunch on sat. we havent seen them for years. He asked the husband if there was anything they didnt eat and he said no.
I had a spread of lovely cheese topped and plain rolls from the bakers, some with egg mago, some with tuna and sweetcorn, some cheese and tomatoe,some ham and tomatoe and some plain cheese. There was also crisps, humous and veg. Small choc biscuit selection, homemade spounge cake. Homemade fruit juice jellies with fruit in them and also yougurts.
Their boys, aged 12 and 9 refused to eat any of it and i was told they dont like it,but might eat plain bread.. i only had wholemeal, so apparently that was no good. I was horriby embarassed. One of the boys did try a tuna roll, but apparently it was discusting so he could not eat it!

So what do you do in this situation???

[pouchofdouglas]

Message withdrawn

[shoptilidrop]

well i dont think that was the reason really.
They just sat in my kitchen on the DS lites. They didnt want to come into the sitting room as apparently my 2 year old dd is too annoying.

[clumsymum]

I suspect they didn't want to come, and had probably been dragged there after a family row.

I think they've just been badly brought up.

[hotcrossbunny]

that children of that age can get away with it.

My 4 year old dd knows to try something of everything and never never say its horrid. I will whisk away leftovers surrepticiously(sp?) if necessary, or eat them myself!

I can't believe they were so rude - you poor thing The food sounded fantastic - exactly the sort of thing I would come up with.

[IlanaK]

I think you did a spread exactly like I would have done and often do. I agree with the comment that it is always safer to leave the fillings seperate from the breasd, but other than that I woudl have done no different to you.

I have had this happen to me once too. Friends were leaving the country so invvited them all around to lunch. The 5 year old not only refused to eat anything on the table, butalso would not sit at the table. My 2 year old behaved better than he did. I was not embarressed for me, but felt embarrassed for the parents. If my children behaved like that, I would kill them!

[shoptilidrop]

but i dont think the fillings seperate would have helped. Apparently they wouldnt have eaten the rolls i got, some were cheese topped and some were crusty. So i then offered to make sandwiches, but the bread wasnt right and out of all that i said before plus:
chicken
cheese spread
prawn
salad
tinned salmon
or even bloody jam
was not right either.
And i had tried to keep it casual, so had laid all food out on the table, with plates on the side and everyone could help themselves, then we ate in the sitting room with it on our laps! ( classy i know! lol)

Also the children wouldnt drink anything either, so their mum said it was best to make a selection of drink and leave them on the side and they would eventually help themselves.

So i had a lot of drinks waste as well.

PITA

[shoptilidrop]

but i dont think the fillings seperate would have helped. Apparently they wouldnt have eaten the rolls i got, some were cheese topped and some were crusty. So i then offered to make sandwiches, but the bread wasnt right and out of all that i said before plus:
chicken
cheese spread
prawn
salad
tinned salmon
or even bloody jam
was not right either.
And i had tried to keep it casual, so had laid all food out on the table, with plates on the side and everyone could help themselves, then we ate in the sitting room with it on our laps! ( classy i know! lol)

Also the children wouldnt drink anything either, so their mum said it was best to make a selection of drink and leave them on the side and they would eventually help themselves.

So i had a lot of drinks waste as well.

PITA

[shoptilidrop]

yep so i put out
two types of sugar free squash
organic fresh organge juice
innocent smoothie ( my fave )
water
milk ( whole )

and that was it as i didnt have anything else

they eventually drank the milk everything else had to be chucked away as it had been out of the fridge for so long.

i do think that i wont invite them round again, its just too much hastle. Shame though as the adults are actually nice, and apart from this food problem, we had a nice aternoon.

[milliec]

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[barbarianoftheuniverse]

Had they driven a long way? My dcs still get car sick - makes them very hard to feed after a journey, especially if they have to then travel back. But I would have explained that to you. (On a non travelling day they would have eaten any of those things- it sounds a lovely picnic).

Fussy eaters here are offered toast/cereal/make yourself a sandwich if they are struggling.

[mumeeee]

At 12 and 9 the boys are old enough to habe at least tried some of the food and not to have been so rude,

[Habbibu]

Bloody hell, shoptilidrop - they were extraordinarily rude, and you were positively gracious. Can't believe the drinks thing - that mother needs a slap severe talking to.

[bossykate]

i don't know whether to laugh or cry at those of you who say your 4yos will eat something they don't like out of good manners at someone else's house

[Beauregard]

Sounds like a lovely spread you put on for them and how rude of them to not try anything.

[louii]

Brats, what on earth do they actually eat, they had enough of a selection to choose from.

My nearly 3 year old knows better than to behave like that.

You have nowt to be embarrassed about, tell the parents to bring lunch for them next time.

[choccypig]

If they are good company apart from not eating anything, I'd tell them to bring their own food and drinks next time!
Seriously, I'd say, "I know the boys weren't keen on our kind of food, so would you mind bringing a few sandwiches and drinks that they do like?"

[ggglmpp]

beetroots pot reminds me - last week my dds (16 & 18) who have both had their mobiles confoicsated bet dh and I their mobiles if they ate snails.... dd1 is a veggie. Three snails each later they had their phones back.

dd1 threw up....

your rolls sound much nicer!

[ggglmpp]

baby lap typing

[willali]

sounds like the kids didn't really want to be there (and I don't blame them - my children who are a bit younger hate being dragged round to out friends houses as it is essentially very boring for them)and decided in the usual adolescent way to make as big a fuss as they could to spoil it for everyone else. I can't believe they didn't even eat the choccie bicies! It is not your problem and I hope they got a lecture on the way hone from thier parents