Family Dinner Quotes

“This is new to us, you know? Your mother's sorry. She's sorry that she hurt your feelings, and she wants you to invite your girlfriend over for dinner."
"So that she can make her feel bad and weird?"
"Well she is kind of weird, isn't she?"
Park didn't have the energy to be angry. He sighed and let his head fall back on the chair.
His dad kept talking. "Isn't that why you like her?”
― Rainbow Rowell, Eleanor & Park

“The dinner was a huge production, with kids stashed in the den to eat off card tables like a collection of understudies who dreamed of one day breaking into the dining room.”
― Ann Patchett, The Dutch House

“How often have the greatest thoughts and ideas come to light during conversations with the family over the evening dinner?”
― E.A. Bucchianeri

“You can’t forget how important coming together is, whether it be a mom and a son, a dad and a daughter, whether the family be ten people, or twenty people, or a million people. Dinnertime is the perfect time for that. Dinnertime is the perfect time when you can sit down, you can offer thanks to your kids for making you laugh, or to your parents for supporting you, or to a god for looking out for you, or to whomever you want. You can just close your eyes and open them again and realize that you have the opportunity everyday to change your life, or change someone else’s. Dinnertime is a great time to think about that.

~ Dillon, age 22
From Dinnertimes: Stories of American Life, 1912 to 2012”
― Deborah L. Halliday, Dinnertimes: Stories of American Life 1912 to 2012

“Eating a huge home cooked Christmas dinner was his personal favorite. Evan would look around after each Christmas Day was done. There were empty dishes, and torn up wrapping paper on the ground. Monty was passed out on the couch stuffed with food. Evan would close his eyes and hear the day. He could feel the memories that were just made.”
― David Rangel, Evan the Christmas Elf: Ghost Hunter

“A theatrical spectacle is inherent whenever family members congregate and reacquaint themselves with powerful universal themes educed from homecomings including hugs, food, drink, conversation, politics, games, music, conflict, terror, mercy, smiles, tears, prayers, misfortune, and self-discovery.”
― Kilroy J. Oldster, Dead Toad Scrolls

“She ate--so, so good--cocooned in the harmonic dissonance of a large family, where every sound was distinct yet blended.”
― Rachel Hauck, The Writing Desk

“In the main, my mother’s function was to prepare the meals, which she did like an amoeba might, with neither creativity nor taste, but lots of mayonnaise.”
― Adeline Dieudonné, La Vraie Vie

“'Perhaps what Finneas needs, King Rowan, is an occupation. I believe there to be a village nearby in sore need of an idiot. Finn seems well suited to the task.'

Rowan had just taken a hearty sip of wine when Gareth's words caused him to swallow the wrong way. Glenna gave him a healthy tap on the back.

'What's an idiot, Mama?' Stefan seemed excited by the prospect of Finn's employment. 'If Finn's to be an idiot, may I be an idiot, too?'”
― Sara Bell, The Devil's Fire

“Help yourself to some cheese, and these-" Georgia pointed to a square platter- "are smoked salmon, chive, creme fraiche, and Asian pear rolls, and these-" she pointed to a second platter- "are foie gras toast points with fig glee."
"Interesting," said Dorothy. "How... unusual."
"What's this?" Hal asked, picking up one of three cordials filled with soup.
"That's a black-trumpet-mushroom veloute. It's very rich.”
― Jenny Nelson, Georgia's Kitchen

“After several hours of preparing, cooking, eating, and laughing together, the kitchen was now lit by the glow of candlelight, and the entire house filled with the glorious aroma of freshly roasted heritage turkey. While Dylan had readied the bird with a few sprigs of chopped rosemary, ground black peppercorn, and a splash of maple syrup, Grace and Carter gathered fall beans and bush squash and a few little sugar pie pumpkins, and cooked the vegetables along with the sweet corn that Carter had brought home.”
― Jeffrey Stepakoff, The Orchard

“So what's for dinner?" she asks.
"Excuse me?"
"You said you were cooking for your family. Can I ask what a professional chef feeds her family, or is that some deep, dark secret"
"Curried prawn chowder, black sea bass en papillote with baby artichokes and red pepper coulis, frisee salad with shaved Asiago," I tell her, even though the only thing currently in our refrigerator is the other half of my Primanti's sandwich.
"I love sea bass. What time is dinner?"
So, I'm being wooed by Enid Maxwell.”
― Meredith Mileti, Aftertaste: A Novel in Five Courses

“Teddy knew what everyone would order before they even sat down. It was meat loaf night, which was Charlie's favorite, so of course he'd have that with extra gravy on the side. His mom would stick with the scallops, Gretchen would get the chicken, Jane would either get the scallops or the short ribs (depending on how much red meat she'd eaten that week), and Kay would get the chopped salad with a piece of salmon on top.
A calm came over Teddy as his family went around and ordered, one by one, and he had guessed right. He ordered the skirt steak, creamed spinach, and a glass of cabernet. No one got dessert, although Kay and Gail both ordered Baileys on the rocks as they almost always did.”
― Jennifer Close, Marrying the Ketchups