Weekend Lunch

Although the Dinner party remains the symbol of social eating, most eating in company among my friends actually takes place at weekend lunch. After a long day at work many of us are, frankly, too tired to go out and eat dinner, let alone cook it. And there is, as well, the baby factor. For many people of my generation, having to get food ready after the children have gone to bed explains the popularity of the Marks & Spencer menu. And even those who haven’t got children are affected by the babysitting arrangements of their friends who have. When I was younger we stayed in bed at weekends until two in the afternoon: now that most of us are woken at six in the morning, there is a gap in the day where lunch can go. We have got into the habit of filling it.