Who doesn’t love a plate of ‘picky bits’, especially in the summertime?
Simply go to the fridge, take a selection of whatever meat, cheese, salad bits and dips you have to hand, throw it all on a plate and go off to enjoy last night’s Love Island.
It seems that TikTok users are also currently enjoying the concept of a minimalist dinner, as videos about ’girl dinners’ have gone viral. It even has its own original soundtrack with someone singing, ‘Girl dinnneeeeeerrrrrrr’.
‘What’s a girl dinner?’, you may ask. Well, it’s essentially picky bits, but in a particular girly pops fashion where everything is a bit random, but the flavour combinations are entirely fabulous.
Take for instance, TikTok creator Olivia Maher, who shared a video saying: “A girl just came on here [TikTok] and said how in medieval times, peasants had to eat nothing but bread and cheese and how awful that was, and she was like ‘That’s my ideal meal’.”
Then she shares her dinner, which she calls “girl dinner” or “medieval peasant [dinner]”. What’s on her plate? A selection of bread, cheese and grapes, of course. And a jar of olives.
Many were quick to chime in in agreement, with someone saying dinners like this feel super chic. “I feel French when I eat girl dinner,” commented one person.
Another said: “IF THIS ISN’T ME! Fresh bread, some fruit and cheese? I am thriving!”
Unlike a lot of trends on social media, this one isn’t about the aesthetics. Food is thrown onto plates or boards, with some of it still in its original packaging.
We could talk at length about how these sparse meals are maybe a symptom of how, because modern women still do the lion’s share of the childcare and housework, all we’re left with at the end of the day is an exhausted plate of bread and dips.
And while that may be true for some, many of the TikToks are from young, single women who are either just too busy (or too tired), to worry about making a whole meal for themselves.
Sometimes we just crave a plate of picky bits — and that’s okay!