9 tips on making your Eid dinner friendly

While making special food for Eid dinner should be given priority, we shouldn't forget that part of the pleasure is in the presentation.

In other words, food served in the usual plates and dishes, on the usual bland kitchen or dinner table is simply not good enough for the family's Eid dinner or lunch. Decorating the table and "dressing up" the food will give more of the Eid feeling to your meal. Here are some ideas of how to do that. 

1. Call a family meeting

At the meeting, you can set a time where everyone is present to have a meal together. This can be lunch or dinner. The meeting is also a time to decide who does what for the meal.

2. Cleanliness

Fancy decorations are great, but they lose their appeal if the surrounding area and the table are not clean. The kitchen and dining room are two areas that should be extra clean and virtually spotless for Eid, along with the rest of the house.This should be the first priority.

3. Menu

Get the whole family to decide on a menu. There needs to be a main dish, side dishes and dessert. Appetizers can be fit in as well if everyone wants them.

The aim should be to make foods which are not normally eaten during the family's regular meals. There should also be a variety and dishes should be balanced between what different family members like, so that everyone can have at least one of their favorite ones on the table.

Try to have some dishes which are not necessarily from your specific cultural background. For instance, if your family is of an Indo-Pakistani background, why not try making Hummus with Tahina as a side dish? Or if your family of an Arabic background why not make Gulab Jamin for dessert.

4. Get a nice tablecloth

It's amazing what a nice tablecloth can do for your bland, brown kitchen/dinner table. You can buy one, but better yet, get the family member who knows how to sew best to make a fancy tablecloth.

And if they really want to be creative, they can make special place mats for each family member. These can then be taken out for every Eid family dinner.

5. Get out the best utensils

Put out the utensils you would if a special guest(s) were coming over-that means the best plates, serving dishes, etc. After all, if you've got a fancy tablecloth on the table, it's got to be matched by fancy utensils! You wouldn't wear a tie with a pair of pajamas would you?

6. Use cloth napkins, not paper

Why not use cloth napkins instead of paper? These add to the formal appeal of the meal and all they'll require afterwards is a quick washing in the machine. You can store them for the next Eid as well. Make them your family's special napkins.

Match or contrast the color of the napkins to that of the tablecloth so it looks appealing.

7. Set the table according to need and presentation

You don't have to memorize all the complicated etiquette rules for eating common in formal American dinners (i.e. soup spoon here, dinner fork there, etc.) to decide where utensils and dishes should go. Balance the setting of the table between need and style.

For instance, as Muslims, the Sunnah is that we should eat with our right hand, so spoons should be on the right hand, not the left.

8. Leave enough space

Don't crowd the table with all of the dishes that are to be served. Bring them in according to the meal's sequence. For instance, when the main meal is being served, only that and accompanying side dishes should be served. There needs to be enough space for everyone to be able to sit and eat comfortably.

If you need more space for side dishes, for instance, put them on a smaller table ideally at the same level as the dinner table. This way everyone can see everything available for them to eat while having enough space.

9. Seat family members according to need

You may want to have mom on one end of the table and dad on the other. Seat everyone in the family according to need and comfort, not some specific guideline which may be inconvenient.