Whatever Happened To Supper?

HiDesertHal

HiDesertHal

Senior Member
Location
Southern California's High Mojave Desert
When I was a young boy in the 1940's in Wheeling, W. Va., we had three meals a day: Breakfast, Dinner, and Supper.

Dinner was the mid-day meal and it was always hot, except when it was a quick eating break, like a sandwich and a glass of milk, which we called "Lunch".

Supper was the Grand Formal Evening Meal for which you cleaned up and dressed properly.

I can't imagine da Vinci referring to his painting of the last meal with Christ and his Disciples as the "Last Dinner"...can you? It would seem a Sacrilege!

Well, I'll always refer to the noble evening meal as Supper, because it's always served at Suppertime!

HighDesertHal
 

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Here, on the left coast of Canada, supper and dinner are interchangeable. Lunch is the midday meal. However, eating at a fancy restaurant or at a family celebration, the evening meal would be referred to as dinner. Considered a more formal appellation. Canucks love to celebrate. Love to dress up also.
 
I grew up calling it supper. I always thought "dinner" was what rich people called it when they ate later at 8ish. I was a kid - what did I know !!! LOL
 
Breakfast, then lunch (around noon), then dinner in the early evening.

Lastly, SUPPER; around 8:00 PM on the way to the opera or a play.

I think I'll "Google" the 2 words and see what comes up.
 
I called it (and still do) supper. There was always the debate over lunch/dinner and dinner/supper. My 6 y/o (approximate) grandson decided that it was breakfast-lunch-dinner-supper. Supper being dessert. What's for Supper?
 
I still call the daily meals breakfast, dinner and supper when eaten at home.
If I'm out to a restaurant or cafe at noon time then it's lunch. A little confusing but then lunch in a restaurant is not as expensive as dinner at noon in a eatery.

When growing up it was always breakfast, dinner and supper. Back then very few people could afford to eat out.
 
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner. As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen
 
HiDesertHal said:
When I was a young boy in the 1940's in Wheeling, W. Va., we had three meals a day: Breakfast, Dinner, and Supper.

Dinner was the mid-day meal and it was always hot, except when it was a quick eating break, like a sandwich and a glass of milk, which we called "Lunch".

Supper was the Grand Formal Evening Meal for which you cleaned up and dressed properly.



I can't imagine da Vinci referring to his painting of the last meal with Christ and his Disciples as the "Last Dinner"...can you? It would seem a Sacrilege!

Well, I'll always refer to the noble evening meal as Supper, because it's always served at Suppertime!

HighDesertHal
Click to expand...

I think that having Dinner at mid-day is a Southern thing. As folks moved out from down home to place up North and out West, the vernacular changed.

Coming over for supper was what the small town southern preacher used to do. However, sometimes he'd show up at dinnertime and stay for supper too. ;)
 
Dinner was the noon day meal at my Grandmother's and supper was normally made up of the leftovers from dinner. I think the custom was a throwback to the days when farmers were home most of the time and in the days before refrigeration leftovers needed to be consumed before they went bad.

My parents both worked so the only day we had dinner was on Sunday. During the week lunch was packed in a sack or a hot meal at school. My mother called our main meal in the evening tea.

Today my meals are a series of snacks, more like grazing than actual meals.
 
Falcon said:
Breakfast, then lunch (around noon), then dinner in the early evening.

Lastly, SUPPER; around 8:00 PM on the way to the opera or a play.

I think I'll "Google" the 2 words and see what comes up.
Click to expand...

sup·percitizen-supper-club-citizen-burger.jpg
ˈsəpər/
noun: an evening meal, typically a light or informal one "we had a delicious cold supper"


  • din·ner images.jpg

    ˈdinər/
    noun: the main meal of the day, taken either around midday or in the evening.
      • a formal evening meal, typically one in honor of a person or event.

        So, it's a matter of decorum. I much prefer the laid back style of the first definition.

        I like your signature Falcon...stark imagery.
        :)










 
I guess I use "supper" and "dinner" interchangeably; my grandparents had dinner at midday, but pretty much my parents always called it lunch. My parents called the evening meal mostly supper, as I recall, as in "be home by suppertime." It was Christmas dinner no matter what time of day it was, usually 2:00-ish.
 
Growing up we all called it supper. When I was a kid and went out to play after school, my Mom would always say,make sure you're home for supper. After I was married,for some reason the hubby and I called it dinner. I notice my kids call it both.
 
I grew up in the 60's, in the northern midwest with a lot of farmers in my extended family. All of German heritage.
Lunch was a cold meal. Sometimes had a warm item; soup or fried egg sandwich.
Dinner was a bigger meal with predominantly hot dishes, and more items. Usually in the evening, but also midday of long, hard farm-work days (planting, harvesting, major livestock events).
Supper was more formal than dinner. It always included a salad or garnish tray and dessert. On the 'good' china unless there were to many people. Usually included company. Often the company would bring a dessert, which often meant there would be more than one. Usually Sunday (or holiday) afternoon - evening chores would be done after the the company left and the company could get home before dark.
I don't think we ever had a name for the bite we ate on the way to the milk barn at 4:45 in the morning. Hard boiled egg, cheese biscuit or piece of cold chicken. No one can think at 4:45 am...
 

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