TikTok 'Girl Dinner' Trend Flips the Script on Gender Norms Around Cooking and Indulgence

A new social media trend called “girl dinner” has emerged on TikTok, garnering over 30 million views. Girl dinner refers to individually portioned snack plates that women make for themselves to enjoy alone. 

The trend appears to have started when Olivia Maher, a 28-year-old assistant living in Los Angeles, posted a TikTok video in May showing her spread of bread, cheese, grapes, pickles and wine. “I call this girl dinner,” Maher says in the clip, which has since amassed over one million views.

In an interview, Maher said the idea for girl dinner stemmed from a conversation with a female friend about the enjoyment of eating just bread and cheese together. She felt this was the type of simple, satisfying meal women would make for themselves when their boyfriends or husbands weren't around and they didn't have to cook a proper dinner. 

The phrase quickly took off on TikTok, resonating with women who also regularly opted for grazing on snacks versus cooking full meals. Alana Laverty, a 28-year-old food creator in London, said she started arranging cheese, charcuterie and bread into snack plates last summer when it was too hot to cook. When she heard about girl dinner, it immediately made sense to her. 

“There was this feeling of, ‘Oh my God, I’m not the only one,’" Laverty remarked. She appreciated that the trend celebrated a common behavior among women.

Some social media comments have critiqued girl dinner as potentially being a sign of disordered eating if the snacks don't add up to a proper meal. However, proponents view girl dinner as the opposite - a way for women to reject diet culture and find joy in food. 

Historian Seema Rao also pointed out the trend flips traditional gender norms of women slaving away cooking dinner every night. With girl dinner, women are embracing the simple pleasure of snacks without needing to prepare an elaborate meal. 

Registered dietician Kathrine Kofoed endorsed the trend as well, saying it moves away from rigid expectations around food and could help people develop a healthier relationship with eating. 

A key aspect of girl dinner is that it's designed for one. Unlike a large charcuterie board for sharing at a party, girl dinners are a personal assortment of snacks for an individual to enjoy alone. 

Typical components of a girl dinner include fruit, cheese, cured meats, olives, nuts, pickles, crackers or bread. Part of the appeal is the simplicity - no cooking or meal prep required. It's the perfect quick, low-effort dinner solution after a long day. 

Maher described the feeling of making girl dinner as "giddy." Taking pleasure in assembling a makeshift meal just for yourself feels indulgent. 

The trend seems to have particularly resonated with single women living alone without spouses or children. But the concept isn't limited to any gender identity. As Maher put it, "anyone can have it."

On social media, some have jokingly contrasted girl dinner to what a stereotypical "boy dinner" may look like: frozen pizza, deli meats, potato chips and no vegetables. The insinuation is that men's meals are much simpler and less thoughtfully prepared. 

But for advocates of girl dinner, it's more about the spirit the meal is prepared with, not the specific components. As Maher summarized, girl dinner represents a carefree, fun approach to making dinner for one.

The trend comes at a time when cooking fatigue and burnout have been rampant, especially as people continue adjusting to changes brought on by the pandemic. Girl dinner offers a refreshing antidote to the monotony of preparing three meals a day. 

It also aligns with the broader self-care movement sweeping social media, with women rejecting pressure to meet societal standards and instead focusing on activities that bring them joy. Snack plates tapped into this sentiment.

While some medical experts caution against relying too heavily on snacking for meals, most agree girl dinner is harmless in moderation. As with any eating pattern, balance and variety remain important. 

But after a long week, who doesn't enjoy kicking back with a glass of wine and a platter of favorite snacks? Girl dinner has given women permission to embrace solo self-care proudly. The trend reveals shared exhaustion with cooking and validates women enjoying food.