Written for GirlTech Magazine, Choate Rosemary Hall
Three grapes, a pickle, and a handful of Hot Cheetos — a snack? No, it’s Girl Dinner. The viral “Girl Dinner” trend has taken TikTok by storm, with millions of girls posting their own version of a “Girl Dinner. The trend started with the idea of embracing a low-effort meal, but the popularity of the trend may also have negative consequences, creating unhealthy expectations of what women should be eating and what a proper diet looks like.
The term “Girl Dinner” was popularized by content creator Olivia Maher. Since then, millions of other users have uploaded their own videos to the sound. Many users found the trend relatable as a way of mitigating the misogynistic pressure put upon women to prepare elaborate meals even after an exhausting day. The typical Girl Dinner includes easily attainable ingredients that don’t require preparation or cleaning up. Some women find the idea empowering, as it takes away the expectation for women to cook and the rigid expectations of what food looks like. In a world where women are pushed to count calories, plan out macros, and make dairy-free and gluten-free substitutions, it can be liberating to throw together some enjoyable foods and leave it as is. As fun as the trend is, a critical detail is left out: the dangers and lifelong consequences of restrictive eating and crash dieting. As the trend continues to grow, the initially innocent concept has the ability to evolve into the normalization and acceptance of disordered eating.
The controversy of Girl Dinner revolves around the gender association of the term and also the potential disordered eating implications. A typical Girl Dinner is a low-effort, low-preparation plate that might not have the proper nutritional value to be considered a healthy meal. Modern society should be beyond the traditional gendered roles of women preparing elaborate meals solely for the sake of pleasing their husbands and family; however, Girl Dinner reinforces the concept of women preparing meals solely for the sake of others and just throwing together a few snacks for themselves. This trope is unhealthy in suggesting that women don’t eat much and romanticizes the dainty, snack-like meals that women are expected to have.
The concept behind Girl Dinner is nothing new — many components resemble the already existing charcuterie boards, Spanish tapas, and other snack plates. However, the problem lies with the term “dinner,” implying that the single-serving plate is sufficient to serve as an actual meal, not just as an appetizer or a snack. Many of the most viral Girl Dinner videos show “meals” that are well below the healthy caloric intake for a typical adult woman, leading to the normalization of restrictive eating. The videos, regardless of whether they were meant to be a harmless joke, promote the idea of extreme diet culture and the toxic idea of what women should be eating.
The liberation and joy many women share through their Girl Dinners should be recognized; however, the trend should be shared with caution as the most impressionable of the population, teenage girls, are the target audience. Women should have the ability to feel the liberation of eating what they want and when they want, but the promotion and normalization of the term “Girl Dinner” could have devastating consequences in the sense of romanticizing unhealthy eating habits.
References
Francis, A. (2023, July 19). Can everyone chill with “girl dinner,” please. Bon Appétit. https://www.bonappetit.com/story/girl-dinner
Girl dinner: The dark side of Tiktok’s viral food trend - cosmopolitan. (n.d.). https://www.cosmopolitan.com/uk/body/diet-nutrition/a44760818/girl-dinner-tiktok-trend/
McNeal, S. (2023, July 22). How problematic is girl dinner, really?. Glamour. https://www.glamour.com/story/girl-dinner
Miller, M. (2023, July 28). Please don’t gender my dinner. Food & Wine. https://www.foodandwine.com/the-girl-dinner-trend-is-taking-over-tiktok-and-instagram-7567202
Roy, J. (2023, July 8). Is it a meal? A snack? no, it’s “girl dinner.” The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/08/style/girl-dinner.html
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