Family Style Eating: 30 SIMPLE and BUDGET FRIENDLY Meal Ideas

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Wondering how to get started with family style eating?! Check out these delicious, simple, and budget friendly meal ideas. For more on the benefits of family style eating and our dietitian and mom-approved tips, check out our blog.

family gathered around table eating meal

These are 30 of my favorite meal ideas for family style eating. There are, of course, hundreds of recipes but I’ve found that not all recipes are great to be served family style. Adapt these to fit the age and skill level of your kids. Hope these help!

QUICK SIDE NOTE: Try adding these tasting spoons to the table. It allows kids to take itty bitty portions of something they’re nervous to try. This creates less stress and more excitement/novelty around trying new things.

Spaghetti

Serve pasta with tongs, sauce with a ladle (if you’re feeling bold, you can pick more than one!), meatballs or protein of choice with a serving spoon, salad or vegetables such as carrots, spinach, broccoli, or corn.

I’ve found that keeping a mini ladle for young kids, like one of these, is particularly handy.

Baked Chicken Tenders

Serve chicken tenders with your favorite dipping sauces to pass around the table. You can serve these with other “dippers” like pita chips and veggies like sliced carrots, cucumbers, peppers, celery, etc!

Sloppy Joes

You can serve a plate of buns, serve meat with a serving spoon and allow everyone to assemble their own sandwiches. Then add whatever fruits or vegetables you want on the side- these can be served with tongs or everyone could use their hands depending on the dish

Chicken Tikka Masala

Prepare and serve your chicken on a platter with a spatula at the center of the table. Then serve rice with a spoon and any veggies of choice. You can chop up the chicken in smaller pieces for younger kids, or even serve the chicken in pre-cut slices.

Tofu Noodle Bowls

You can simply put the noodles on the table, then serve bowls filled with your favorite toppings: cubed tofu, shredded carrots, edamame, soy sauce, sprouts, etc! If they are nervous about tasting tofu, show them how to build a tower out of the blocks.

Shrimp Teriyaki

Serve shrimp, rice or noodles, with extra veggies and sauce on the side. Everyone can dig in and pick and choose what they want.

Burgers

Provide burger patties and buns on the table, along with your favorite toppings. Think mushrooms, onions, pickles, cheese, sauces, etc. Serve the burgers with spatulas and the rest of the toppings with little spoons or even just have your kids grab them with their hands.

Tacos

Serve meat, taco shells, and toppings of choice (lettuce, black beans, salsa, sour cream, etc) on serving platters. Everyone can make their own taco, taco salad, or taco dip! A chip clip is helpful for pinching the bottom together of young kids’ tacos. It keeps their fillings from spilling.

Pork Chops

Serve Pork chops (chopped up for littles if necessary), apple sauce, and your favorite starch (like mashed potatoes) and vegetables (brussels, green beans).

Grilled Cheese and tomato soup

You can prepare grilled cheese as you like. You can serve them cut in triangles or even cut them into sticks as “dippers”. Serve tomato soup in a big bowl with a ladle in the middle or in bunch of little bowls in the center for your family to grab. Serve as is or with your favorite sides!

My four year old loves using different shapes for his sandwiches. We put the bin of cookie cutters out for him so he can choose what he uses.

Build-your-own Salmon Bowls

Serve salmon on a platter, rice, and your veggies and sauces of choice in respective bowls and plates. Everyone can pick and choose what they want and “build their own” salmon bowl!

Feta Pasta

This one-pan dish is absolutely delicious and easy to make. Simply put a block of feta, veggies of choice (like tomatoes) and some olive oil in a baking dish and bake at 350 for about an hour. Then mix it up with some freshly prepared pasta.

Serve your platter of feta pasta with a big spoon on the dinner table or serve the sauce and pasta separate. Add your favorite sides or serve as is.

Egg Roll Bowls

Simply prep your recipe of cooked cabbage and carrots, beef, garlic, and soy sauce. Serve with a big spoon for everyone to enjoy. If you have special requests, you can serve the veggies separately. Put green onions, sesame seeds, and toppings of choice on the table for everyone to try.

Sheet Pan Chicken Sausage + Seasonal Veggies

You can just throw the cooled sheet pan on the dinner table and serve with a spatula! Serve with a side of rice and a big spoon, and you’re set with this super simple 30-minute dinner. We recommend seasonal veggies to be both versatile and budget friendly.

For fall think sweet potatoes, squash, carrots, and other root vegetables. For spring and summer you could do zucchini and peppers. This recipe is customizable so don’t be afraid to get creative!

Chili

Serve your pot of (slightly cooled) chili on the dinner table with a ladle for everyone to take their portion. If this isn’t your thing, you can serve small bowls in the middle for everyone to grab. Then, serve your toppings (cheese, sour cream, etc) in little bowls with spoons for everyone to enjoy their chili how they like. You can even put some cornbread or chips on the table for everyone to grab and enjoy.

family around table eating meal family style with text above reading 30 simple and budget friendly family style meal ideas

Greek Chicken Pitas

Serve chicken, cucumbers, lettuce or cabbage, and tomato at the center of the table with spatulas, tongs, and spoons. Provide sandwich-ready pitas, hummus, tzatziki as well.

Sesame tofu and broccoli

Serve your prepared tofu and broccoli in two big bowls for everyone to scoop. Serve as is or with your starch/sides of choice.

Mini Pizzas

Make mini pizzas using store-bought dough, pitas, mini naans, English muffins or whatever you like! You can make each pizza a little differently with different toppings so everyone can pick and choose. This is a great way for kids to explore new flavors/foods while still enjoying something they are comfortable with.

Thanksgiving style turkey dinner

Serve turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce, and green beans, at the center of the table. Everyone can scoop what they like on their plate. You can get creative with your favorite thanksgiving recipes with this one.

Pierogies and Kielbasa

Provide pierogies, kielbasa, and sauteed onions in bowls. Everyone can grab what they like. Serve with a little bowl of sour cream.

Portobello Sandwiches

Prep your mushrooms and serve them on the table. Provide bread and sauces of choice to assemble their own sandwich. This vegetarian option is fun and delicious!

Black Bean Tostadas

Take your fresh baked tostadas and serve them on the table- these can be picked up by hand on with tongs/spatulas. Serve with your favorite toppings and sides such as salsa, sour cream, lettuce, rice, and sliced veggies.

Sante Fe Salads

You can prep bowls of lettuce and everyone can add their toppings of choice! Think chicken, avocado, our santa-fe dressing, ranch, veggies, etc! Serve with some bread, quinoa, a wrap, or with your starch of choice.

Build your own wraps

Serve wraps/tortillas, protein of choice (lunch meat, chicken, etc), veggies, and sauces. Everyone can assemble their own wrap. Be prepared to help your littles wrap up the tortilla with this one.

Breakfast for Dinner

You can serve pancakes, toast, scrambled eggs, bacon, fruit or any of your favorite breakfast foods! Everyone can pick and choose and take what they want using spatulas, spoons, or tongs.

Salmon and Rice Hand Rolls

Have you heard of the viral salmon rice bowls? Well they are dinner time game changers! You can serve this meal by serving salmon cooked to your liking, plenty of rice, and toppings like cucumbers, sesame seeds, spicy mayo, etc.

Then everyone can scoop their servings and eat as is or even scoop little bites into seaweed snacks as a mini hand roll! This is a fun one.

Mediterranean Dips

Do you love hummus, tzatziki, or baba ganoush? You can totally make a family-style dinner out of this. Think: bowls full of your favorite dips filled with kid-friendly ladles. Then add sides and dippers- cut up pita bread, sliced chicken breast, cucumbers, carrots, falafel, you name it!

Loaded Baked Potatoes

Serve warm baked potatoes for everyone to grab and offer toppings of choice. Think: sour cream or greek yogurt, chives, bacon. Serve with your favorite vegetables on the side.

Pulled Pork/Chicken Sandwiches

Serve your prepared meat with a big spoon on the dinner table. Let everyone grab a bun and assemble their sandwiches with their favorite sauces and sites.

Sheet Pan Gnocchi

Prepare your gnocchi and veggies and serve in a bowl or straight off the cooled pan with spatulas.

Thanks for coming along for 30 of our favorite family-style meal ideas! Hopefully these ideas sparked ideas for how to implement family style eating using your current meal rotation and maybe gave you inspiration for new recipes. For more on family style eating – check out my TOP TEN TIPS to get started!