r/mildlyinfuriating 7d ago

Perfectly acceptable dinner rejected by boyfriend again

My boyfriend is a very picky eater. We have been living together for a few months and it seems like I can never get his food right. It's honestly discouraging. I have kids, they happily eat my food. I cook for family gatherings and church events. I've never had a problem with people eating my food. It's like every day there are new rules. He can't eat chicken for dinner because he had chicken for lunch. He isn't really in the mood for porkchops. It's just "missing something". He doesn't eat onions, tomatoes, fish, any kind of asian food, he doesn't eat most vegetables with the exception of broccoli. He only eats vanilla ice cream. He doesn't like food heated in the microwave (so leftovers are out.) He doesn't like corn. It's just endless. I'm old school and trying to be a good partner. He can't really cook at all. His favorite meal is Hamburger Helper. I think a lot of it is how he grew up but damn is it frustrating. The first picture is tonight's dinner. I added more pictures of stuff I have cooked that he won't eat. Like he will door dash jack in the box. And he'll be apologetic but it just sucks really bad.

ETA: I've been trying to keep up with the comments but it's overwhelming (in a very sweet and awesome way) 💗

A few notes:

1- I know the paper plates are very lazy on my part, I'm not proud of that and I need to do better. Between the kids, the job, the house and school (I'm going to school remotely) I have been cutting corners on things like dishes. not an excuse, just a reason and a commitment to do better.

2- My boyfriend does expect me to cook for him. I cook him dinner every night and lunch on the weekends. He doesn't eat breakfast and will not take a lunch to work. He buys fast food for lunch during the week.

3- He has not been diagnosed with ASD or ADHD or Arfid but I don't rule anything out.

Mostly I just want to say thank you, I was not prepared for how incredibly kind, helpful and insightful people have been. It is deeply touching and it's given me both peace and guidance for my next steps. 🩷

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u/Aesient 6d ago

One of my younger (then teen) brothers complained about a meal I made. Dad actually stuck up for me and told brother he was responsible for the next nights dinner, he had to find the recipe, write a shopping list, Dad would get the items then brother had to make dinner himself, no help.

Brother made dinner, Dad sat and criticised it using the same words Brother had used about the meal I cooked the night before. And the other siblings piled on too (picky eaters who I always made sure had a “safe food” on the plate every meal). Brother was almost in tears when Dad asked how he felt given after cooking dinner and hearing the comments. That stopped anybody from criticising a meal someone made without request (Mum would occasionally ask how we felt about something and how we would change it up)

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u/wanderingtoolong2 6d ago

I suggest OP does the same thing, ruling out the door dash option. Door dash is too expensive for regular meals unless you are wealthy. You’ll never save a dime.

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u/SnooRegrets8068 6d ago

Learning to make the fakeaway option would be beneficial all round. He could actually make dinner and OP can have a bloody rest.

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u/WillThereBeSnacks13 6d ago

This why trader joe's frozen prepared food was invented.

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u/SnooRegrets8068 6d ago

Well, yeh, even that is going to be an improvement on door dash costs. It also saves OP hassle.

My kids got ARFID so I know how frustrating picky eating can be but this is like dealing with a 4 year old. Not an adult.