My brother recently introduced his girlfriend to the family. She was lovely when we first met, and I immediately invited them over for dinner the following week. A bit of background: while my brother and I were born in the US, we grew up in France until I returned for college. Most of my life has been spent eating and cooking French cuisine, which is what I decided to serve for the dinner.
For the meal, I made roast chicken seasoned with garlic cloves, fresh rosemary, herbes de Provence, and salt and pepper. I also prepared tartiflette (mainly for the kids), ratatouille, and a salad. Since the dinner was on January 6, I made a traditional galette des rois for dessert, along with ice cream, and I had a couple of bottles of French wine for the adults. I wanted to share the food we grew up on and chose dishes I felt confident making to avoid any mistakes.
An hour before the dinner, my brother texted asking if it would be okay to bring his girlfriend’s mom, who was visiting. I happily said yes, thinking, “The more, the merrier!”
They arrived, and we started eating, but my brother’s girlfriend acted very differently around her mom. Both of them began critiquing my food, saying things like, “What are these potatoes? They need more seasoning, girl,” and “Your chicken looks like it needs more seasoning—salt and pepper aren’t seasoning.” When I explained that the chicken was my French grandmother’s recipe, and the aromatics gave it flavor, they dismissed it, saying it wasn’t enough and making remarks like, “White people don’t know how to season their food.” They even criticized the vegetables, calling them bland, and offered to give me their recipes.
My husband and brother were visibly uncomfortable, knowing how much effort I had put into the meal. Meanwhile, my 8-year-old son, sensing my distress, sweetly said, “This is my favorite, Mom. It’s very good.” I was holding back tears.
When it was time for dessert, they refused the galette des rois, exclaiming, “Almonds in a cake?!” Instead, they opted for the ice cream—and of course, I only had vanilla, which earned another round of disapproval.
At that point, I’d had enough. I told them they were being ignorant and uncultured, held the door open, and told them to leave. Later, my brother called to apologize but also said I shouldn’t have insulted them. The girlfriend texted me, saying she didn’t mean any harm, that she and her mom were “just playing around” because her mom is “old-fashioned” about food. I told her I didn’t believe her, that she was welcome to date my brother, but she wasn’t welcome in my home again.
I’m incredibly proud of my cooking and what it represents, and it was deeply hurtful to have it disrespected like that. My brother says his girlfriend feels terrible and wants to make it up to me, but he also thinks I overreacted by kicking them out.
So, AITA for kicking them out? Did I overreact?
