This Saturday night is Eurovision 2020: Big Night In!, so what better way to celebrate than with a small gathering of friends or family under the required state-appointed limit.
During COVID, people have come up with all sorts of creative ways . Some are baking sourdough loaves of bread, others have dress-up dinner parties. At my place, we gamble our Friday night dinners away, leaving meal decisions in the hands of others. I call it takeaway roulette.
The rules are simple:
1. Choose a spending limit (around $20-30 does the trick).
2. Each person in the room silently orders whatever they want within that limit before an allocated cut-off time (say 6:30pm).
3. Then, sit back and enjoy the mixed bag, trying to guess who ordered what.
One highlight combination from my house included: vegan fried 'chicken' with chips, a whole steamed crab, sweet and sour cauliflower with naan, an eggplant halal snack pack and a 1L tub of pistachio ice cream.
The rules are simple: choose a spending limit (around $20-30 does the trick). Each person in the room silently orders whatever they wish within that limit.
It’s an easy win for spicing up Friday nights, and in light of SBS’s brand-new program, Eurovision 2020: Big Night In! which airs this Saturday night at 7:30pm, I’ve created a list of participating countries that have cuisine listings on delivery apps across most major Australian cities.
Also, if everyone orders the same thing - then you know your friends are clearly on the same food wavelength as you and leftovers are never a bad thing.
The Eurovision rules are as follows
Like all good gambling games, this one starts with complete chance. Write each of the below countries on a small piece of paper, scrunch it up, and place it in a bowl.
6pm: Have your guests cover their eyes and choose a piece of paper from the bowl, nominating their country and cuisine. Make sure they keep it a secret.
6:15pm: Once everyone has a country, set your spending limit. It’s up to you if this includes delivery, but to keep it fair I always opt to include it.
6:30-6:45pm: Set an ordering window to make sure the food all comes at roughly the same time, and to put the pressure on. Allow at least 45 minutes to be safe.
Once the ordering window has closed, sit back and wait for the feast to arrive.
7:15pm: As the dishes arrive, try and guess which cuisine they match, and who ordered them.
In case you needed more convincing, you can feel good supporting local business and not having to party prep a dozen snack foods from across Europe. Below is a list of cuisines that are most likely to feature across food delivery apps in major Australian cities. If someone is struggling to find the right thing to order, just allow them to re-draw.
Eurovision takeaway roulette list (to print or copy)
| With suggestions | Without suggestions |
| Australia (your interpretation) Azerbaijan (rice pilaf, dolmades, kebabs) Belgium (fries, mussels) Cyprus (halloumi, souvlaki) France Germany Greece Hungary (chimney cake) Israel (falafel, hummus) Italy Malta (pastizzi) Portugal (chicken, tarts) Russia (vodka?) San Marino (hint: micro-state inside Italy) Spain United Kingdom (fish and chips) | Australia Azerbaijan Belgium Cyprus France Germany Greece Hungary Israel Italy Malta Portugal Russia San Marino Spain United Kingdom |
SBS is excited to announce . Tune in for on SBS, Saturday 16 May 2020, 7:30pm.
