Having a nice meal at a fancy restaurant every once in a while is good for your soul. It’s a great way to raise your spirits and remember how awesome life is. The issue with some of the nicer places (aside from the pretentiously small portions) is that some of them serve your food on mind-boggling random items. A lobster on a telephone? Check. Hummus on a canvas? Check!

The epic ‘We Want Plates’ online community gently pokes fun at this trend by showcasing some of the most egregious examples of avoiding normal plates and glasses. We hope you’ve got room for some humor because we’re featuring some of the biggest recent crimes against normality. Scroll down for pics that show you just how bonkers some restaurateurs have become.

More info: WeWantPlates.com | Facebook | Instagram | X | Reddit

#1 Strange Way To Eat Strawberries And Cream

Image credits: mikeyyy_69

#2 I Don’t Even Need A Plate. I Just Want *not This*

Image credits: Great-Protection4817

#3 Crustacean On A Telephone

At the now closed, Michelin starred, Man behind the Curtain in Leeds. This was part of a 14-course tasting menu. It’s Langoustine Txangurro…

Image credits: robj57

Food can and should be aesthetic. However, you should never sacrifice nutrition, taste, texture, and smell for the sake of superficiality. To put it bluntly, if your food looks Instagram-worthy but tastes like drek, you’ll end up pushing your customers away and burning your reputation.

Some restaurant owners are so desperate to stand out from the crowd and to appear unique that they sacrifice good taste for randomness. Not all of their experiments with design and ‘artistic’ plating work, though. Some are so bizarre that they can (and arguably should!) be called out by customers everywhere.

#4 Staircase Pizza, Because Serving It On A Tray Makes No Sense

Image credits: Breaking-Who

#5 Let’s Just Stick These In A Whisk! *perfect!*

Image credits: LittleBlondBrit

#6 Service With Sole

Image credits: RainbowChainsaw

The ‘We Want Plates’ online group is one of the most well-known projects on social media and Reddit. Created in mid-July of 2015, over the past decade, the community has grown to become home for a million folks who are fighting “against serving food on bits of wood and roof tiles, chips in mugs and drinks in jam jars.”

The goal of the group is to “showcase cringe-worthy examples of plating.” However, you have to go above and beyond things like burgers on boards, sushi on sushi boats, or traditional types of plating from other cultures.

#7 Scallops Served On A Bed Of Wood Chips

Image credits: dippymcskippy

#8 Alternative Use Of Roofing Tiles

Image credits: FudgeTheNumbers

#9 Sushi On A Ceramic Hat

Image credits: ohlikeyoursissogood

You have to remember that even though these restaurants are being gently mocked and literally named and shamed, it’s all done for the sake of humor. You have to be civil. There’s absolutely no room for insults or threats on the subreddit.

Posting original content is encouraged. In which case, be sure to share the details of what the establishment is called and where it’s located. Meanwhile, if you’re sharing photos of dishes that you didn’t personally try when eating out, remember to credit the person or organization who originally shared it online.

#10 Full English Breakfast Served On A Spade

Image credits: ginzamdm

#11 Unbelievable

Image credits: yetareey

#12 Sole Of A 1995 Nike Air Max

Image credits: Sarke1

During a previous interview, Bored Panda had gotten in touch with the founder of the massive ‘We Want Plates’ project, Ross McGinnes. He was happy to share a bit about the history behind it.

“I started the campaign in 2015 after a friend posted a picture of an average-sized steak on Facebook, which had been served to him on a large chopping board,” he said.

#13 Dumpling On A Skull On A Board

Image credits: 713_Mija

#14 Birria On A “Traditional Mexican Clothesline”

Image credits: Candid_Hotel_2937

#15 I Mean I Think The Round Base Is Technically A Plate?

Image credits: quaked2023

“It [the picture] was captioned, unironically, ‘That is a big meal!’ It wasn’t a big meal—he’d fallen for all this style-over-content hipster gastropub nonsense. I searched Twitter for an account which would allow me to vent my spleen with like-minded people, but found nothing. We Want Plates was born,” McGiness shared with us earlier.

#16 Our Hummus Was Delivered On… An Art Canvas?

We ordered a hummus plate at a very normal hotel bar in the Midwest. This was brought out without context?

Image credits: Chemical_Minute4305

#17 Cheese Ball In Monopoly Shoe

Image credits: Quazaka

#18 Wrong Kind Of Plate!

Image credits: CaptainJAmazing

From McGiness’ perspective, restaurants place food on random things because they’re trying to seem unique, to stand out from the crowd of competitors.

“My local pub used to do a great Sunday roast: twelve quid, piled high, tasted great, and yes, it came on a plate. One weekend, they added a quirky offering to the menu: little sandwiches, pies, dainty cakes, and mini milkshakes served on a miniature picnic bench,” he said.

#19 Thai Basil Chicken Here Always Served With Random Household Wares

Image credits: Prestigious-Stop-865

#20 Cocktail In A Chinese Takeout Container

Image credits: Coopsters

#21 All The Perfumes In A Sink

Image credits: G-rem88

“The benches, painted bright pink and yellow, sat on top of tables seating actual grown adults. And what was the first thing these infantilized diners did? It wasn’t try the food—it was whip out their phones and take a picture,” he shared with Bored Panda.

“Over the following months, the picnic benches became increasingly popular, coinciding with the specials board becoming progressively smaller, before it eventually disappeared altogether.”

#22 Most Of The Dishes Were Served On Plates But This One, Inexplicably, Was On A Little Tree

Image credits: SpareStrawberry

#23 A Mini Staircase Of Chicken Bite Appetizers

Image credits: toomanynamestakentbh

#24 I Ate At The Best Restaurant In The World Back In August. Needless To Say Half The Dishes I Had Meets This Subreddit’s Criteria…

Image credits: Xboxben

“I sat there one Sunday, watching bench after garish bench emerge from the kitchen like a technicolor carnival of idiocy, before my usual roast arrived. The meat was cold, and the potatoes were burnt. It was once their main Sunday trade, but the traditional roast had died an unpalatable death. But that’s OK because they were doing a roaring trade with the benches, right? Sure, until the pub down the road started doing them too. Then the one around the corner,” the creator of ‘We Want Plates’ revealed how the trend quickly went viral.

#25 Burger On A Couple Of Bent Licence Plates

Image credits: Cobrachimkin

#26 Chicken Burger In A Shovel In New Zealand

Image credits: Sad-Friendship-2537

#27 Easily One Of The Worst Salads I’ve Ever Had…

Image credits: 1985ChiBears

“Before you know it, everyone’s doing the same ‘quirky’ thing, except it’s not ‘quirky’ anymore because you can’t move for mini picnic benches and now all their roast dinners are rubbish to boot.”

According to McGiness, the very worst thing that he’s personally encountered was a piece of cake served on a table tennis bat in Barcelona, around 2008. “It still gives me sleepless nights,” he quipped.

#28 This Japanese Guest Did Not Enjoy The Food At Alton Towers Resort… (To Be Fair, They Have A Point!)

Image credits: Snoo41241

#29 Served In A Jar

Image credits: sig19992

#30 A Little Too Transparent About The Portion Sizes Maybe?

Image credits: quesadj

We’d love to hear from you, Pandas! Which of these plating disasters made you laugh or cringe the hardest?

Why do you think restaurants try to pull nonsense like this?

What is the weirdest thing that your food has been placed on when dining out?

Have you ever had any food placed on random and weird items that actually kind of worked aesthetically?

Scroll down to the very bottom of this list to share your thoughts in the comments.

#31 How Am I Supposed To Scoop This Out With Chips?

Image credits: PresentDayDufus

#32 Great Idea: Curry In A Rolling Pin

Image credits: snddncr

#33 We Want (The Other 3/4s Of The) Plate

Image credits: lefay_yaka

#34 Ah Yes, Serving Food In A Container Made For Fish At A Vegan Restaurant. Makes Perfect Sense

Image credits: Ok_Salamander_6927

#35 A Sink. A Bloody Sink

Image credits: RavenBoyyy

#36 Meatballs On A Ferris Wheel

Image credits: Leonashanana

#37 Went A Fancy Birthday Dinner And They Served Me A Drink From This. It Was Heavy

Image credits: reddit.com

#38 Who Needs Plates When There Are Dysfunctional Metal To Go Boxes

Image credits: idgafosman

#39 “Went To A Coffee Shop, The Food Was Served On A Broken Plate And The Straw Was Made Out Of Pasta”

Image credits: LowJacket5476

#40 On A Rusty Chicken

The Pearl – Tampa FL.

Image credits: Significant_Return47

#41 Brownie And Ice Cream On A Slice Of Wood With A Big Crack In It

Image credits: Space_Patrol_Digger

#42 My Ceasar Salad On A Log….split In Twain

First time getting a salad at my fav local spot. I’m in awe.

Image credits: handcocktongueholy

#43 It Arrived In A Chocolate Bowl, Which Was Promptly Smashed On The Table

At least there’s a sanitary film covering the table.

Image credits: SwimmerIndependent47

#44 Ice Cream In An Egg Carton

Image credits: CrankinThatHog

#45 A First For Me: Had My Burger And Chips Served To Me In A Lunchbox That Was Burning Hot

Image credits: OhShitItsSeth

#46 Found This Ridiculousness In The Specials Of A Restaurant Near Me

Image credits: TheMaybeMan_

#47 When The Waiter Said “I’ll Just Go And Get Your Vegetables” I Didn’t Expect This

Sunday roast in a rural English pub.

Image credits: MissingFork

#48 This Is How They Served Me A Fish… It Was Good Though

Image credits: nsgx

#49 Raw Fish On Old Wood

Image credits: fuzzeedyse105

#50 Today’s Lunch, Served On Some Building Materials

With cutlery and other items present, it didn’t even fit on the table.

Image credits: reddit.com

#51 When I Asked My Server She Said They Don’t Even Cook With These Pans. Just For Plates

Image credits: pandaritzs

#52 I’ll Have A Trowel Of Hummus Please

Image credits: willowbrae_glass

#53 Drink Served In Bag

Image credits: idknemoar

#54 Fries Stuffed In A Mini Pitcher

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#55 Pasta Flight Served On Construction Debris

Image credits: Whinke

#56 Not A Plate

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#57 Ill Have The Pasta, With A Side Of … A Glass? From A Local Restaurant

Image credits: TheFapIsUp

#58 Chicken Parm On A Plank

Image credits: Adventurous-Bath7077

#59 The “Board” Is Not Even Wood, It’s Ceramic…

Image credits: bduxbellorum

#60 No Side Plates. I Asked And I Was Given A Very Small Paper Basket That Was The Size Of My Palm

Image credits: HauntedGhostAtoms

#61 Linguine Fishbowl

Image credits: babygirl420xo

#62 Relatively Mild I Suppose

Image credits: vrphotosguy55

#63 I Can’t Even Pour The Syrup On Or It’ll Get Everywhere ??

Image credits: redwoodvelvet

#64 There Is A Plate Right There. What Is The Point?

Image credits: fillerbitch

#65 Appetizer Sampler Served In A Tackle Box

Image credits: kimmytwoshoes

#66 Has This Place Only Ever Cooked Eggs Benedict, But Never Eaten Them?

What do they expect to happen with this situation? I should ask for a plate, but I am eating them right off this board so they understand what they have done. They have to learn. (Very delicious btw, but upsetting).

Image credits: Miserable-Art-1522

#67 Check Out Those Knife Marks. Is That Sanitary For Next Customer?

Image credits: Regallybeagley

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