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It depends on the food and the guest; it would be a judgment call in any specific situation.

if i have a dinner party for three or four friends on a saturday night, i will often have another group of friends over for leftovers on sunday. i'm part of a younger, post-college, pre-family cohort so many of my friends work during normal dinner hours. they still appreciate the sharing of a meal even if it was cooked and served 12 or more hours before their arrival at my table.

Hmm. Something in me is howling "NOOOOO!!!" while the rest of me says "Why the heck not?" I suspect it's my desire for good presentation more than anything else. I think I'd be more horrified at having misjudged the amount of food needed. I hate it when that happens, it makes me feel like a bad hostess even though no one ever complains.

I've done it before, when guests drop by unexpectedly in the evening, which I'm not a fan of. I had a coworker follow me home and invite herself over for dinner once, though I think she was just lonely and she appreciated the meal.

i don't know anyone who hasn't been in a pinch and reinvented left overs to create something yummy for drop ins or last minute guests...

I don't see why it would be a bad idea. As long as the food is still good. I think everyone eats leftovers anyways.

We often have bbq or dinners where there is far, far too much food. In that case, I would serve the leftovers to guests if that was what we were going to eat for dinner.

Depends on the dinner, depends on the guests....are these people who come over all the time and are good friends who like food ? Are the leftovers really good ones with enough to go around? then yes, sure.

If it is a dinner party with a planned menu and a sense of "event" then no.

I have people randomly show up at my door all the time; leftovers are totally fair game for them. I also serve leftovers when people stay the night; if they're still here for lunch, we eat the leftovers or we go out (there's a restaurant a block away that does a good lunch).

If I'm having guests over specifically for dinner, I usually cook enough for a small army, so I've never "run out" of food before. I will, however, re-invent leftovers and serve that to guests. Fried rice, for example, goes over really well with my friends, and it's actually BETTER when it uses rice from yesterday instead of fresh.

It totally depends on both the quality of the leftovers and the type of guests. Good friends and family often get left overs from my tesk kitchen experiments when they come to my house for dinner.

And, a little while ago (early December) my mom and I pooled our leftovers for a pot luck dinner.

Absolutely. A couple of homeschool moms and I get together for leftovers for lunch frequently. Besides, if leftovers are fit for my family, they are definitely fit for anyone outside of it.

Hospitality is about generously sharing what you have with others. If what you have is leftovers, so be it.

my question is, why do they have to know they are leftovers? if the food is good, not been in the fridge too long, you can heat it up, put it on a platter add a few sprinkles of this and a few dashes of that, it'd look like you made it special. why not?

I feel like maybe I'm reading the situation a little differently... but to me, getting served leftovers is a good sign? Growing up, if people stopped by unexpectedly, I could always tell what my parents thought of the guests by their reaction:

If it was an acquaintance, my parents would encourage them to stay for dinner (while running into the kitchen to quickly order Chinese food). But if it was someone they were close to, my parents would encourage them to stay for dinner, and would then heat up leftovers from lunch.

I guess the point is: with true friends, it's a judgment-free zone, and I would serve leftovers happily -- and I would receive leftovers happily.

If someone was just coming over to hang out, I might ask if they are hungry and let them know I made soup the other day, or whatever.

HECK YES! Why not? I had a post Thanksgiving dinner where a few friends brought leftovers and everything was perfectly delicious. Pop some wine and its all good!

Are those pickles and chocolate in the same bowl? Heh!

Certainly. I'm a cookbook author and I can't keep my husband from constantly trying to push leftovers on guests, friends, whoever happens to be in the house. Especially if there is too much dessert for just the two of us to be eating. It's kind of a subtext that if you're over then somehow you may end up getting fed something