Martha Stewart Reveals the Ideal Time for Thanksgiving Dinner and Sparks Fan Debate
- Martha Stewart suggests serving Thanksgiving dinner at 2:00pm to avoid hungry guests circling the kitchen.
We're just under two weeks away from Thanksgiving, so it's time to start getting our menus in order, pick out the table setting, and of course, figure out what time the big feast will be served.
For some, deciding on that perfect time can be a bit of a challenge, which is why the TODAY Show opted to consult the master in all things entertaining -- Martha Stewart . They shared a clip of her talking about turkey day on TikTok, and she revealed her ideal time for sitting down to eat, which happens to be 2:00pm.
As you'll see in the video, she explains, "People are hungry, and they're starting to circle the kitchen. If you have a bunch of guests, you don't want to wait 'til nighttime. You can eat, and then watch the big game, and then have more drinks and fun... and eat dessert later."
People couldn't wait to weigh in on Stewart's pick, and her choice of 2:00pm sparked a bit of a fan debate over what the REAL ideal time is.
One person said, "Thanksgiving lunch?! No thanks. 4:00pm at the earliest."
Another dissenter added, "It's Thanksgiving dinner, 2:00pm is wild."
More comments included:
"Sorry Martha, we are eating at 5:00 😂"
"Nope… we watch the parade then the dog show and chill. Then we do cocktails around 5:00 and dinner around 6:30."
Related: 'Queen of Thanksgiving' Martha Stewart Shares Surprising Holiday Shake-Up
Plenty of other people agreed with Stewart that eating earlier in the afternoon is the way to go.
"The only time! Martha always knows best ✨"
"Thank you, Martha. I hate being told to come at 4:00pm and we eat at 9:00pm! 12:00-2:00pm is best."
"My mom said food will be served at 4:00pm this year?? Like okay, might as well make it midnight."
Martha Stewart's Thanksgiving Tips
Other than a 2:00pm meal time, what other advice does Stewart have for making Thanksgiving as seamless and easy as possible? She offers three key tips:
Plan ahead, don't wait to order the turkey, and "stick to what you know," meaning don't try and get all fancy and debut new recipes you've never made before. Just stick to the basics.
And if you're a big fan of stuffing, Stewart offers up an easy hack to save time and stress. Instead of making it from scratch , she sometimes uses store-bought brioche as the base. Apparently even the professionals cut corners from time to time, so we certainly shouldn't feel guilty about it!
Related: I Tried Martha Stewart's Famous Mac and Cheese and I Can't Wait to Make It Again
This story was originally reported by Parade on Nov 14, 2025, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
