
- BGG rank
- BGG #2,089
- BGG rating
- 7.1
Imaginarium
- 2–5 players
- 90 min
- Complexity 2.9/5
- 2018

2024
Rules assistance for Picky Eaters
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.

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Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Picky Eaters is a board game released in 2024 for 2–6 players, 20–40 minutes per game, and ages 8 and up. It was designed by Avi Setton and Tanya Basu and its main mechanics are Hand Management, Take That, and Set Collection.
In Picky Eaters, make a dinner that 5 picky guests will eat! At the start of each round, a new guest is revealed. Players take turns gathering groceries from the market and preparing recipes to satisfy the growing list of picky dinner guests. Each guest has specific food preferences. Based on this information, players will try to appease their guests as strategically as possible. There are 5 rounds and each round consists of 5 steps: Reveal 1 new guest, deal 5 food cards to each player, fill the open market (2 cards x the number of players), take actions until all players have passed, then pass the first player marker to the next player clockwise. During the action phase, players have 5 actions to choose from: Get 1 food card from the open market, prepare a recipe (which requires the player to have the recipe card and its corresponding ingredients in hand), play an item card, discard 2 cards in hand to draw 1 card from the face-down food deck, or pass. At the end of the 5th round, whoever makes the most satisfying feast wins! Points are given for each recipe prepared and then modified based on the guests' preferences. The player with the most points wins. In the case of a tie, whoever started the game as a later player wins. -description from publisher
Picky Eaters supports 2–6 players according to the catalogue. This range comes from the publisher’s listed player count, so the game can be set up for any group size within it. Some setups, rules and scoring details may still vary by player count, so check your edition’s rulebook for the exact configuration.
The listed playing time for Picky Eaters is 20–40 minutes. This is the publisher’s estimate for a full game. The actual duration depends on the group, the player count and familiarity with the rules: first sessions usually run longer, while experienced groups often finish faster. Setup and teaching time are not included in this estimate.
The catalogue lists Picky Eaters for ages 8 and up. This is the publisher’s recommendation and reflects reading demands, rule complexity and small components rather than theme alone. Younger players can often join with help from an adult, so check the age guidance on your edition and consider your group’s experience with board games.
Picky Eaters has a complexity rating of 1.5 out of 5 from BoardGameGeek players, which makes it a light game. The rating reflects how much rules knowledge, planning and decision-making a typical game demands. Expect a longer first teach for heavier games, and use a preparation guide before game night.
Picky Eaters belongs to these categories: Card Game and Educational. Its main mechanics are Hand Management, Take That, and Set Collection. Categories describe the theme and setting of a game, while mechanics describe what players actually do on their turns. Each mechanic links to a catalogue hub with similar games, which helps when you want something comparable.
The credited designers of Picky Eaters are: Avi Setton and Tanya Basu. These credits come from the published game data and name the people responsible for the game’s design, not its illustrators or publishers. Designer pages on MeepleRules collect other titles by the same designers, which helps when you enjoy a game and want to find similar ones.
The catalogue lists Picky Eaters as a base game. It can be played on its own with the components in the box and does not require any other title. Expansions, if any exist, add new content or rules on top of it and are listed separately in the catalogue with a link back to this base game.