'It's giving Fyre Festival': Critics Choice Awards dinner bashed online
The Critics Choice Awards are facing online ridicule following a post detailing the event's less-than-impressive food offerings.
The 2026 awards season officially kicked off in Santa Monica over the weekend, with the night proving once again to be one of the most star-studded on the Hollywood calendar.
But despite the perceived luxury of the glitzy A-list event, one guest was surprised at the lack of substantial dinner options.
The Critics Choice Awards offered guests a rather sad-looking selection of cheese, grapes and crackers for dinner. Kyle Buchanan / X
New York Times reporter Kyle Buchanan was in attendance at the exclusive awards show, and shared a sneaky snap of the food guests were served during the ceremony.
Pictured was a haphazardly-plated – and decidedly sad-looking – plate of cheese, grapes and a small serving of crackers.
"Hello from the Critics Choice Awards and our dinner, this snack plate," Buchanan said of the underwhelming offering.
The feeble attempt at charcuterie drew a wave of mockery from Buchanan's followers, who drew comparisons to a past event's high-profile flop.
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The event's lacklustre catering has been labelled "sad" and drawn comparisons to the infamous Fyre Festival. Getty Images for FIJI Water
The glitzy event is attended by countless A-listers and is seen as the first big event of the awards season. Getty Images for Critics Choice
"Plate giving Fyre Festival," one commenter hilariously quipped.
They refer, of course, to the notorious 2017 music festival that defrauded thousands of its attendees.
It had initially been marketed as a luxury event in the Bahamas, however guests were met with disaster relief-level conditions upon arrival.
The commenter shared a photo of the notorious cheese sandwich festivalgoers were served at the ill-fated event, which included sloppily-arranged slices of bread and cheese slapped in a styrofoam container.
Guests at Fyre Festival were served a 'deconstructed' sandwich. Twitter
"This looks like a meal on a United flight, not at an award show," another commenter said, while a third wrote: "This plate is so sad. It's not even presented particularly nicely."
"The critics should choose something more substantial for dinner," a fourth joked.
And it wasn't only media attendees who received the depressing platter; it became evident that even the most high-profile VIP guests were served the exact same thing.
In her acceptance speech for Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series, actress Janelle James also referenced the event's mediocre catering.
"The great thing about being nominated four times is I finally realised they ain't never gonna feed us at this thing," the award-winning actress playfully quipped, receiving an appreciative laugh from the audience.
"It's just gonna be grapes and ice-cream every year."
"But this makes up for it," she declared, lifting her award.
The actress was recognised for her performance in mockumentary-style sitcom Abbott Elementary, which follows a group of passionate teachers at struggling, underfunded public school in Philadelphia.
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