People shocked after seeing what celebs ate at Critics' Choice Awards

A sad-looking photo of the dinner served up to A-listers at the Critics Choice Awards last night (4 January) is going viral.

Celebrities from the world of film, streaming and TV gathered at the Barker Hangar at Santa Monica Airport, California, yesterday for a star-studded ceremony.

Hosted by Chelsea Handler, the glitzy event saw Adolescence star Owen Cooper, 16, take home the prize for best supporting actor in a limited series, while his co-stars Stephen Graham and Erin Doherty were awarded best actor in a limited series and best supporting actress in a limited series, respectively.

Elsewhere, it was a big night for Timothée Chalamet who won Best Actor for his role in Marty Supreme and was cheered on by his reality TV girlfriend Kylie Jenner.

But as we say, one detail that people haven't been able to get over is the plate of food that was reportedly served at the high-profile event.

Hello from the Critics Choice Awards and our dinner, this snack plate. Follow along for updates… pic.twitter.com/e5RKwiIdcZ

— Kyle Buchanan (@kylebuchanan) January 4, 2026

If you were expecting a swanky three-course dinner including steak or fish, think again, as one journalist revealed exactly what was being served up to guests.

Kyle Buchanan, who works for the New York Times, took to Twitter while at the event to post a snap of his plate, alongside the caption: "Hello from the Critics Choice Awards and our dinner, this snack plate."

The picture in questioned showed an assortment of a few small bunches of grapes, some tomato salsa, two pieces of cheese, crackers, and a slice of bread.

Hello from the Critics Choice Awards and our dinner, this snack plate. Follow along for updates… pic.twitter.com/e5RKwiIdcZ

— Kyle Buchanan (@kylebuchanan) January 4, 2026

Also seen in the snap is some dried fruit, some sort of pastry, and two skewers with a tomato, basil, and a mozzarella ball.

The social media post has quickly racked up thousands of views and people have rushed to the replies to share their shock at the portion and contents of the meal.

One person questioned: "Is this dinner??" while a second asked: "This is what they’re feeding you?!"

A third and fourth compared it to the food you might get on a long-haul flight, writing: "Looks like first class on United" and "This looks like a meal on a United flight, not at an award show."

"That is the actual dinner?" another baffled person asked, while someone else simply wrote: "rabbit food."

And others chimed in with: "They should give you some sirloin," and "Everybody’s on Ozempic! They didn’t want to waste tons of steak or fish."

Over on Reddit, a similar conversation was being had, where someone wrote: "This looks like it was purchased for $14 on a United Airlines flight from Chicago to Houston," and a second person agreed: "I seriously thought this was a United airlines food post. Except theirs looks better."

Someone else reasoned: "I’m sure the diet preferences are wild. Vegan, gluten free, paleo, lacto ovarian vegetarian, no beige colors on the plate, only this, only that… serve something everyone can at least have one item of (the grapes)."

And another argued: "Honestly? Hell yeah. This is the perfect 'I’m hungry, but we’re supposed to be paying attention, lemme grab a bite really quick.' Plate."

Tyla has contacted the Critics Choice Awards for comment.