Hi everyone,

I’m having a persistent problem in The Sims 2 Ultimate Collection (Windows 10, EA App / formerly Origin). After serving meals, Sims refuse to eat at the table properly. Here’s exactly what happens:

If I serve a meal onto the table and select a plate → Sims will:

Scoot their chair back and eat with the plate in their hand.

Pick up the plate and walk away to eat somewhere else.


If I select the entire meal on the counter and click Eat → Sims often go eat on the couch instead of the table.

In Buy Mode, attempting to place a single plate on the table:

I cannot place it in any of the 4 proper dining spots.

Only the 2 center decorative slots are available.

The food itself cannot be clicked — only the bowl/plate is selectable.



Here’s what I’ve already tried to fix it:

1. Removed all CC / custom content.


2. Deleted the Sims 2 folder in Documents to start a fresh game.


3. Uninstalled and reinstalled Sims 2 Ultimate Collection.


4. Ran the game in Windows 7 compatibility mode, as administrator, disabled full-screen optimizations, and in windowed mode.



Even with no CC and a fresh game, the issue persists. This is happening on default Maxis tables and food, so it’s not a mod or custom object problem.

I’m looking for any guidance or known fixes for:

Sims eating at all 4 dining slots correctly

Being able to place plates properly on the table


Has anyone encountered this exact behavior on Windows 10 UC? Is there a workaround or solution?

Thanks in advance.

Most of this sounds like normal but annoying game behavior, but there are mods that can fix it.

These three are as far as I know normal behavior (as far as I can remember, from just BG+Uni to full game with both discs and the UC, regardless of OS - XP/Vista/7/10. Possibly with some variations with new EPs and patches and such - but there's a reason people have made mods...):

1: f you place a meal in the center deco slots on the table, this place is "taken" and sims won't use the eating slots (eats with their chair pulled back, or finds a different spot to eat)

2: The eating slots are not available slots for putting items on, not even food. They only work as eating slots if sims use them. You can only use the center slots for putting things on.

3: Sims are very weird in their selection of seating choices, so they'll absolutely find a couch, or an upstairs chair by a desk, instead of the dinner table - depends what's closest, and what's available (according to the sim).


Mods that can help:

For using deco items as centerpieces, and for fixing several maxis food items (plates...), you can try this: https://modthesims.info/d/287228/ma...inner-tray.html

Various mealtime mods: https://everythingsims2.com/mealtimemods/
Maybe these two in particular
https://modthesims.info/d/344321/be...for-eating.html
https://modthesims.info/d/344323/ca...ting-fixes.html

There are likely others as well.

It kind of sounds like you're not using the most efficient options for a meal intended to be eaten right away.

Make sure that the table is a) an actual dining table (it's rare, but some cc gets into the wrong category; I've had desks that look like dining tables and dining tables that look like desks, both in the category they look like and not like what they are; to be absolutely certain, test with a Maxis table) and b) actually has all of its seats accessible, that everything is facing the right way, nothing is blocking anything, etc., and c) closer to the stove than any other seating.

Click the refrigerator and Serve Meal/Group. Without you doing anything more, the active sim should spontaneously cook the meal and then carry it around to all the viable dining spaces dishing them out till they've filled all the spaces or matched the number of sims on the lot, return to the counter, set down the meal, and if there's anything left, take a plate.

Now click the serving platter until you get the "call to meal" option. Sims should then converge on the table without having to be directed specifically to eat, though there's always that one sim who ignores the call (the hunger bar does not seem to be consistently relevant) or insists on picking a new plate off the platter. If the table is full, the server and anyone serving themselves off the platter will either find another chair, eat standing, or take an empty seat that has a plate in front of it, eating while holding the plate; but if another sim is directed to eat the plate on the table of a sim holding a plate, they will pick up the plate, clearing the space, and the sim seated there will put their plate down to finish eating.

If you want to make sure your sims all eat at the table, you need to ensure that you have a large enough table and no other seating in the same room.

http://www.cyjon.net/node/324
http://www.cyjon.net/node/216

Those might help.



That annoys me, hehe. It's rare that all the sims in the household are hungry at the same time and I have to pack up all the single plates as leftovers.

Thank you so much for the helpful advice! Yes, this turned out to be a "that's a feature, not a bug" sort of thing. I have downloaded some of the mods recommended to me, thank you!