Can you help decipher this?

[NyaChan]

There is a potluck being held at my seminar professor's home today. 
He sent out an email reminder with this line in it:

"Potluck - bring a dish and/or beer and/or other beverage"

What would you read this as requiring?

[TurtleDove]

I would ask the professor.

[Yvaine]

I would say just take it at face value--you can bring a dish, or beer, or some other beverage, or more than one of those items if you want.

[wheeitsme]

My take?  I think he means bring a dish and whatever you want to drink.

"Potluck - bring a dish and/or beer and/or other beverage

[Sheila Take a Bow]

I'm someone who spends a lot of time reading regulations as part of my job so I'm used to parsing lots of and/or statements.

So I'm certain this says you can bring one or more of the following:  (1) a dish; (2) beer; (3) non-beer beverage.

[Hmmmmm]

I think he is expecting everyone to bring a dish and a beverage of their choice. But he is probably ok if someone brought beer to share and some side beverages.

[WillyNilly]

I think it means bring a dish (standard potluck) and that beer/alcohol is welcome but won't be provided, so if you want to drink something other then water and soft drinks, you need to bring it yourself.

[Zilla]

I think he meant you can bring a dish or beverage or both.


I think if you are bringing a bottle of soda, I would bring a dish or chips etc.


If you are bringing wine or more expensive liquor, I would not bring a dish.

[Luci]

Bring one thing, or two things, or three things on the list.

[Twik]

I think he is expecting everyone to bring a dish and a beverage of their choice. But he is probably ok if someone brought beer to share and some side beverages.

Then I hope he's not a professor of English or logic, because he has clearly permitted someone to bring (1) a dish, OR (2) beer, OR (3) non-beer beverage.

If he wanted everyone to bring a dish, he should have asked participants to bring "a dish, as well as a beverage (which can be beer or whatever you choose)".

[NyaChan]

Thanks for the help everyone!

The professor's verbal invitation (3 weeks ago so it is really fuzzy) left me with the impression that he'd have some drinks for us but that we should bring food.  I definitely remember him saying to make sure that the dish we bring will serve the number of people coming.  Then I got the email and was worried that I was meant to bring the dish and a drink also.  From your answers it seems the wording is just vague enough that if I show up with my dish and no beverage (I don't have time to go to the store again since I am waiting for a service appointment to show up at the apartment, though I'm willing to be late if it is really necessary), I won't look like I shorted the gathering an offering since it could have been interpreted as optional. 

[Minmom3]

There is a potluck being held at my seminar professor's home today. 
He sent out an email reminder with this line in it:

"Potluck - bring a dish and/or beer and/or other beverage"

What would you read this as requiring?

He's providing the house/venue/yard and the BBQ/tables/microwave/and hopefully the plates and utensils.  You are to bring  food and drinks.  He's being very upfront, but it would have been nice if he'd/she'd also said that 'tableware' and glasses were being provided, guests only needed to bring consumables.   

The best potlucks (the bigger ones) I've been to have always had categories of food to choose to bring - mains, sides, salads, deserts, chip&dip, drinks and cups.  Sometimes based on your name, sometimes just signed up for, but SOMEBODY is in charge of telling people "OK, guys, we have 15 people wanting to bring brownies, we need fewer of that, and much more of X, Y and Z." 

[NyaChan]

Update:

So from what I could tell, the professor provided sodas, some beer, and some wine.  I kind of assumed that he would have plates and cups since it was at his house (is that not normal for a potluck hosted by someone?).  He also prepared red beans and rice.  Some students brought food, some brought alcohol, some brought both.  So I didn't stick out with my bean/corn salad and chips   One student whose plane back from NY landed one hour after the party started, came straight from the airport and showed up with the bagels & cream cheese he had bought on his trip - it looked good, but I was a little iffy on air-traveled cream cheese lol

As it turns out, no one actually ate a meal - 3 out of 12 didn't even take a plate and the rest just munched a little, which was surprising to me considering how fast any food put out at school disappears.  It was also a pity since I could tell some people had really gone to trouble to make their dishes.  The party was at 4 so maybe the strange start time threw some people off?

[TootsNYC]

I think it means bring a dish (standard potluck) and that beer/alcohol is welcome but won't be provided, so if you want to drink something other then water and soft drinks, you need to bring it yourself.

I would take this to mean that soft drinks will NOT be provided--that's what the "other beverage" mention is for.

So bring enough to share, not just for yourself, of any one of those 3 categories.

(When I lived in the dorm w/ no cooking facilities, I cooked frozen peas in my hot pot. And added butter. It worked great!)

If a potluck is being held at someone's home, I also would assume they're providing plates, forks, etc., and I would NOT expect him to tell me that.  If it were being held at some other building on campus, then I *would* like to know. But I'd also assume that if he didn't SAY "bring plates or flatware" that he has arranged this somehow.