--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Revenge is a dish best eaten cold. The…" description: "\"Revenge is a dish best eaten cold. The reason for this, of course, is that while you're gleefully anticipating the event, the victim has plenty of time..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/43f/alan-bradley-1571_revenge_revenge-is-a-dish-best-eaten-cold-the-re_1258420.png" --- # Revenge is a dish best eaten cold. The reason for this, of… ![“Revenge is a dish best eaten cold. The reason for this, of course, is that while you're gleefully anticipating the event, the victim has plenty of time to worry about when, where, and how you're going to strike” quote by Alan Bradley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/43f/alan-bradley-1571_revenge_revenge-is-a-dish-best-eaten-cold-the-re_1258420.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/43f/alan-bradley-1571_revenge_revenge-is-a-dish-best-eaten-cold-the-re_1258420.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/43f/alan-bradley-1571_revenge_revenge-is-a-dish-best-eaten-cold-the-re_1258420.png) > “Revenge is a dish best eaten cold. The reason for this, of course, is that while you're gleefully anticipating the event, the victim has plenty of time to worry about when, where, and how you're going to strike” [Alan Bradley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-bradley/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The saying warns that revenge is most effective when the avenger is patient and calm, allowing the target time to become vulnerable, making the act more satisfying. **In simple terms:** Patience makes revenge more powerful. Key Takeaway Plan carefully and wait before acting on vengeance. Themes revenge patience strategy justice Mood cautionary reflective Type philosophical ethical When to use this quote - conflict resolution - personal grievances - legal battles - emotional healing Key Concepts psychology ethics strategic thinking Questions to Reflect On - Is revenge ever justified? - What are healthier ways to address wrongdoing? A Different Perspective Revenge can perpetuate cycles of harm and may not bring true closure. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cold Reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cold-reason-3992030/) [Eaten Cold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eaten-cold-3872953/) [Revenge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/revenge/) [Revenge Dish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/revenge-dish-316282/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Victim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/victim/) ## Related quotes > [“Revenge was a dish best eaten cold, but eight years between was arctic.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-kellerman/revenge-was-a-dish-best-eaten-cold-but-eight-years-between-was-arctic/) [Jonathan Kellerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-kellerman/) > [They say revenge is a dish best eaten cold, but for most people, by the time it's ready to eat, they just don't fancy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jo-brand/they-say-revenge-is-a-dish-best-eaten-cold-but-for-most-people-by-the/) [Jo Brand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jo-brand/) > [“Revenge is a dish best eaten cold and there is no sweeter dish than outliving an enemy”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-darkes/revenge-is-a-dish-best-eaten-cold-and-there-is-no-sweeter-dish-than/) [Don Darkes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-darkes/) > [There is no truer saying than "Revenge is a dish best eaten cold." It is so much sweeter for the waiting, and my only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/minette-walters/there-is-no-truer-saying-than-revenge-is-a-dish-best-eaten-cold-it-is/) [Minette Walters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/minette-walters/) > [The voices of cold reason were talking, as usual, to deaf ears.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellis-peters/the-voices-of-cold-reason-were-talking-as-usual-to-deaf-ears/) [Ellis Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellis-peters/) > [Revenge is a dish better severed cold.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sushan/revenge-is-a-dish-better-severed-cold/) [Sushan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sushan/) > [“Another old saying is that revenge is a dish best served cold. But it feels best served piping hot, straight out of the oven…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mindy-kaling/another-old-saying-is-that-revenge-is-a-dish-best-served-cold-but-it/) [Mindy Kaling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mindy-kaling/) > [“There was no doubt in my mind that Daemon believed revenge was a dish best served in my face.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-l-armentrout/there-was-no-doubt-in-my-mind-that-daemon-believed-revenge-was-a-dish/) [Jennifer L. Armentrout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-l-armentrout/) > [Revenge is a dish best served unexpectedly and from a distance - like a thrown trifle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-hardinge/revenge-is-a-dish-best-served-unexpectedly-and-from-a-distance-like-a/) [Frances Hardinge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-hardinge/) > [Vengeance is a dish best eaten cold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/english-proverb/vengeance-is-a-dish-best-eaten-cold/) [English Proverb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/english-proverb/) > [Frittatas are delicious, convenient, and can even be eaten cold - perfect if you're working against the clock to make your morning meeting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-haskell/frittatas-are-delicious-convenient-and-can-even-be-eaten-cold-perfect/) [James Haskell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-haskell/) > [And as the Italian proverb says, 'Revenge is the dish which people of taste prefer to eat cold.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-hamer/and-as-the-italian-proverb-says-revenge-is-the-dish-which-people-of/) [Robert Hamer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-hamer/) > [“I have always disbelieved that Sicilian saying about revenge being a dish best served cold. I feel that – don’t you? – when I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-fry/i-have-always-disbelieved-that-sicilian-saying-about-revenge-being-a/) [Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/) > [Everyone knows revenge is a dish best served when you've had enough time to build up enough vitriol and fury.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophie-kinsella/everyone-knows-revenge-is-a-dish-best-served-when-you-ve-had-enough/) [Sophie Kinsella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophie-kinsella/) > [“Revenge is a dish best served cold. – Precious”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-o/revenge-is-a-dish-best-served-cold-precious/) [Mike O](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-o/) ## More by Alan Bradley > [“…it is a well-known fact that more than two men shut up together in an enclosed space for more than an hour constitute a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-bradley/it-is-a-well-known-fact-that-more-than-two-men-shut-up-together-in-an/) [Alan Bradley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-bradley/) > [“You see, Flavia, silence is sometimes the most costly of commodities.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-bradley/you-see-flavia-silence-is-sometimes-the-most-costly-of-commodities/) [Alan Bradley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-bradley/) > [“If there is a thing I truly despise, it is being addressed as "dearie." When I write my magnum opus, A Treatise Upon All…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-bradley/if-there-is-a-thing-i-truly-despise-it-is-being-addressed-as-dearie/) [Alan Bradley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-bradley/) > [“The sweater didn't fit me, of course. Even with the sleeves rolled up I looked like a baggy monkey picking bananas. But to my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-bradley/the-sweater-didn-t-fit-me-of-course-even-with-the-sleeves-rolled-up-i/) [Alan Bradley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-bradley/) > [“If there is anything more delicious than a sausage roasted over an open Bunsen burner, I can't image what it might be--Porcelain and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-bradley/if-there-is-anything-more-delicious-than-a-sausage-roasted-over-an/) [Alan Bradley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-bradley/) > [“No point in wasting time with false vanity when you possess the real thing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-bradley/no-point-in-wasting-time-with-false-vanity-when-you-possess-the-real/) [Alan Bradley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-bradley/) > [“Die, witch," I managed, making a cross of my forefingers.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-bradley/die-witch-i-managed-making-a-cross-of-my-forefingers/) [Alan Bradley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-bradley/) > [“There was no way out; not, at least, in this direction. I was like a hamster that had climbed to the top of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-bradley/there-was-no-way-out-not-at-least-in-this-direction-i-was-like-a/) [Alan Bradley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-bradley/) > [I am often thought of as being remarkably bright, and yet my brains, more often than not, are busily devising new and interesting ways…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-bradley/i-am-often-thought-of-as-being-remarkably-bright-and-yet-my-brains/) [Alan Bradley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-bradley/) > [“To my mind, if Nature had wanted us to have bright red fingertips, She would have caused us to be born with our blood…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-bradley/to-my-mind-if-nature-had-wanted-us-to-have-bright-red-fingertips-she/) [Alan Bradley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-bradley/) > [“Had I been too cruel to that horror, Miss Mountjoy? Too vindictive? Wasn't she, after all, just a harmless and lonely old spinster? Would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-bradley/had-i-been-too-cruel-to-that-horror-miss-mountjoy-too-vindictive-wasn/) [Alan Bradley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-bradley/) > [“This was an interesting thought; it had never occurred to me that one's name could be a compass.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-bradley/this-was-an-interesting-thought-it-had-never-occurred-to-me-that-one/) [Alan Bradley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-bradley/) > [“While you've been gadding about the countryside, we've held a meeting, and we've all of us decided that you must go.' In short, we've…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-bradley/while-you-ve-been-gadding-about-the-countryside-we-ve-held-a-meeting/) [Alan Bradley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-bradley/) > [“For all practical purposes, Feely's enthusiasms stopped where her skin ended.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-bradley/for-all-practical-purposes-feely-s-enthusiasms-stopped-where-her-skin/) [Alan Bradley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-bradley/) > [“Then I remembered that silence can sometimes do more damage than words.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-bradley/then-i-remembered-that-silence-can-sometimes-do-more-damage-than-words/) [Alan Bradley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-bradley/) [Explore all 226 Alan Bradley quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-bradley/) ## More Revenge quotes > [There is a spirit which I feel that delights to do no evil, nor to revenge any wrong, but delights to endure all things,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-nayler/there-is-a-spirit-which-i-feel-that-delights-to-do-no-evil-nor-to/) [James Nayler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-nayler/) > [“The best way to take revenge of me is to make me see you successful.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-s-jagadeesh-kumar/the-best-way-to-take-revenge-of-me-is-to-make-me-see-you-successful/) [P.S. Jagadeesh Kumar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-s-jagadeesh-kumar/) > [Revenge is a dish better severed cold.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sushan/revenge-is-a-dish-better-severed-cold/) [Sushan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sushan/) > [The best revenge in the world is success.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suge-knight/the-best-revenge-in-the-world-is-success/) [Suge Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suge-knight/) > [And, re-assembling our afflicted powers, consult how we may henceforth most offend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-milton/and-re-assembling-our-afflicted-powers-consult-how-we-may-henceforth/) [John Milton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-milton/) > [Life appears to me too short to be spent in nursing animosity, or registering wrongs. With this creed, revenge never worries my heart, degradation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/life-appears-to-me-too-short-to-be-spent-in-nursing-animosity-or/) [Charlotte Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) > [How could a readiness for war in time of peace be safely prohibited, unless we could prohibit, in like manner, the preparations and establishments…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-madison/how-could-a-readiness-for-war-in-time-of-peace-be-safely-prohibited/) [James Madison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-madison/) > [Convulsive anger storms at large; or pale And silent, settles into full revenge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-tillotson/convulsive-anger-storms-at-large-or-pale-and-silent-settles-into-full/) [John Tillotson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-tillotson/) > [If you put together all the ingredients that naturally attract children - sex, violence, revenge, spectacle and vigorous noise - what you have is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-martin/if-you-put-together-all-the-ingredients-that-naturally-attract/) [Judith Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-martin/) > [If someone steals my man, there's no better revenge than letting her keep him. A real man can't be stolen unless he wants to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu-ghatourey/if-someone-steals-my-man-there-s-no-better-revenge-than-letting-her/) [Ritu Ghatourey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu-ghatourey/) > [The best revenge is to be unlike him who performed the injury.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/the-best-revenge-is-to-be-unlike-him-who-performed-the-injury/) [Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/) > [But I believed in starting over. There was finally, I knew, only rupture and hurt and falling short between all persons, but, Shirley, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorrie-moore/but-i-believed-in-starting-over-there-was-finally-i-knew-only-rupture/) [Lorrie Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorrie-moore/) > [As I predicted, young people who overwhelmingly didn't want Brexit have turned out in their droves and exacted revenge on a generation of Leavers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-soubry/as-i-predicted-young-people-who-overwhelmingly-didn-t-want-brexit/) [Anna Soubry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-soubry/) > [I am not vindictive, but very forgiving. Despite being wronged, I never took revenge on anyone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rituparna-sengupta/i-am-not-vindictive-but-very-forgiving-despite-being-wronged-i-never/) [Rituparna Sengupta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rituparna-sengupta/) > [“the human is offered a choice: they can get revenge on me, or they can accept their pain and continue their journey”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tobias-wade/the-human-is-offered-a-choice-they-can-get-revenge-on-me-or-they-can/) [Tobias Wade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tobias-wade/) [Browse all 2,625 Revenge quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/revenge/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Revenge is a dish best eaten cold. 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