Our circuit used to have sit-down meals with waitress service (this was at Northenden Assembly Hall in Manchester). The first thing you did when you arrived was buy your meal ticket, which was assigned a letter for the sitting you were assigned.
Of course it was horrendously inefficient, so meals would still be being served as the afternoon sessions started. During a talk, someone would walk onto the platform and put a letter on a board and loads of people would get up to go have their lunch. You queued up round the back stairs, it took ages, but I remember the food being great.
Later, they had a more food-court / booth setup and the main attraction was a donut machine. The were delicious too, and of course it was hypnotic to watch.
Assemblies lost all their quirkiness and charm, now I suspect they are the same the world over, with no local innovation and little appeal.