Deduce #79: The cookout — the solution

The Deduce puzzle from November 1, 2026, worked through clue by clue: 7 clues, 3 rounds of crossing off, and no guessing anywhere.

The puzzle

Four people — Logan, Isaac, Marta and Rocco — and three things to work out about each: their meat, side and time. The clues only ever rule things out.

1. The one who brought melon is the one arriving at 4pm.
2. Isaac is the one who brought melon.
3. Marta is the one who brought brownies.
4. The one who brought cupcakes is earlier than the one grilling brisket.
5. The one who brought melon is earlier than the one grilling tri-tip.
6. Rocco is exactly 3 hours after the one grilling kebabs.
7. The one grilling pork is the one who brought melon.

The walkthrough

A round is one pass over the clues. Each round applies what the last one settled; every step below is an elimination the clues force, in the order a solver would take them.

Round 1

Start with every possibility open, and take the clues in order.

Clue 2, “Isaac is the one who brought melon”: melon comes off Logan, Marta and Rocco. That settles it: Isaac’s side is melon.

Clue 3, “Marta is the one who brought brownies”: brownies comes off Logan and Rocco. That settles it: Marta’s side is brownies.

Clue 5, “The one who brought melon is earlier than the one grilling tri-tip”: tri-tip comes off Isaac; 5pm comes off Isaac.

Clue 6, “Rocco is exactly 3 hours after the one grilling kebabs”: kebabs comes off Rocco; 2pm, 3pm and 4pm come off Rocco. That settles it: Rocco is arriving at 5pm.

Clue 7, “The one grilling pork is the one who brought melon”: pork comes off Logan, Marta and Rocco. That settles it: Isaac’s meat is pork.

Round 2

Go back over the clues with the new facts in hand.

5pm is Rocco’s, so it comes off Logan and Marta.

Clue 1, “The one who brought melon is the one arriving at 4pm”: 4pm comes off Logan and Marta. That settles it: Isaac is arriving at 4pm.

Clue 4, “The one who brought cupcakes is earlier than the one grilling brisket”: brisket comes off Logan; cupcakes comes off Rocco. That settles it: Rocco’s side is olives.

Clue 5, “The one who brought melon is earlier than the one grilling tri-tip”: tri-tip comes off Logan and Marta. That settles it: Logan’s meat is kebabs.

Round 3

Go back over the clues with the new facts in hand.

Kebabs is Logan’s, so it comes off Marta. That settles it: Marta’s meat is brisket.

Brisket is Marta’s, so it comes off Rocco. That settles it: Rocco’s meat is tri-tip.

Olives is Rocco’s, so it comes off Logan. That settles it: Logan’s side is cupcakes.

Clue 4, “The one who brought cupcakes is earlier than the one grilling brisket”: 3pm comes off Logan; 2pm comes off Marta. That settles it: Logan is arriving at 2pm and Marta is arriving at 3pm.

The answer

Previous: Deduce #78 (Sat, Oct 31) · Next: Deduce #80 (Mon, Nov 2) · All Deduce solutions

About Deduce

Deduce is Noggin’s daily logic grid: four people, three things to work out about each, and clues that never hand you an answer. Every puzzle has exactly one solution and can be finished by crossing off alone. How to play Deduce, or play today’s.