what to eat before a swim meet?

Carbs. The day before, load up on carbs, they supply great reserves of energy that is used during sprints and bursts. things like spaghetti, pasta, bread, etc. then if you wake up hungry, keep your meal light, like maybe a fruit or a bagel because it's race day, so keep up on liquids and avoid eating too much so you don't cramp up

I would get there earlier. Even if you go an hour earlier, there will still be a lot of people. I usually arrive at a meet an hour earlier.

Eat a decent, but not unhealthy breakfast. A simple bowl of cereal will help. At the meet, always drink water, Gatorade, or other similar drinks, but NEVER get something like Monster or 5 Hour Energy. These will just make your "crash". Eat whatever what you can get in the snack bar. There will be some candy and other sweets, but buy those after you finish your last event of the day. Get a breakfast burrito or hamburger or something.

The most important thing to remember: NEVER EAT ANYTHING NEW. Don't chance it. Even if someone says that eating "X" is the absolute best thing ever to eat before a race, DON'T DO IT. Not on a race day if you've never "tested" it before. The same goes for foods that maybe you are familiar with but have never "raced" on. Eat a "normal" breakfast and take a snack with you.

For swimming races, I like to be just a tad on the "hungry" side. I eat a bowl of cereal almost every day of my life, so that's what I eat on race day. I always take a Clif bar (or something similar) to nibble on if I get hungry later. Fruit is a great snack on non-racing days, but I don't like to race on it.

Your mileage may vary.