Is it ok to order off the kids menu as an adult?

[ColdLasagna99]

Lighthearted! Slightly inspired by the other ongoing restaurant/takeaway threads.

I don’t have a massive appetite due to my meds. (I love food and cooking - I just genuinely can’t eat as much as I used to.) At a chain place, I will quite often get a kid’s meal, which is the right portion size for me and obviously is about half the price of an adult meal. I will only ever do this in chains and when I am with friends they’ve never cared. For example, Nando’s does a great kid’s meal, and I will order drinks, extras, sides etc. Only been slightly reprimanded once. I’ve been a waiter in a chain and I wouldn’t think twice about putting the order through.

I know if everyone did this, they wouldn’t make any money, but I genuinely don’t finish my plate most of the time! On the plus side, when I order a normal portion do get nice leftovers for lunch

I’ve had weight loss surgery so I can’t eat much, but I find that the children’s menus are often nuggets, chips and beans which I don’t want. Sometimes I will order a starter and just say ‘I’m not very hungry, can it come with everyone else’s main please’.

no one, and I mean no one, had batted an eyelid in 5 years. I also take a happy meal into other restaurants for my friend’s autistic daughter. No way will she eat from the main menu and there’s still two adults ordering

Bernadette I just posted it upthread

We've been in several places where two members of our family with small appetites can't order one plate of food and split it, as a similar way to get smaller meals for adults. The business loses out if they refuse as you then don't eat with them. Places do need to be better at smaller plates for adults and also decent children's meals e.g. small versions of the adults meals and not just beige food and chips.

I do it all the time. Why should I pay for something I do not want, and contribute to food waste?

Yes, I appreciate there are economies of scale with restaurant costs - but it probably doesn't help their costs to waste food either.

I agree that people often only see the value of the food itself and ignore all the rest of the costs to the restaurant.

If they offered half-sized adult portions, people would expect them to be half the price of the full-sized version of the dish, and would be disgusted at them 'ripping off customers' if they charged, say 75-80% - even though they still occupy one chair and one table space, one space in the car park, require one meal to be cooked, served, cleared up and washed-up after and probably use the toilet facilities and leave as much mess as much as anybody else on average.

Nowhere is going to make a reasonable profit if they serve kids' meals to tables without (usually proportionally more) adult meals too. Unless it's somewhere like McDonalds, where it's effectively all children's/child-friendly food and they price accordingly - with no outgoings on crockery, cutlery, clearing and washing up and people occupy the table for far less time than in a proper restaurant.

I didn't know this was something that restaurants would refuse to do. I've ordered from the children's menu before and the waiter has never said anything.

Most places do a smaller appetites section here which is basically the kids menu so I always appreciate the ones that so that.

Personally I wouldn't in a eat in place, but do with takeaways or canteen style places, where they won't know or care who ghe food is for

The business only looses out if you go in a quiet period and no one else would be taking the table if you go elsewhere.

If you are taking a table that would otherwise be used by other customers ordering full meals then the business looses out by having you occupy the table.

Most child's menus have an age limit. Our friends had a son who was tall for his age. His parents just ordered him normal meals as no one ever believed he was under 12. He looked about 18. Restaurants are finding it hard at the moment so would only order a child meal for a child.

I quite often only have a starter and a side of salad or chips as the token veggie (usually vegan!) main course dish is unappealing. It’s usually enough for me too as I don’t have a big appetite.

Yes you can take leftovers home but they are rarely improved by the trip. I have half a scone with jam and cream in the fridge at the moment as the scone from yesterday’s cream tea was ludicrously big. Doesn’t look very appealing now but DP will probably eat it.

I have also ordered a cheese sandwich from the children’s menu in the past as being the only non meat option available.

My DM is the same - some places have been funny about it. If we all go out with my parents and DS he loves a spicy curry (won't touch a korma!) and never usually anything he wants on the kids menu. So DS gets his tikka masala or jalfrezi and my DM can have her fish finger, chips and beans!

Some pub chains do Lite Bites for the smaller appetite.

no I don’t think it’s ok - a child doesn’t come in alone so restaurants are offering the child meal cheaply so the adult buys stuff.
when I was a waitress I’d have tried to put it through though if I could but it’s not great for the restaurant.

Order a starter, or just a side, or just ask the restaurant if they do smaller plates.

This thread is making me irrationality annoyed as I don't work in the restaurant industry. I do however have a business degree so have an understanding of the business model -it is clear many here do not.

On a personal note my local, independent, family friendly cafe went under recently, so I no longer have a local place to meet up with friends and it has really impacted my social life and wellbeing. I feel like part of the problem was that people would sit there occupying tables at peak hours with just a coffee/ not everyone ordering food.

You can order whatever is on offer. Don't give it a second thought.

A lot of places will stipulate that kids' meals are for children under a certain age only and wouldn't allow an adult to order one for themselves. They often say under-12s only, which is a bit odd, as plenty of kids have big appetites long before they are 12.

I've also seen the other side of this, when eating with friends and family, where they order children's meals for their kids who are quite clearly old enough to want and be able to eat an adult-sized meal.

I wonder how often you get a slender petite adult, who is horrified at the size of their full-size meal when it arrives, alongside a hungry 11yo who looks mournfully at the tininess of their kids' meal?! Maybe that's the solution for adults with very small appetites: go with a child who can easily put it all away and just swap plates

Some restaurants specify eg for under 10!. I agree adult portions are frequently too big and more than I’d eat at home - sometimes eg we will share a pizza or simply take the leftovers home for the dog so it doesn’t go to waste

I worked in hospitality a lot until my current workplace and I really couldn't give a shit what people order. Even in Michelin star places I've worked, nope, don't care. Order what you like. Hospitality workers are too tired to judge you. They just want to get through their shift. Some managers might care as it may affect their takings or something, but general servers do not care.

But if you're rude they will bad mouth you in the back 🤣

Because the person wants the extras & sides not just one meal?

I can't eat a lot (having covid back in March completely knocked my appetite - in my case, not a bad thing!!), so I normally ask at a restaurant if they would allow me to order of the kids menu (not typical kiddy stuff, but because of the portion size)/if there's a maximum age allowed for the kid menu, or I ask if they would do half size adult portions. I've not had a problem so far! If they said no to it, then that's no problem as I'd ask if they could box up leftovers so I could take it home (I often have to do that anyway as sometimes even kids portions are too big for me). I just hate wasting food!!

depends some places ive been to says an age limit but most fast food places probably dont care

@ColdLasagna99

I also don’t really care about the (already large) profit margins of chain restaurants.

If they were making "large" profits, they wouldn't be closing down at such an alarming rate.

I suppose it does seem a little odd that there is only a choice of 'children's' or 'adults' when both groups can vary enormously in size and appetite. In a 'standard' restaurant, Victoria Beckham and Mark Labbett would be assumed to eat the same amount.

Some places have started to offer XL versions for a couple of pounds more, which I think makes sense. I wonder if they have also reduced the standard adult portion slightly, to allow for adults with smaller appetites and then anybody complaining that it's not enough can just be referred to the XL option.

But if they serve less food surely it isn't costing them the same?

Really. Just think about it. You are not paying solely for the food but staffing, overheads etc.