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

We went to Pizza Hut last week and I ordered off the children's menu plus a side. The adult pizzas are just too big for me. Ordered via an app not a real person so there was nobody to question me being too old.

I always eat off the kids menu. I don’t eat that much so I’m not paying for an adults meal.

for take away favourite fish and chip shop does a small portion of fish and chips which is ideal for both myself and mother. smaller fish; eating our, I'm on my own and couldn't eat all the potatoes etc. What's best for a restaurant, to have a fussy, needing to eat less me, plus others who eat a lot or to just have the others eat there, or go elsewhere. If I'm away and can't cook for myself who eat a lot, or maybe we all go elsewhere. When I'm away I wouldn't dream of going to a packed restaurant on my own for a restricted diet, but shouldn't feel I have to only eat cold things ready cooked from the supermarket. I'm fine to go early into an Indian restaurant before the rush starts and get a couple of starters, and indeed often do this with a friend at home, a couple of starters and a main , I've never had any problems.

Technically ordering a kid's meal when you are an adult is VAT fraud - as there is no VAT on children's meals (to subsidise the cost of having children).

It depends - lots of places use kids meals as a loss leader and cap the age. Chains should be fine but maybe not the local pub for Sunday lunch.

I don't think it's a problem, however I can't think of many restaurants that allow an adult to order from the children's menu.

Maybe if it's fast food or a place where you order and pay at the till before eating, they allow it as wouldn't know who you're ordering for etc.

But by the same token, they'd prefer customers who want 3 courses and lots of alcoholic drinks, but sometimes they'll be full of people who only want one course and one cheap drink. They really can't dictate down to the nth degree as to type of customer. It's swings and roundabouts.

Sadly you're incorrect. There is no VAT exemption for children's meals. They're regarded as catering and charged the same full rate of 20%.

You may be getting confused with children's clothing where there is a specific exemption that zero rates clothing below a certain size/age.

I felt like ordering children's meals when I was pregnant. I just couldn’t fit in an adult portion but always felt it was frowned upon. I can’t count how many times my husband cleared my plate to save wasting it. Some places don’t allow you to takeaway sit down food. Most chain places now offer smaller portions of main meals at a lower price.

I've occasionally ordered children's meals, particularly when I was pregnant and had minimal appetite, was losing weight fast and the more food was in front of me, the fewer the number of bites I could face eating.

In karma, I have ravenous children who have moved to adult meals at a young age and frequently need to eat more than me.

The local carvery does a "small" plate that's the same as the child so I pay more to have the same as the 9yo, but my 11yo piles through a medium portion.

We eat in a pub where the staff know the kids meals are for adults. If they are fine with it, why not?

I own a restaurant, we really don't care as it hardly happens and why should she pay more for food she can't eat

You can unless they tell you you can’t

V few adults will do this, so I don’t think it’s a big deal

I did it Sunday. I only wanted a few IKEA meatballs, so I paid £2.50 for 4 for the kids meal (tiny mash/peas) rather than £5.50 for 12 (huge mash/peas)

The poor value of the kids meal grated a little, but the adult portion was too much.

Theres a pub we occasionally go to when we are away from home and they do a serve yourself carvery with childs option. Because we are all vegan/veggie, they let us have it at the childs serving price which is £5 because we don't have any meat, we have the roast potatoes, veg, stuffing, gravy and its a great meal.

A nice pub near where my sister lives serves two versions of each main course, regular and light bite versions. When DH was away which was often DS and I would go to the local carvery. I would get the adult meL and he would get the child’s, we would then swap plates at the table.

Order from the nandos app they have never said anything. I would order from the kids menu I have a really small appetite but most kids menus are crap. I look for places with smaller portion options pubs etc normally do that or I recently went to wildwood and they do a small pizza option. I sometimes just order a starter if they look nice..

V few adults will do this, so I don’t think it’s a big deal

That's not what I'm getting from this thread, tbh.

This.

Partly because kids menus are god awful and DS won't eat them.

Tbh, I am finding it much easier to order smaller bites when eating out these days. There are a significant number of places which do now have smaller portion options available.

Most chains certainly seem to now.

The only place I will have a kids menu is McDonald's. I don't worry about how much profit they may or may not be making there, tbh.

You can’t eat an entree sized portion of food? Really? How extraordinary.

How are you managing to eat enough vegetables if your appetite is so small?

I find it incredible that someone can eat the rubbish on children’s menus but couldn’t eat enough of a starter ordered as a main for it to be worthwhile.