Portion sizes in pubs and restaurants-why are they so big?

[AlternativelyWired]

Unless of course it's somewhere very fancy.
Inspired by the calories on menus threads I was wondering why portions are so big. One place we go to does a children's pizza, chips and peas. This is just short of 900 calories. It's a Chicago town style pizza with a large handful of chips and a portion of peas. Even the adult menu has very little that's below 800 calories. Starters to share (for two people) are over 1000 calories. Some of the meat 'challenges' are over 4000 calories each! Why?
Surely if portion sizes were smaller or rather, appropriate, this would be better than stating calorie values and would help avoid food waste. Food waste induces a lot of guilt in me, and the calories do too as a former anorexic, and although eating out is a treat that we don't do often, I don't want a huge plateful of food that I won't be able to finish. I think the meat challenges are obscene but that might be my eating disordered and veggie brain speaking.
Why are pizzas so big? And burgers? Over 1000 calories for a burger and that's without the chips.
Could places offer small portions? Although even the seniors menu is a larger than normal portion.
I don't particularly want to know the calories of the dishes on offer but I do want a choice of smaller portions rather than contributing to food waste.
And while I'm at it, what happened to sandwiches on menus? In the 80s and 90s everywhere we went had a sandwich section with egg mayonnaise, prawn mayonnaise, beef, ham, cheddar ploughman's and now sandwiches don't seem to exist except in cafés. A nice sandwich with a salad garnish and maybe a handful of crisps. My mum would be so happy if they came back. And omelettes.
Bring back proper plates, the ones we had in the 80s not the huge ones we have now.

Personally I find the portion sizes obscene. I’m going out for a meal tonight and because I’m not a greedy bar-steward I’m obviously not going to eat it all. Instead I’m going to get them to box it up. Bring it home and add 1kg of carrots, onion and celery to it. Throw in some tomatoes and herbs and it’s a fabulous bolognaise that the 6 of us can have for dinner and also about 17 portions for the freezer all for 29p. If my husband eats all of his dinner tonight I will LTGB immediately.

@Goldengoosey

Personally I find the portion sizes obscene. I’m going out for a meal tonight and because I’m not a greedy bar-steward I’m obviously not going to eat it all. Instead I’m going to get them to box it up. Bring it home and add 1kg of carrots, onion and celery to it. Throw in some tomatoes and herbs and it’s a fabulous bolognaise that the 6 of us can have for dinner and also about 17 portions for the freezer all for 29p. If my husband eats all of his dinner tonight I will LTGB immediately.

Also lentils, don't forget the lentils!

@Goldengoosey

Personally I find the portion sizes obscene. I’m going out for a meal tonight and because I’m not a greedy bar-steward I’m obviously not going to eat it all. Instead I’m going to get them to box it up. Bring it home and add 1kg of carrots, onion and celery to it. Throw in some tomatoes and herbs and it’s a fabulous bolognaise that the 6 of us can have for dinner and also about 17 portions for the freezer all for 29p. If my husband eats all of his dinner tonight I will LTGB immediately.

But what will you have ordered in the first place? Do the chips end up in the bolognese? What about the pizza???

Here we go with the piss taking because people can't bear to admit that they eat far too much.

@LuckySantangelo35

I would absolutely NEED some cheesy chips to feel satisfied. That portion wouldn’t even touch the sides. Why that triggers people is beyond me but it’s not really my problem.

I enjoy my food and like eating big portions. Am I fat? No do I feel healthy? Yes

Do I go out to eat regularly? No!

[quote TinselTitsAndGlitteryBits]@Florenz

Those who have bigger appetites should have to pay double to fill them because you can't finish a plate and have issues with portions?

Would you do that with all meal options? Half sized salads? Soup? Or just the ones you deem unhealthy?[/quote]
At the moment people with smaller appetites have to pay double to buy massive portions of food, most of which just get wasted. The people with bigger appetites would be healthier if they were dissuaded from buying the massive portions.

Yes do it with all meal options.

@RachelGreeneGreep thank you for reminding me. Imagine how badly that bolognaise would have turned out without a hundred weight of lentils

@SpaghettiNotCourgetti chips are the work if the devil. I call ahead and make sure the restaurant don’t serve such disgusting things.

@PlacidPenelope

Here we go with the piss taking because people can't bear to admit that they eat far too much.

I eat far too much when I go out for a meal. Freely admit it. I enjoy food and lots of it.

Went to frankie and bennies recently and the portions were tiny. I was starving afterwards.

Yes, I've actually started to ask for child portions now where possible, unless excessively hungry. Way too much.

@Deadringer

This was my main in a restaurant yesterday, I am curious to know if people think this is outrageously huge, about right, or on the small side. There were more potatoes and green beans on a side plate, this is how much I took. Just curious.

Looks perfect to me. I think many people would say it’s too little, even though you could have extra potatoes and veg. And order a starter/ side dish/ pudding if you have a large appetite.

I'm beginning to think I live somewhere well posh. All my local pubs offer some smaller portion dishes. They have no problem with you ordering a starter as a main.
I thought deadringer's meal looked like normal grub.
I do tend to go to pubs where they have a chef rather than a microwave technician. I want food out to taste great, not to be some giant ready meal type thing. I am quite partial to fish and chips though.

I think it’s a rare treat then go for it.

When I was at college I’d have curry chip roll for lunch. A white bap sliced open, filled with proper chips and slathered with chip shop curry sauce, delicious.

See, it’s Covid that has made me realise a) how much bigger portions are in restaurants and b) how much salt is in takeaways and restaurant food. And I like food. Definitely not of the “are you sure you should be eating all of that lettuce leaf?” brigade. But after two years of mainly eating home-cooked food, partly due to Covid and partly due to lack of babysitters, I really notice it when I eat out. Partly I’m miffed, because dessert menus look great but I feel like I don’t have room for a whole one - I think more places should do the “café gourmand”/coffee and mini dessert thing.

But the salt! I swear I never noticed it until the last couple of years (clearly cooking for DCs including a weaning baby has affected my tastebuds) but even when we get a not-obviously-salty takeaway like Thai curry, we both end up super thirsty afterwards.

So is the answer for restaurants to offer as much of their menu as possible as a 50% smaller meal at, say, 75% of the full sized cost?

I am disappointed in MN today. We're many responses into this thread and not one response has blamed the Americans. Yet.

@CounsellorTroi

I wish places would offer a burger without the bun. A bunned burger and chips is too much of a carb fest.

I always just ask for it without the bun and it's never been a problem!

I agree OP, we went to a harvester yesterday for the first time in about 20 years, and they have all the calories on the menu and one was over 2000 calories! For one meal! Crazy. I guess places like that are going for the value for money type approach, but no-one at our table could finish their meal, so it's a pretty wasteful approach too.

@Deadringer

This was my main in a restaurant yesterday, I am curious to know if people think this is outrageously huge, about right, or on the small side. There were more potatoes and green beans on a side plate, this is how much I took. Just curious.

Looks fine to me.

Personally I think the better the establishment, the better the quality of the food and the smaller the portion size. From independent restaurants to small independent pubs and cafes.

Someone at the start of this thread posted about a burger cost of £1.45 padded out with chips. Sorry but I don’t want a cheap nasty processed burger. If I order a burger it’s somewhere they are homemade or local butcher’s burgers so far better quality accompanied with a small portion of homemade chips and dressed salad leaves.

There are places that suit everyone and normally a menu that you can select the starter size if you prefer.

I have never been to a Toby style carvery or all you can eat salad bar. It’s just not what I want. But that’s the good thing there’s choice for everyone. Some people perceive value and quality in term of quantity whilst others in terms of good locally sourced ingredients cooked and presented well which is normally a sensible portion size that allows for the diner to possibly enjoy a starter, main and then pud. Or main followed by pud.

We’re all different in our tastes and appetites! And budgets to be fair.

@PestorPeston

I'm beginning to think I live somewhere well posh. All my local pubs offer some smaller portion dishes. They have no problem with you ordering a starter as a main. I thought deadringer's meal looked like normal grub. I do tend to go to pubs where they have a chef rather than a microwave technician. I want food out to taste great, not to be some giant ready meal type thing. I am quite partial to fish and chips though.

With you on this one.

Here we go with the piss taking because people can't bear to admit that they eat far too much.
Some of us only eat out about twice a year. I would be gutted if I was given a tiny meal in a pub!!! Saying that, yes, offer half portions for less money

@Deadringer that would be ok for me, and would leave room for pudding. My OH however would be getting a kebab on the way home

[quote Goldengoosey]@RachelGreeneGreep thank you for reminding me. Imagine how badly that bolognaise would have turned out without a hundred weight of lentils

@SpaghettiNotCourgetti chips are the work if the devil. I call ahead and make sure the restaurant don’t serve such disgusting things.[/quote]

Also meant to say I loved the 'LTGB'!

I posted on here a similar thing about portion sizes,and boy did I get abused. When we got out,I'll pick a starter
We go to a carvery,small plate lighter bite. I go out with friends who happily say they can't eat the portion sizes,but will buy and leave half or more.im not fussy/starving/dieting/anorexic/eating disorder.

@Bristlenose

I think it’s a rare treat then go for it.

When I was at college I’d have curry chip roll for lunch. A white bap sliced open, filled with proper chips and slathered with chip shop curry sauce, delicious.

I want that now!

@Elphame

I find the portions much too large especially if the food is rich.

It's not unknown for me to leave half the food on my plate. I hate the wastage which is another reason why we now rarely eat out.

(and to forestall the questions on why don't I take it home, half a portion of a poorly made mushroom risotto or fake meat burger is not tempting at the time, let alone the next day)

Why don't you eat in nicer places then rather than go somewhere and order some you don't even much like the first time round?!