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 if I go ot to eat I'm not counting calories and will stuff my face if I want to. I eat fairly healthily usually but even if I didn't that's nobody's fault but mine, I choose what I eat!

@Lifesonebigparty

This was my food at a restaurant recently. It was huge!! An independent pub. It didn't me stress though and I didn't feel the need to eat it all - So I didn't. I didn't complain either. It was a nice treat.

That's funny, I'd think that was quite medium and why haven't I got a decent portion of chips!

@FrangipaniBlue

Do you think wasting food when there are people who cannot afford to eat at all is a better option? How privileged.

The amount of food "wasted" in pubs/restaurants because of people not eating their full meal is so trivial/insignificant compared to food waste throughout the food cycle it makes absolutely no difference.

You asking for a smaller portion doesn't mean that the food you've not asked for will go to someone too poor to eat. If you're bothered about food poverty then donate to food banks.

Depends where you go. The horrible cheapy places do mountains of beige food.the harvester, miller and carter, hickories 2 for 1 places are just gross. Nice independent country pubs are usually much nicer and less reheated food

I can’t stand the waste so I just have something small. You can guarantee that if 6 of us go out there will be the equivalent of 2 uneaten meals leftover. I overheard someone saying “I’m going to leave this to make room for my pudding”. Why they couldn’t just eat their dinner & forget the cake is beyond me.

@TheHaka

I can’t stand the waste so I just have something small. You can guarantee that if 6 of us go out there will be the equivalent of 2 uneaten meals leftover. I overheard someone saying “I’m going to leave this to make room for my pudding”. Why they couldn’t just eat their dinner & forget the cake is beyond me.

Because they wanted cake more than they wanted more of the same, of course!

Because that way it looks like value for money and makes people feel like they've had a "treat". It's the luxury/self-indulgence thing. I feel the same about huge excessively sweet desserts, two bites and they're sickly.

I think pubs especially are under pressure to provide large portions - people want it to prove some kind of value. But its been proven that large portions lead to obesity so its not always surprising that people eating their steak and ale pie, chips and peas plus pudding are often overweight. I think in the UK we are moving towards expecting US over-size portions - at home as well as out - and its not good for our kids health.

@MarvellousMonsters

Because that way it looks like value for money and makes people feel like they've had a "treat". It's the luxury/self-indulgence thing. I feel the same about huge excessively sweet desserts, two bites and they're sickly.

I never find desserts excessive, I'd always happily have more.

No money to be made in sandwhiches

@TheHaka

I can’t stand the waste so I just have something small. You can guarantee that if 6 of us go out there will be the equivalent of 2 uneaten meals leftover. I overheard someone saying “I’m going to leave this to make room for my pudding”. Why they couldn’t just eat their dinner & forget the cake is beyond me.

Oh come on, you've jumped the shark now. Someone eating out for a treat and wanting a dessert rather than finishing their potatoes is "beyond you"? You must lack intelligence, then.

I love these threads. It's such a window into the dry, fossilised souls of the sanctimonious judgemental types.

"I hate food waste" ffs. I love food waste, me. My whole family likes to fill up a paddling pool with sad, unwanted mashed potato and paddle about in it while pelting each other with chicken nuggets. Mmmmm, food waste.

Because for the vast majority of British people, quantity trumps quality in terms of appreciating food, every time. ‘Value for money’ is rated more highly than the quality of the food.

@Grapewrath. Ha, ha— that mumsnet bingo on competitive eating is so bloody true. I’m a size 16 to 18 and I would love to actually really enjoy a massive plate of salad— but I don’t— as I like carbs way too much —hence the size 16-18!! I can honestly say in the last 20 years I would struggle to think of anywhere I’ve been that had truly massive portions - apart from the USA - and possibly a few places in Germany . plain ridiculous in the USA— we genuinely could share a standard main between 2 and still be full and we like our food! Some people on here must literally just pick at food— as I said on a previous post on this thread, just eat starters or mainly use tapas bars or sharing boards , many good quality places do ‘small plates’

Oh my mum always blethers on about this. I guess people won't return somewhere if they feel short changed/still hungry at the end of the meal, so it doesn't make sense for restaurants to do minimal portions (unless they are the fancy sort). If there's some left, leave it, or take it home. I think with my mum it is a way of saying "look how virtuous I am" to be honest!

@workwoes123. I will agree with you on that. Look at the number of posts you see on mumsnet where people will say it’s ‘not filling’ — see the seafood thread at the moment . It’s like large parts of the USA, unless you go’upscale’ - basically the food is cheap , filling , rubbish quality— but lots of it —

I think in the UK we are moving towards expecting US over-size portions - at home as well as out - and its not good for our kids health.

Funny enough, when I moved here (a decade ago) I found U.K. takeaway portion sizes are actually bigger than some US takeaway portions. McDonald’s, for example, I loved the American grilled chicken snack wrap which was around the size of a breakfast flatbread with cheese and bacon here last time I had it. Fish and chips here are also bigger than most takeaway seafood places like Long John Silver where the fish would be as big as your hand, not almost as big as your forearm as I have gotten here. Saying that, it is dependent on where you live in the States.

I completely agree, far too much waste to make people greedy and justify prices. I do know a lot of people who can pack it away, me at times if I'm really hungry, but get too full and regret it. Have you been to America? The sizes are obscene and make me want to cry how much wasted meat is tossed aside at buffets. X

I think it's the plates that have got bigger. We had a dishwasher, mum made us, spin a blade to check it didn't hit any plates, but we got some new plates and these did get hit, no matter, how you filled the dishwasher. We have 2 smaller plates, I wanted to buy some more for my son, but I couldn't find any, it was either the small side plates, or dinner plates, no in between size.
Which doesn't help, if you are trying to watch your portion sizes. But I have noticed weatherspoons portions are smaller, still probably very high in calories, but we definitely have noticed a size change.

I agree. Pub meals are always far too big for me to manage and now I see caloric values I have balked a bit at eating out.

@DrCoconut

Order the vegetarian option. They're always tiny compared with meat options. Or better still the gluten free since it's usually a bowl of fresh air.

Agree. I once got 5 pieces of ravioli ( normal sized) for my veggie option. It was a set menu and other people were getting massive burgers or fish and chips. It made me so cross I asked for more. The waiter was very confused but did see my point.

@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.

Where are you eating OP? They’re too small for the price if you ask me!

Yes, restaurant meals are generally big, but this is common knowledge and so it’s possible to adjust your eating pattern that day.

So if I’m going out for lunch I normally won’t eat breakfast (I’m not that keen on breakfast anyway). Or if I know I’m going out for dinner I’ll try and have a smaller lunch, and limit snacks in the afternoon. It’s not exactly rocket science.

I recently had the majority of my stomach removed. What I do is simply ask them to box up what I haven’t eaten and take it home. OR go somewhere with smaller portions - tapas, sushi, small plates. OR Just order from the starters. OR just eat at home.
It’s really not that hard.

And while I'm at it, what happened to sandwiches on menus?

Take too much time/effort to make and too many fresh ingredients (hence risk of waste).

Most pubs these days just work on "pinged" microwave ready meals or whatever they can throw in the fryer (i.e. frozen stuff).

@HailAdrian

Oh god, here we fucking go. 🤣

And if you don't want a bun, just ask them not to give you a bun...

Yeah, I think the same. Alternatively, just leave the bun on the plate.