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.

I have a small appetite. I find a huge portion placed in front of me daunting and does detract a bit from the enjoyment.

I just swap plates with my husband when I have eaten what I want. If he doesn’t want it, I take it home.

Years ago the Sunday Times had an article about portion size and nutrition density. The less nutrition in something the more you eat as the body tries to feed itself.
Not only did decreasing nutrition density lead to increasing portion sizes it increased profits.

Because people eat too much, OP, and because now we're all used to it, a restaurant doesn't want a bad review from someone who was expecting a large plate full.

I second the poster who doesn't take children to places where the kids menu is beige and chips.

Taking home LEFTOVERS to last two people week
Come on .. pull the other one.

Gosh, I find it so hard to worry about overeating or carb fests when a pub meal out is such a rare occurrence. How often are you eating out to be genuinely concerned re calorie consumption?

I can't remember the last time we ate out. It's such a treat that I am absolutely don't object to large portions or unhealthy foods - that's what a treat is surely!

There was a podcast on this topic last year on Radio 4: Portion Distortion.

You can't generalise about this @AlternativelyWired. This is based on the type of restaurant you go to. Many are different.

@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.

If you don't like it, go to places that serve smaller portions or share a plate. Or better still grab a sarnie out of a supermarket! 😂

If you don't like it it's very simple.

I expect to get a meal appropriate to my spending when I eat out. Eating out is a treat for me, and peo8like yourself and the government who try to police this really piss me off. No one's forcing you to to eat it or eat out!

I don't give a shit about the calories for the random meals we eat out. For anyone that concerned, really they should be home cooking everything imo!

We always take leftovers home. I find a pizza and kids pasta will do me and the toddler for that meal, then I'll eat the rest of his pasta for lunch the next day while he's at nursery.

YANBU portion sizes can often be massive in pubs.

And saying this is not competitive under eating or “teenie tiny”, it’s a fact.

People eat more now than they did 50 years ago. Loads more.

I just order a side salad and a glass of water. By the time I’ve drank the water I’m too full for the salad so I take it home and have it for dinner for the rest of the week.

@LuckySantangelo35

YANBU portion sizes can often be massive in pubs.

And saying this is not competitive under eating or “teenie tiny”, it’s a fact.

People eat more now than they did 50 years ago. Loads more.

It is when someone is claiming a restaurant meal lasts them a week!

@MummyInTheNecropolis

I just order a side salad and a glass of water. By the time I’ve drank the water I’m too full for the salad so I take it home and have it for dinner for the rest of the week.

Honestly though, by law they ought to provide pipettes for water, I think.

@MummyInTheNecropolis

I just order a side salad and a glass of water. By the time I’ve drank the water I’m too full for the salad so I take it home and have it for dinner for the rest of the week.

Hope you ask for it without dressing, beware of hidden calories.

I know what you mean. We called in somewhere on the way home yesterday and I feel like I ate loads but it didn’t even make a dent.

I went out for a pub lunch yesterday, they had ciabatta sandwiches on the menu, I had roast lamb though and I wouldn't say it was a big portion really.

I've never eaten anywhere the menu had "meat challenges" so while I can guess what this means I'd say it's not common.

In summary - find different places to eat out!

(I don't know the calories, they weren't noted on the menu).

If restaurants stopped serving half pints of beer or served wine only by the bottle, not the glass, or spirits only in doubles, people would think that was ridiculous. So it's not ridiculous to suggest that they should offer half portions of meals at a lower price.

@Florenz

Restaurants should be legally required to offer a half size portion of every dish they offer, at half the price of the full size one.

Agreeing with everyone who points out that that's not how pricing works as the same fixed costs (rent, staff, depreciating value of equipment) have to be covered irrespective of the portion size.

Unless somebody is arguing for a fixed cover charge and I loathe those.

I only get to eat out about once a year (or two), and when I do, I want the biggest portion ever as it’s a treat and a real one off.

Oh it's a teeny tiny thread! Yay

Even as a massive foodie - I can’t help but agree. Really wasteful.

Oh come on - this isn't about competitive under eating. Portion sizes are huge in any chain restaurant and most pubs. Decent and high end restaurants, less so. If I order pasta for my toddler, even a kids portion, there's enough for my lunch the next day, sometimes two.

Just don’t go out to eat 🤦‍♀️🤷‍♀️

@roarfeckingroarr

Oh come on - this isn't about competitive under eating. Portion sizes are huge in any chain restaurant and most pubs. Decent and high end restaurants, less so. If I order pasta for my toddler, even a kids portion, there's enough for my lunch the next day, sometimes two.

🥴🤣

@roarfeckingroarr

Oh come on - this isn't about competitive under eating. Portion sizes are huge in any chain restaurant and most pubs. Decent and high end restaurants, less so. If I order pasta for my toddler, even a kids portion, there's enough for my lunch the next day, sometimes two.

I have never seen a pub child’s pasta portion that would do an adult as a full meal for 2 days after the child has had their fill.

Someone who adds a handful of pasta to a salad for lunch and has their main meal in the evening, sure. But I’ve never seen a child’s pasta portion that would make 2 proper adult meals from leftovers.