To despair at the quality and choice of kids menus?

[KerfuffleShuffle]

I'm currently in a major UK city with DD 5 years for 14 nights for DH's work. We're in a hotel so need to eat out at least once a day. I am absolutely fed up of the dross that makes ups kids menus. Just endless variations of cheap quality m nuggets/sausages and chips or bland pasta meals/margherita pizza. The only veg options are beans/peas or veggie stick starters.

I get that some children like the predictability of these meals, but what about the many children who don't? What about the children who enjoy a variety of foods and flavours? These aren't chain pubs where I understand these types of menu totally have their place and serve a need, but rather restaurants which have fresh and creative full adult menus.

I'm not anti junk at all, my DD is known to enjoy a happy meal more than I would like for admit -and thank goodness for fish fingers and potato waffles for a quick evening meal. But I wouldn't go out and order a freezer meal I can make at home, so why should children be expected to?

Many years ago on a UK holiday we came across a restaurant that claimed to offer child size portions of anything on the menu. Great we thought as both dd loved food, all food, pies, curries , roast dinners.... Tried to order a child size salad to be told no as children don't eat salad. I despair .Incidentally both dgc are huge fans of a Greek meze

Thing is starter and sides don't make a coherent meal do they? I might start asking for smaller plate version from the main menu.

It depends on the type of restaurant, but I don't really see why not? You find components and build a meal with some protein, carbs and veg. Often starter for the protein, sides for the other two - although not always.

Surely ypu just share all the food including the main?
That's what I did.

I have found they are happy to make a smaller plate but will still charge full price! Or only knock off a quid or two. I can't afford 4 x £19 main course, I need the children's menu to be reasonable, cheaply priced and have more vegetables as an option than "peas and beans". I can't see why keeping some carrots, broccoli, sugar snap peas etc would be so impossible and they can be used in adult dishes too.

I've seen an increasing number of pubs and independents around my way that offer smaller portions of all their meals. Not labelled as kids but just a regular or small plate price. To cater for kids, my Nan who has a smaller appetite, and anyone trying to keep their calorie consumption to a normal rather than extreme level I presume. At 4ft10 I love these places. Adult food in a petite plate size.

This is why I would be picking self catering accomodation for that length of time. Eating out is better as an occasional thing

And yes, we just offered from the adult menu /shared a main and starter or similar

You've already said that you will ask tonight

But when I waitressed at uni pretty much anything on the specials board or in a sauce could be given as a child portion.
e.g. the roast beef dinner or chilli or chicken curry or stew.
Something like steak or salmon - not so much

Don’t most people on holiday eat out 14 nights in a row? It’s not that unusual. Plenty of people come to the UK or holiday within the UK for two weeks, and we have plenty of non self catering hotels that would indicate not everyone is self catering on those holidays (and I for one can think of nothing worse than self catering).

It's not a cohesive meal just because it contains all the nutrient requirements. E.g. my child loves things like a roast dinner, risotto, hunters chicken. You can't usually put something together that will be an equivalent from starters and sides.

I always just made up a meal for mine from starters and sides. So maybe chicken wings starter and vegetable sides.

But my child wouldn’t even want a kids meal as a treat. How can chicken nuggets be treat food - they are vile.
A treat for my child would be a good bowl of ramen or a stir fry with lots of veggies and noodles. I’ve never given her “kids food”

Most adult meal portions are grossly oversized anyway. Just order whatever meal they want and share them, along with a few extra sides.

Where are you eating? Sushi, tapas, dim sum, anywhere with a small plates menu give variety without having to order a massive portion. Steakhouses usually have a whole variety of larger cuts suitable for sharing. Pizza you could share maybe combined with a salad or garlic bread. Independent italians will usually do a smaller pasta portion. I’ve only found the nuggets issue in pubs tbh.

I wonder if there are actually loads of us who have kids who don’t see chicken nuggets as a treat, but restaurants haven’t realised it yet as just a side and a starter go through the till and the info doesn’t filter through to the people who make the menus that that was a what had been chosen for their child above chicken nuggets.

If you cook good veggie noodle type meals at home then some grotty nuggets probably ARE a treat.

I used to consider bought cake a massive treat. Never as nice as the home made stuff my Mum made and fed us daily, but a treat because it was different even if it was inferior.

Goodness knows. Surely chefs know what “good food” is and should accommodate those used to proper food as well as those who have been brought up on junk food as a treat. Jamie Oliver certainly does, but I guess chefs at usual high street restaurants aren’t really properly trained to cook good food.
Jesus - I sound so pompous here 😂, but I’m a real advocate of good food for all. If kids aren’t given “kids food” then they don’t develop a taste for it. That’s just logical surely.

Don’t even get me started on grotty Mr Kipling cakes.
I can honestly say that my DD hates nuggets. She always has. She’s 19 now. I’ll have to ask her what her processed food guilty pleasure is - probably a chicken Kiev

So, one massive chicken nugget ?

I don't understand why it has to either be chicken nuggets or smaller portions of adult meals.

Children generally have more sensitive taste buds and most people want to avoid them eating excessive salt. At home, we make the same meals but slightly blander (when needed) and with less salt. Couldn't restaurants do the same?

Another one who has always just asked for a small portion of an adult meal. Or shared my main course with my child and had a starter/side dish on top.

Takeaway trade and menus suggest there is a huge appetite for breaded, processed chicken. Students are major consumers. I suspect there are large numbers of children who enjoy chicken nuggets. Of course there are some who aren't exposed to that kind of food and many but not all restaurants will cater to their tastes with smaller plates. I'd phone ahead and check.

Probably hard to make a profit that way.

They’re only a treat if your child likes them. I have 3 kids who don’t like chicken nuggets, therefore how could they be a treat?

@KerfuffleShuffle - my sons are 29, 31 and 33 now, but I remember feeling exactly the same as you, when they were small. It really hits you, when you are eating out a lot during a short time. I don’t understand why more places can’t do half portions of things they are cooking.

We did start splitting adult meals between them, but that meant they had to choose the same thing, and that wasn’t always easy to negotiate. National Trust cafes were often good choices.

I have two so find something they both like on the adult menu and split it. If not I'll ask for two small portions. Mine are very in to meat so often end up having steak/chicken breast with a side and veg or salad, these are usually available and can be made plain. As an absolute failsafe most places can do pasta with a tomato sauce which feels much better than more fried rubbish.