I Hate the Terms Kid's Food and Kid's Menu, amirite?

I have one kid who was born picky and will die picky. Stubbornness is a strong with him. And I definitely have found myself catering to the nonsense. Because making full meals every night, only to have them thrown on the floor (literally, at age two, and figuratively as he grew) meant I changed what I cook to make sure the kids eat, too.

by Anonymous 1 day ago

Don't give up hope. My oldest was the pickiest eater ever. He had the same lunch every single day from grade 1 through to grade 12 ( except for pizza day at school). When he was 21 he did an internship in South Africa and came back eating everything. He's now 34 and is the most adventurous eater of all of us.

by Anonymous 1 day ago

You really took the "there's hungry kids in Africa" to the next level by sending him there.

by Plus-Palpitation 1 day ago

Your son sounds like my daughter. She's only ten but she does the exact same thing, including the pizza day at school lol. Funnily enough, my husband is South African, so I can totally understand why your son went there and came back loving food. Their food is so good!

by Ellie10 1 day ago

Some of this is just not wanting to waste food! I do a lot of canning and my middle child has always been tough to feed. Always. I spent most of Sunday making and then canning marinara sauce. The child would hate it. I'm not wasting something that took me most of a day to make just to have it thrown in the trash because "it made my mouth hot" (garlic and black pepper). When the rest of us ate this she got the exact same meal, but her pasta was plain instead of forcing the sauce that I spent that long on...that she would cry about eating.

by Anonymous 1 day ago

that's wild

by Appropriate-Box-6759 1 day ago

Damn I've seen more the other way around. My parents were chastised for giving me things like chicken nuggets and other reheated frozen foods as a child (I have ARFID) because they 'weren't putting in enough effort and I would grow up to be fat' (they were and I'm not). I had a teacher use my meal plans as an example of unhealthy eating to my whole class and nitpick exactly how lazy and spoilt I was for not eating following the food pyramid (it was unhealthy but again, I had an eating disorder, I shouldn't have been publicly shamed for it at 9 years old) I guess it's a country or maybe era thing? I was in primary in the 2010s and with how fast trends move, people could have gotten bored with the 'healthy school lunches' by now and swung in the complete opposite direction.

by Ok-Possible-9726 1 day ago

Fuuuuuuuuck that teacher. I hope they step on multiple Lego bricks with no shoes on.

by Anonymous 1 day ago

Unpopular opinion: ARFID is just a diagnosis of "picky eating," and parents should work to make sure their kid either a) doesn't develop the disorder or b) gets over it. In my family, what we got for meals wasn't a choice. You either ate it or went hungry. I truly don't understand how so many kids have "ARFID".

by Anonymous 1 day ago

That's super weird to me lol. I don't judge anyone for feeding their kids chicken nuggets or pizza rolls sometimes because I get it, some days you just don't have the time/energy to cook. But judging someone for feeding their kid a home cooked meal??? Absolutely wild. That parent made something with love and care that's probably healthier for them. Why would you WANT the kid to eat junk over that? It's that kind of weirdness that ends up making the kid feel bad for being ‘different' at lunch time.

by Antonina00 1 day ago

And that's awesome. But this isn't about that. OP is asking why the hibachi place doesn't have chicken nuggets for adults. Because it's a waste of time, space and energy. And ultimately, guess what? You don't have to only eat off of the kids menu as a kid. Your parent could easily order you some fried rice with chicken and just take the rest home. Hell, fried rice is great reheated. My friends have little kids. They will sometimes just order typical kids stuff for them. But sometimes the kids want something else. And they'll either share an adult meal, or they'll take home the left overs which will either be eaten by them or the parents later. Is it as cheap? Obviously not. But you know what? Your kids size portion of poke isn't gonna be as cheap as the kids meal fish fingers and fries either anyway. Even if they did make smaller portions, they're gonna cost way more than frozen fried food that's their entirely to appease children for the adults who want to go out to eat.

by bartonalessandr 1 day ago

Exactly. Restaurants serve kids what they crave for. Cheap. To bring parents who order more expensive food.

by Anonymous 1 day ago

I think selectable portion sizes is nice but restaurants force larger portions on people because they need each customer to spend more to remain viable. You taking home a full box of leftovers is better for them. In general, restaurants with smaller portion choices generally cost almost as much as the full portion anyway.

by Motor_Difficulty_206 23 hours ago

Restaurants generally don't make any money off of the kids menu. They exist because kids need to eat, too, and plenty of kids don't want "adult food". It's a loss leader that gets families into the restaurant. Personally, if you're an adult who wants to order off of the kids menu, I'm side eyeing you. Get an appetizer if you're not that hungry, or order with plans to take some food home. Don't try and order the $6 mini burger and fries.

by Anonymous 23 hours ago

No way a restaurant isn't making money charging $10 for a pbj on white bread.

by Main-Being9516 22 hours ago

I'm side eyeing you. Jesus Christ leave other people alone about what they want to eat. Sometimes I want a steak with red wine mushroom sauce, some sort of truffle mashed potatoes, and sauted asparagus. Sometimes I want 4 chicken tenders and some fries but the restaurant doesn't have that "for adults." In my 37 years on this planet I've found that the people who complain about people who aren't "adult" about their food are 100x worse than the people who just want to order a safe food and not get yelled at.

by Acceptable-Fruit-880 22 hours ago

As an adult who orders off the kids menu sometimes, there's no reason to side eye for this. I cant eat as much food as they typically give and I dont want to pay a ton just to have the food not taste as good reheated.

by bradtkeopal 22 hours ago

The whole point of their business is for you to pay a premium for the adult portions and ingredients. The kids menu is a loss leader and they dont want adults ordering from there

by Haunting-Word4150 21 hours ago

Kid meals technically aren't a loss leader they are a missed opportunity cost. Meaning an adult on average orders more food (appetizer, entree, dessert) plus alcohol meaning higher sales in total. Restaurants make plenty of profit percentage wise for kid meals

by Anonymous 21 hours ago

Not every restaurant has the kids menu items on the adult menu as well. Sometimes even adults just want something simple.

by Western_Ad_3771 21 hours ago

I can't eat much to the point that if I force it I would throw up,so I would love to have the kids menu. It led me to having social anxiety when eating with other people. Appetizer doesn't always make me full. Most of the times I took the leftover home but I got rejected twice. I wasn't allowed to take my leftover home, because "we don't do it here"

by Fernkeeling 21 hours ago

I have the same issue and sometimes can't even finish an appetizer. It took awhile but I've started not caring about what people think of my barely eaten food. Like it was amazing but if I eat more I'll be in physical pain and this won't reheat well. I do tend to rave a bit more to the waiter so they know I did enjoy it even if I ate like 1/4.

by Anonymous 21 hours ago

So the problem is that kids meals are expected to be cheap since they don't come with much, and restaurants don't make enough money on kids meals. Letting kids order off the adult menu is fine, but not a lot of restaurants want to let somebody order an $8 kids burger when they could be pushed to order a $25 "adult burger".

by LowConstruction1226 21 hours ago

Adults ordering small sizes would cost restaurants a lot of money. A smaller portion for less money simply means smaller margins. And I bet margins drop even faster percentagewise than the price does. Plus, portioning would suck for the kitchen.

by Anonymous 20 hours ago

At one point in my life I tried asking for like a half portion but still pay full price because I felt bad wasting food. Restaurants hated it so I just waste like half a sandwich now.

by Anonymous 20 hours ago

I get my kid a regular plate and take the rest home for either myself or him to finish.

by Davislori 20 hours ago

That's a lot of work and energy versus having one size for everything

by Anonymous 19 hours ago

Most parents don't want to spend $15 on a salmon for their 5 year old. The kid menu is already a loss leader even with cheap food like pasta, chicken fingers and grilled cheese. Restaurants already have slim margins on adult food

by Anonymous 19 hours ago

I will encourage my child to get whatever he wants and that we can always take the leftovers home. If he doesn't eat it, me or his dad will.

by Anonymous 19 hours ago

It wouldn't be economical feasible for restaurants to keep up such expensive loss leader for a kid menu. It has nothing to do with whether or not a child can finish the meal.

by Anonymous 18 hours ago

That is understandable, but I can still not like it. When my child is older, I am not even going to mention the kid's menu to him.

by Anonymous 18 hours ago

That works! It will be better prepared and tastier

by Anonymous 18 hours ago

Okay so cool. Everyone is allowed to do that. You can't possibly expect them to make a kids sized hibachi plate or whatever though. It's either gonna make a massive loss, or cost more than parents are happy to pay for a kids meal. My friends order stuff for their kids off the adult menu all the time. I also ate all kinds of stuff as a kid. I loved spicy food since I was about 6. But that's on you as the parent to order it and take the left overs or split the meal or something. It's totally impractical for the restaurant to specifically have like child sized curry plates or whatever. It's just wildly impractical.

by bartonalessandr 18 hours ago

But you can do that now. The restaurant doesn't force you to use the kids menu. Just give your kid the adult menu.

by Acrobatic-Light 17 hours ago

It's an interesting point, but I think kids being picky came before "kids food," and this is just now a feedback loop of processed slop being marketed to parents. Kid me tried lots of stuff but hated most of it. Adult me is expanding his palate but still is picky lol, chicken nuggets are great

by Sad-Psychology 17 hours ago

for me as an adult you are free to say "well that was awful, in the bin with it" and get something else. a kid couldn't really do that

by Anonymous 17 hours ago

Adult me will still gag on raw tomatoes if I eat them, same I did when I was a kid.

by Sad-Psychology 16 hours ago

It's funny because I can remember hating them, but somehow it changed. At least you're not missing out - you know you don't like them so there's nothing to "miss" on your end!

by Acceptable-Fruit-880 16 hours ago

Try drinking hot tea for a couple of months, no cream, no milk, no sugar, no sweeteners. Your taste buds will change and everything will taste amazing including raw broccoli 🥦 florets which I munch on instead of potato chips (also carrots and celery, to.atoes etc)

by Anonymous 16 hours ago

I hate tea so that's miserable on so many levels 😂

by Sad-Psychology 16 hours ago

I agree that it would be nice to have smaller portions of normal foods on the kids' menu, but those blander items are important too. You're assuming kids will just eat the "adult food" if they're given it, but many won't. Kids need to have options that work for them. And you blaming the parents for a kid being picky is ridiculous - it can come from a huge variety of things, and trying to force away the pickiness can make things worse.

by Ok-Aardvark-4061 15 hours ago

but I don't think a restaurant is the best place to try that out unless you have backup food for the kid This is it. If I'm out with our 18 month old who's hungry because she doesn't like the thing I'm eating, I don't want her to scream for an hour until we can get her something else.

by Anonymous 15 hours ago

Most kids will eat adult food if they're started young. Children eat bland food because adults decided children should eat bland food. It's always good to give kids a variety of food. If you only give your kid bland food while they're toddlers, they're not going to be adventurous as older kids. There's no reason to not give infants and toddlers the food you eat as long as it's age appropriate and safe.

by Anonymous 15 hours ago

I was like that as a kid (barring the branching out later part). I ate very well as an infant and young toddler, but by the age of 2 or 3 I wouldn't eat more than the stereotypical toddler foods. My parents tried the "she'll eat when she's hungry enough" thing, and while I did eventually eat when I was younger I'm pretty sure that force was a factor in turning standard picky eating into ARFID (I'm not professionally diagnosed but almost certainly have it).

by Ok-Aardvark-4061 15 hours ago

The reason is that many kids won't eat those foods. Even if they eventually eat when they're hungry enough, you're setting them up for a terrible relationship with food if you force it.

by Ok-Aardvark-4061 14 hours ago

Mate, it's about serving sizes. They're not gonna make child sized servings of 20 different meals when 95% of them pick the same 3 things.

by bartonalessandr 14 hours ago

And they can't make smaller servings sizes of the other food?

by Anonymous 13 hours ago

There's been a trend here in DFW I've noticed that many Italian restaurants will offer half-portions of any pasta. Nice places too. Its not on the menu but the waiters mention it. I dont have kids but sounds like youd appreciate that! My wife and I enjoy ordering 3 different half orders and trying them all!

by SilentTill 13 hours ago

Kids menu are there because they are classic "kids" foods and smaller portions and a lower price. Your parents could have ordered you something off the dinner menu or a la carte.

by jaylenhessel 13 hours ago

A local restaurant calls it "The Small Appetite Menu" and I like that much better. It's small versions of a selection of their meals.

by bettycremin 13 hours ago

Calling a burger "processed garbage" is kinda wild. It's literally just beef that has been ground into the right consistency.

by Anonymous 13 hours ago

I think either you have it misconstrued, or society did it somewhere on the way. But a kid's menu wasn't supposed to be about limiting the kinds of foods they eat, but controlling portion size (i think with exceptions being "foreign" food establishments that might offer kid friendlier dishes). It would be wasteful otherwise. But really there are no rules saying they have to order off the kid's menu. Its just there.

by Anonymous 13 hours ago

You didn't have to order from the kid's menu, though. They will happily serve a normal dish. But they will use the patronage of people like your sister. And frankly, she knows very well that the bland convenience foods at bad for her kids. As are not reading yo them. As is too much screen time. But it's convenient.

by Tellydenesik 12 hours ago

My parents used to just let me order off the adult menu and share with me or we'd take home leftovers. They didn't want to spend money on food they could get for much cheaper somewhere else. Mac and cheese that's clearly Kraft for almost $10 is ridiculous.

by PretendRestaurant225 12 hours ago

Why not have the majority of the menu available in kid-sized portions? This would be wonderful, especially for those of us who struggle with overeating and would love to have small portions even as an adult. But there's no real financial incentive for restaurants to have kid-sized options for each dish. A lot of restaurant food arrives already pre-portioned and is basically just heated up — they don't have the space to also have kid-sized portions of everything, especially since a lot of it would probably sit there and not sell well. They make more profit selling the full adult-sized meals, so of course that's what they focus on.

by Anonymous 12 hours ago

I'm agreeing with this one. Kids meals should have options that are just smaller portions of the regular meals, not just junk fried food.

by Anonymous 12 hours ago

I'd argue its potentially more work, not less. Restaurants do a lot of prep work, which includes weighing out and portioning food ahead of time. If they offer smaller kids size, they now need to prep kids portions for all those meals as well. There's also no guarantee those items will all be ordered... like let's say they prep 100 adult chicken piccata, they now also need to portion 25 kids size. But if 25 kids dont eat them, then they need to reportion it for adults otherwise the food goes bad/is wasted. Now expect them to do that for every single entree on the menu... its significantly more work with a higher likelihood of waste.

by Loose-Worldliness151 11 hours ago

I agree. We always order family style when we go out and everyone shares the same things.

by Samantha22 11 hours ago

L take since the basis is that burgers, chicken tenders, pasta, quesadillas, etc… aren't real food. And you are free to order your kids anything you'd like to off the menu, but it's ridiculous to think a restaurant should cater to your demand that every dish is also available in a kids size portion.

by Tillmanaltenwer 11 hours ago

A popular steakhouse thar is just one step below fine dining in my area only offers a burger and chicken nuggets as their kid meals. It isn't a garbage chain. And I am not saying for them to remove the kid's menu. I am saying the specific term "Kid's Menu" is implying that "Kid's Food: and "Grown Up Food" are different. Now, if they changed the term to "Little Eaters" or something similar, the terminology is a lot less exclusive and creates less division.

by Anonymous 10 hours ago

I agree. Most kid meals are garbage. When mine were too little to have their own entree my husband and I split our meals with them and then moved onto the kids splitting an entree. No way was I paying $7-$12 for an American cheese on white bread for grilled cheese with a handful of fries. There is a local restaurant that advertises their speciality of Mac and cheese yet the kid's version isn't a smaller portion but instead a small portion of generic version Kraft. No thanks. Don't let people gaslight you that kid meals lose money. They don't actually lose money but they are looked at as an opportunity cost. As in an adult could be in that seat ordering an appetizer, entree, dessert, and alcohol not that they literally lose money charging almost $10 for serving tiny portions of bulk purchases of generic Mac & cheese or mini frozen pizzas or a couple chicken tenders

by Anonymous 10 hours ago

I love this! My brother never ordered off the kids menu because he's always had a big appetite. He actually tried sushi in preschool because a friend of his brought it for lunch. My husband is picky and I told him that I plan to expose our future kids to all foods. I'm not picky at all. I fell in love with lobster when I was 4.

by Abigaylekulas 10 hours ago

actually a very good insight, I appreciate this

by Anonymous 10 hours ago

My kid does not like certain textures yet. I am pretty sure it's completely developmentally normal. Hell, I know I didn't like certain textures and flavors for a long time. I guarantee it wasn't caused by the one or two times I would go out to eat every month as a three year old.

by Anonymous 10 hours ago

Do you have kids or friends with kids? They really are picky, usually don't eat much compared to adults, and have a different palate than adults meaning what's good to us isn't always good to them and vice versa. Parents are just going to end up spending more on food kids probably aren't even interested in.

by Anonymous 9 hours ago

I do know a lot of kids. I work with kids full time. They all eat the same food as the rest of their family. And yes, kids don't eat as much. This is why OP suggested to just do kids size portions of the normal food

by Appropriate-Box-6759 9 hours ago

It's common knowledge that in other countries, kids eat what the adults eat. Somehow their palates don't need to be coddled.

by Gonzalo44 9 hours ago

This is a bit nonsense. Kids are still pickier than adults. Yes, they'll eat similar categories of food, but like a kid isn't going to be digging into a spicy indian curry as much as maybe a katsu curry. Kids biologically have very sensitive taste and that's why universally kids like sweet and blander foods.

by bartonalessandr 9 hours ago

I have an infant, and so far he likes everything we have given him with the exception of an applesauce packet mixed with berries. But he likes these foods by themselves. Non kid foods we have given him include salmon, steak, pork chops, goulash, and beets. And he loves it all. He is still young, but we are trying really hard to give him a variety of things to try.

by Anonymous 9 hours ago

why are kid's menus always unhealthy food?! It makes no sense!!

by Anonymous 8 hours ago

This instantly reminds me of that one "fishfingers and bean" scene lmfao.

by Due_Peak7720 8 hours ago

Kids menus are usually only enough food for a toddler. My kid orders off the regualr menu just like we do but she also has no problem eating different foods because we cook most of our own meals from scratch and try different recipes from different cultures all the time

by Macejkovicalexz 8 hours ago

I 1000000% agree with this. Our daughter is 15 months old and is a human garbage can, eating everything. I do NOT want my daughter to think she is limited to the kids menu. I often will intervene and order her something that I know will be great as leftovers, but that way she gets 2-3 meals she will eat that are better for her, than one meal she might eat, but nets me 0 leftovers and gives my daughter 0 nutritional value. (Lookin' at you tendies and fries) As an adult that had RNY bariatric surgery, I REALLY wish I could order "kid sized" portions of other food. I wish more places offered half portions!

by Anonymous 8 hours ago

There should just be a "kids sized" version of each regular menu item, not a specific kids menu that's just processed food

by Anonymous 7 hours ago

do you realize how much a pain in the ass that is for the kitchen??

by Anonymous 7 hours ago

Making a smaller portion is probably annoying but couldn't be that hard lol Also probably wouldn't happen too often

by Anonymous 7 hours ago

If kid's food caused pickiness, wouldn't you be a picky eater since you were forced to eat kid's food growing up? Maybe there's some sort of correlation, but your own experience disproves causality

by Legrosmillie 7 hours ago

I agree with aspects of this but I'm going to go out on a limb and assume you don't actually have any kids.

by Resident_Eye657 6 hours ago

It's not just about portions, it's also about what most kids will eat. Portion size is important for things like cuts of meat though.

by bridie37 6 hours ago

I never used to get "options". It was eat the food the grown ups eat or starve and die.

by Anonymous 6 hours ago

This! It's funny that my wife and I were just talking about this. We don't have kids but we certainly agree that a kids menu should just be smaller portions of the regular menu. Parents are really creating picky and stubborn little monsters. I remember growing up my parents let me order from the regular menu and didn't keep me on the "kids menu". I was happy to have a large plate in front of me. Even at home, mom made 1 meal for everyone, there wasn't a separate meal for kids. If we didn't eat that was our problem. Showed me to not be picky and be grateful for what we have.

by Anonymous 5 hours ago

I have a three year old that is a very adventurous eater and I would LOVE for restaurants to have child sized portions of the whole menu.

by Anonymous 5 hours ago

I don't think kids menu's have anything to do with picky eaters. there's a million kids out there that never go out to eat.

by Late-Bowler2181 5 hours ago

Restaurants that offer half portion, half price for everyone who are so much better

by Anonymous 4 hours ago

No way I'm making pizza on Thanksgiving. Kids can eat turkey, mashed potatoes, and a roll. People that cater to that extreme pickiness create their own problem sometimes.

by Electronic_Lack_3576 4 hours ago

Kids menus aren't all the same. Sure there are a lot of chicken nuggets and corn dogs out there. But there is a pho place we like that has "chicken noodle soup" and "beef noodle soup" and it's basically a small, kid sized bowl of pho. And you know what, our son loves it! It's a big reason we like that place.

by Anonymous 4 hours ago

I mean I really dislike kids. And if I were the owner of a restaurant, I might be inclined to take the easy, fairly guaranteed route to keep them quiet and out-of-mind: offering the same old classics. I would also not mind making smaller portions of normal items if asked.

by Anonymous 4 hours ago

I was a picky eater, but I wasn't given picky kid options. I ate around what I didn't like and forced a bite of the hated item to please my parents. When puberty hit, I was food eating machine. Lol

by Anonymous 3 hours ago

My kid likes cheeseburgers but who doesn't? He occasionally had chicken nuggets when he was about 2 or so, but never really liked them that much. We give him a smaller portion of what we're eating and he's not too picky of an eater.

by Anonymous 3 hours ago

Kids food is usually smaller portions and lower prices. They typically have items kids eat like, such as chicken nuggets, hot dogs, burgers. Adult is usually not allowed to order from kids menu because of the lower profits but Kids can usually order from adult menu. Kids menu is so parents will come with kids. Without kids menu, parents won't go out.

by Anonymous 2 hours ago

I always ate from the adult's food menu and got to take him my leftovers for lunch the next day. Kid's menus are so boring and flavourless!

by Good_Illustrator208 2 hours ago

The key is to have two children, and then they can split an adult serving. My children went through a tediously expensive phase of liking wild boar ragù with handmade tagliatelle at our favorite Italian restaurant, but because they split it wasn't the end of the world. They still like it as adults, I mean, why not, it's just hard to get boar. Or if you go to a Japanese restaurant one of the kid's options is usually ramen (though also tonkatsu, which is chicken nugget esque.)

by Anonymous 2 hours ago

Not unpopular. I agree. When kids are first eating solids, it's almost impossible to find something at restaurants unless you want to order something for yourself and share. And god forbid it's spicy! We had to scope out the restaurants with the best kid options to eat at. That being said, when they turn school age, the typical kids menus are more appropriate. Or we get an appetizer for her if things we know she likes.

by ehagenes 1 hour ago

In many countries, there's no concept of kids' meals. Kids eat the same things as the adults, just in smaller portions, perhaps with the exception of spicy foods. Even in Korea, parents will "wash" kimchi to remove most of the spiciness and then give it to their kids. I worked at a preschool in China, and the kids were served a variety of vegetables, meat, tofu, noodles, soups, etc. with rice, basically the same kinds of foods that adults would eat.

by Anonymous 1 hour ago

Well this is wrong.

by Anonymous 1 hour ago

I am not blaming restaurants, I used it as an example as a place in society we see it in. I mentioned my mom cooking family dinners only for my sister to make her kids chicken nuggets. It always irked me.

by Anonymous 1 hour ago

Those menus became popular during prohibition era, since they could not sell alcohol, they had to make money somehow

by parker79 55 minutes ago