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Breakfasts in hotels

(349 Posts)
JaneJudge Sat 10-Aug-24 10:26:55

I’m going away for a few days with my husband. It’s a place we go on special occasions. The hotel we stay in does a glorious breakfast. Fruit, yogurts, toasts, breads, cereals, pastries and jans. Then they do a really good cooked option. Generally we both just have the cooked option as it’s plenty. Other people seem to have loads of food before the cooked option.

My question is..is it extremely wrong to discretely put a couple of pastries or some bread, cheese and fruit in a zip lock bag so that we could have that for lunch? Or is it a complete no no 🙃 it’s not a budget hotel, we stay for dinner etc just wondered on others thoughts. Normally we would just buy a sandwich from M&S to share, which we may still do..

Aveline Fri 16-Aug-24 10:05:51

Sounds delicious. I'd have liked some fruit first though.

JaneJudge Fri 16-Aug-24 09:43:50

I had sourdough with ricotta and wild mushrooms with poached eggs, with fresh tomato juice and a pot of tea. I managed not to have a single thing from the continental 😂

The food here is amazing.

MissInterpreted Wed 14-Aug-24 08:05:07

Joseann

True, but why eat your bought food in your room when there's parks and nice picnic eating spaces outside on your travels? Even in big cities.

No idea, I'm just playing devil's advocate here.

Joseann Wed 14-Aug-24 08:00:11

By the way, I'm just being trivial, because this whole thread has turned into a pig's breakfast!
Off out now.

Joseann Wed 14-Aug-24 07:45:55

True, but why eat your bought food in your room when there's parks and nice picnic eating spaces outside on your travels? Even in big cities.

MissInterpreted Wed 14-Aug-24 07:42:28

Joseann

Perhaps they ask not to remove food from the dining room because they don’t want to find crumbs and smelly banana skins in the bedroom?

What's to stop people bringing in food from outside and eating it in their rooms?

Joseann Wed 14-Aug-24 07:17:29

Perhaps they ask not to remove food from the dining room because they don’t want to find crumbs and smelly banana skins in the bedroom?

Nantotwo Wed 14-Aug-24 07:16:33

LauraNorderr

If anyone clutches their pearls just smile sweetly while inwardly hoping they choke themselves with them

Love it!

Mollygo Wed 14-Aug-24 07:00:24

SporeRB

I am surprised there are hotels out there that put a sign telling their hotel guests not to take food from the restaurant or the restaurant manager checking up on their guests. What kind of hotel is that??

If you stay in an international or upmarket hotel, no one will make a fuss if you take a few pastries to your hotel room.

I never saw that either in the Hyatt Regency where we stayed, in Germany, nor the 3* hotel in Italy where we stayed recently.

But on here it’s implied you’re a thief if you do that.
How unpleasant.

SporeRB Wed 14-Aug-24 00:02:50

I am surprised there are hotels out there that put a sign telling their hotel guests not to take food from the restaurant or the restaurant manager checking up on their guests. What kind of hotel is that??

If you stay in an international or upmarket hotel, no one will make a fuss if you take a few pastries to your hotel room.

grannyactivist Tue 13-Aug-24 23:24:16

I hardly dare to say that my husband (the most upright man I know) often has two hotel breakfasts when we’re on holiday abroad.

We go on an activities holiday to a Greek island most years and guests who are going cycling (including my husband) usually take a handful of nuts each from the breakfast buffet to sustain them during their ride; I’ve always assumed they are put out for that purpose. When they return from a bike ride it’s quite usual for them to also have a second breakfast, with the staff well aware of this as they chat to them about where they’ve been.

Breakfast is available from 7am (when the cyclists turn up) until 11am, with hot food ceasing to be served at 10.30am - lots of people openly leave the breakfast buffet with fruit and/or pastries and I have seen staff offer plates for the latter, so I can only assume that it’s accepted practice in those hotels.

OnwardandUpward Tue 13-Aug-24 22:46:24

It's good manners to ask, I agree.

I know some people joke that their eyes are bigger than their tummy, but mine are not grin as there isn't any food left on my plate. Granted I've usually been lots more active though and often don't eat lunch afterwards.

Nightsky2 Tue 13-Aug-24 22:43:31

No I wouldn’t dream of it. Could you not just eat a bigger breakfast instead, maybe ask for an extra sausage😀. A couple of bananas should keep you going till dinner. Helping yourself to food is just not a nice thing to do.

OnwardandUpward Tue 13-Aug-24 22:11:39

MissInterpreted

Primrose53

MissInterpreted

GrannyGravy13

When we go out to eat in local restaurants (Indian, Malaysian, Thai, Italian to name a few) if there is food left over we are always asked if we would like to ^take it away^

Indeed - we were at a lovely Turkish restaurant in Edinburgh last week and we couldn't manage the whole meal, so the waitress asked if we would like it to take away.

That’s quite different to eating in hotels where many of them do buffet style food and people pinch pieces of fruit, cakes, croissants,bread rolls etc.

So answer me this then - what is worse, someone loading up their plates from the breakfast buffet, then leaving half of it, or someone taking a piece of fruit or pastry to eat later? I'd much rather see the food being eaten than going to waste.

Many restaurants will offer to box up any leftovers to take home. When we've stayed at a hotel the breakfast has been included in the price of the room, but when we have gone out for an evening meal we have paid exactly for the meal we ordered. Many times it was cooked especially for us and a box was provided, so no shame or sneaking about.

I think if the hotel didn't mind people taking snacks for later they would call it bed, breakfast and snacks for whenever you feel like it.

If someone has taken so much that they cannot eat it, then it's definitely better to ask to take it for later so it doesn't go in the bin, but that's quite different from deliberately pilfering from the breakfast table with the intention of having it later.

If the staff are happy for things to be taken because they're not going to be eaten by anyone else, that's also different. I think asking is the key.

Mollygo Tue 13-Aug-24 21:59:47

Primrose53 you say

Nobody on here is accusing anybody …….. why so bothered?
I’m not, but I am wondering why you are so bothered.

Fleurpepper Tue 13-Aug-24 21:45:20

If I may, as an aside. What would you think is a fair price for breakfast on top of room price, in a Hotel?

If it is more than £15, we just go out instead.

MissInterpreted Tue 13-Aug-24 21:32:22

GrannyGravy13

JaneJudge

As I’ve said, we don’t over gorge or steal 🙄 ❤️

I am definitely on your team 👍🏻😘

Yes, me too!

GrannyGravy13 Tue 13-Aug-24 21:13:51

JaneJudge

As I’ve said, we don’t over gorge or steal 🙄 ❤️

I am definitely on your team 👍🏻😘

JaneJudge Tue 13-Aug-24 21:02:14

I’m annoying myself now 😂🍹

JaneJudge Tue 13-Aug-24 21:01:48

As I’ve said, we don’t over gorge or steal 🙄 ❤️

MissInterpreted Tue 13-Aug-24 20:55:26

Exactly, GrannyGravy13 - if we stayed anywhere which had a buffet, I always told my children to take only what they were going to eat. If they were still hungry, they could always go back for seconds. Food waste is a real pet hate of mine.

GrannyGravy13 Tue 13-Aug-24 20:24:13

MissInterpreted I dislike seeing food wasted.

Last week at the breakfast buffet, my GS’s would have a slice of watermelon along with a pan au chocolate. I had absolutely no qualms with putting a piece of fruit and a pastry in my bag for them to eat mid morning.

There were children on other tables with plates piled with bacon, sausages, beans, eggs etc. half eaten, along with opened yoghurt pots and cereal pockets.

It is definitely not pinching

MissInterpreted Tue 13-Aug-24 19:59:30

Primrose53

MissInterpreted

GrannyGravy13

When we go out to eat in local restaurants (Indian, Malaysian, Thai, Italian to name a few) if there is food left over we are always asked if we would like to ^take it away^

Indeed - we were at a lovely Turkish restaurant in Edinburgh last week and we couldn't manage the whole meal, so the waitress asked if we would like it to take away.

That’s quite different to eating in hotels where many of them do buffet style food and people pinch pieces of fruit, cakes, croissants,bread rolls etc.

So answer me this then - what is worse, someone loading up their plates from the breakfast buffet, then leaving half of it, or someone taking a piece of fruit or pastry to eat later? I'd much rather see the food being eaten than going to waste.

V3ra Tue 13-Aug-24 19:52:51

You best not come out for tea with me then🤣.....I don't feel in the least demeaned when I ask to take a half eaten pizza home in a box .....I've paid for it .....who cares if its thrown out or taken home ....no one I know.

Gosh me too, so that's two of us skulking around 😬
I took surplus pizza pieces back to our apartment from the resort restaurant a couple of times on holiday recently. The waiter asked me if I wanted a box for them!
They made a nice cold lunch on the terrace the next day.

Better than stuffing my face with more food than I needed the evening before, in my opinion 😳

Primrose53 Tue 13-Aug-24 19:46:29

Mollygo

I wouldn’t have to. If I’d put it on my food and couldn’t finish it, I’d ask for a doggy bag, but do keep on with the accusations.
John 8:7 is a good guideline.

That’s quite different from eating in hotels where many of them do buffet style food and people pinch pieces of fruit, cakes, croissants, bread rolls etc

Buffet style meals are more subject to people overloading their plates and leaving their food than they are to people taking extra for later.

JaneJudge asked for opinions and people have given them.

Nobody on here is accusing anybody …….. why so bothered?

You are correct that some people overload at buffet style meals but that is not what Jane is asking about. She is asking whether it is right or wrong to take fruit, cheese, pasties or bread out of the dining room of a hotel in zip lock bag. 🙂