Large portions of food

I’ve asked for child portions in many restaurants, but sadly the vast majority refuse to serve them

DeeAitch56

I’ve asked for child portions in many restaurants, but sadly the vast majority refuse to serve them

Just ask for a small portion then - I've always found places more than happy to oblige. Nowhere has ever refused.

Order one meal and ask for two plates. Been there, done it, etc.

With close family/friends you can eat off one plate too if the eatery baulks at providing two.

I am a small eater and often have a lot left when finished. I just ask for a takeout box and then my lunch is sorted for the next day. Of course if it's buffet I only take what I can finish.
It wouldn't bother me enough that I wouldn't go back if I liked the place.

I’d rather have a meal where there’s more plate than food but the food is something I couldn’t have prepared at home. The sort of meal where other people say, ‘Is that it?! I’ll have to go to the chip shop on the way home!’

Only if I were served something I did not like in a private home.

I still have a very good appetite, so I might not be able to finish a very large portion,but the sight of it would not put me off.

With increasing age has come a smaller appetite so I look for restaurants who include a Light Bite menu. You can have the main dishes but with a manageable amount of food. I find huge portions put me off before I get started.

I haven’t come across very large meals served in restaurants or pubs, in fact there sometimes isn’t enough and I’m not a big eater either.
Could this be a North/South divide kind of thing? I’m in the South.
We don’t go to carveries so can’t comment on them.

I don’t go to any restaurant or cafe without a few Zip Lock bags in my handbag. In Sunday my husband and I both had steak and I deftly slipped one in my bag to take home and we share the other. Same goes for Sunday roasts but I wouldn’t do it if it was a carvery I’d just take what I could eat. Steak always tastes better the next day and we usually make a stir fry dish. Works out very cheap for the two meals.

I was in a lovely cafe that we hadn't used before a few weeks ago. When we sat down the table next to us had just finished their meals and the waitress was collecting their empty plates. She asked one lady if she had eaten her whole meal by herself and the lady said 'Oh no there was far too much for me, I had to share it with some of the others on the table!' The waitress said to her 'Oh I did wonder, nobody ever manages to finish that.' I thought well if nobody manages to finish it why on earth don't to serve less of it? It seemed ridiculous.

A friend who lives in Spain eats out about 4 times a week. She rarely needs to cook as her freezer is full of doggy bags the restaurants happily supply!

I remember going for a family meal a couple of years ago. There were about 12 of us. I can't eat big meals and settled for a prawn cocktail and a dessert. My DH had a smaller meal as he is the same as me. The rest of the party had plates and dishes piled high with all sorts of stuff. When we had finished it was embarrassing to walk away from that table as the amount of food that was left behind was shameful.

Oreo

I haven’t come across very large meals served in restaurants or pubs, in fact there sometimes isn’t enough and I’m not a big eater either.
Could this be a North/South divide kind of thing? I’m in the South.
We don’t go to carveries so can’t comment on them.

This is my experience too, here in the East Midlands. Average sized portions served, not excessive but just enough without needing a starter or a pudding.

I think it’s about economies of scale. The more that’s on the plate the more they can charge so more profit. I’ve certainly noticed how large portions are getting as I now rarely finish a meal out completely out.

At Carverys I've been amazed at how much food people pile on their plate. If that is the amount they generally eat no wonder a lot of people find the cost of food really excessive. The restaurant owner who has started charging for excessive food left on plates has the right idea to stop waste. I often ask if half portions are served, especially if a lunch and generally get a Yes, though often not exactly half price but I don't mind as not over eating or leaving food.

I find it very off-putting when a roast dinner is presented in a great heap. I like my food to be spead out over the plate so I can see everything, if there is too much food to fit like this it's obviously more than a normal portion.
My husband doesn't like many vegetables and some such as cabbage actually make him sick so if he is presented with an overloaded plate he just can't eat it.

Baggs

Order one meal and ask for two plates. Been there, done it, etc.

We sometimes do that with our grandchildren as the food on many childrens' menus often isn't great. They much prefer half a portion of nice "adult" bood.

Sorry, mistype "food" obviously!

I used to eat very large meals but my appetite has reduced a lot as I'm on ozempic injections for my diabetes. Since being on the injections I've lost 2 stones and can't face a really big meal. Last year I visited my DD in Dubai and we ate out a lot. I had to ask for a doggy bag at most of the places, which ended up being eaten for my lunch the next day when my DD was at work. We went to a carvery for Christmas lunch and that was one of the few meals I finished as I only took what I could eat!

But why is it that as I eat less and less my girth gets wider and wider?

When we are on holiday abroad we usually go down early for dinner when it is less busy. I hate seeing people helping themselves to overloaded platefuls on hotel buffets.

I have seen kids with so many huge slices of melon that they are dropping it. I have seen people with massive plates of just chips or roast potatoes. Then there are those who pile their plates up so much that they can’t find room to get their fingers on to hold it.

You should send it back as unacceptable if the portion is too big. If they persist in trying to stuff you , just walk out. An overloaded plate means a bad chef.

Lisaangel and others, I don't understand why you would go to hotels that cater for guests like that.

Caleo

Lisaangel and others, I don't understand why you would go to hotels that cater for guests like that.

How do you know before you go? I have also found the same at buffets at weddings, parties etc. once it’s announced that the buffet is open it’s like a herd of elephants stamping through.