General Chat

I took my family out for lunch on Sunday when they visited .

Went to a nice pub where the portions are huge but the food is good.
I have been having a bit of a digestive problem and find as Im getting older I can't eat as much as I used to.

I asked if I could have a small pensioners portion and they said they had the children's menu...now that was the usual ,nuggets ,fish fingers,etc and I wanted a roast,so had the large one served on an oval big plate,,asked for something to put some of it in,and they said they would when I finished...now I wanted it to take off plate before I started as it over faced me.They did,but I don't understand them not understanding.

I also think...why do they not realise that some parents would like their children to eat a normal ,healthy roast instead of the fast food.They always promote healthy eating,but don't carry this out ,and kids would go for.something with chips if its on offer.
I did get to bring my half a meal home and had it yesterday!

I agree Brenda...my girls are old enough to eat the adult sized portions now but it did deter me from eating out with them when they were younger ...seeing such unimaginative childrens meals on offer x

Can never understand the problem with serving the adult menu in half size portions for children/people with small appetites.
I find that almost invariably the menu of the day consists of 3 courses. I always have to refuse a starter because there would be no chance of eating the main course, & much as I would love to treat myself to a pud, there´s no chance.
Half size portions as an option would be just about right.

I managed to get a small portion recently for a Sunday roast but that was from a pub where the food was dished up in front of you. I too am put off by a huge amount of food I know I won't be able to eat (it's inbred I suppose that I shouldn't waste food)

It was very good. It was called the children's portion. Only thing was it was also on a small plat and with my inability to slice easily was in danger of being on the floor. I will ask for a small portion on a big plate next time. They even found some veggie gravy for my daughter.

I wonder if yours was ready plated and that is why they could not/would not change it.

I wish I could eat 3 courses but regardless of how full I am, I always manage the pud.

Vera

I often find the portions are too big so I end up having a starter, or even 2 starters, ie one as the starter and one as the main course!!
However, I'm stumped when it comes to roast, which is my favourite, because that's never on the menu as a starter!!! :-D

Yes my wife has just the same problem too much just puts her off but it's almost impossible to get staff to understand, can't see the problem as we are quite happy to pay the full price, if we just get what we want.


Mayfield

Does seem mad Brenda but glad you could take half home with you for next day. :-D
Our Family usually go to a carvery when possible,as much easier to serve own portions.

When my 3 sisters & I meet up we go to the pub in the village where we grew up.

They are used to us now... no starters, 4 small mains, 2 puddings with 4 bowls + 1 bottle red wine & a jug of iced water for me (the driver )

Our local is renown for its Sunday Roasts, big plated portions of meat , vegetables & gravy served separately. This is ideal for us when we want to gather all of our children & their family's together, as those wanting smaller portions can have them. The teenage boys are always ready to accept some of Grannies meat .



:-D

The problem with a lot of pubs is that the meals are bought in.
The term "freshly prepared" is often ill-used although not necessarily grammatically incorrect.
If a pub cooks from scratch on the premises (ok, it may be prepped up and stored in a cold store) then it shouldn't really be a problem. However, many seem totally incapable of dividing their pre-cooked bought in meals into two!
Very often they are not really employing a chef, merely somebody who knows how to turn the microwave oven on!

At the moment I have an OH with a large appetite so he usually accepts a couple of slices of my meat and a potato if there are too many. I find it is too much meat that I can't eat.

I have a feeling that The Harvester pubs serve child portions but a lot of places serving child portions won't serve them to adults, they have a top age of about 12.

I think they should serve pensioner size meals in these days when we are being exhorted not to waste food.

Having worked for Harvester, I know it was not possable to do a smaller portion as it was just push a button and the ticket would go to the kitchen...if a customer did not want so many chips, then of course that could be done but could not give a reduction in price. I remember we had a policy for only children under a certain age could have a childs meal....mainly because of some people just trying it on as salad was free and they got a free icecream aswell...so it could work out to be a very cheap meal for some. (groups of aged 20+ girls spring to mind)
These things were at the waitress/waiters descretion really and I remember a very nice family, a lady in her 50s with her parents who came in every tuesday and I would let the mum have a childrens meal as I knew she could'nt eat an adults meal....one day I did'nt serve them and they got rather upset because the waiter who was serving them that day refused.....anyway after that I always made sure I served them to save anymore unpleasantness.

I have not been into a Harvester for a few years so things may have changed?

I also worked for Toby and I seem to remember charging by the size of the plate so an older person could get a childs meal back then

I find that ,,,,,,,you dont get enough on a main meal.....especially meat,just a couple slices and if lucky 2 and a bit.

and NO am not carrying any extra weight. ;-) :-D

Brenda ,that happened to my B.I.L who used to live with us .
We would go out for a meal and because it was so much on the plate he just couldn't eat it ,it made him full up just looking at it ,
He wasn't a very well man and couldn't eat very much , we did ask if he could have a smaller portion , we were told no .
Hazelx

As I live with the human waste disposal system I just pass what I can't eat across the table to him but I do come a bit unstuck if I am out with somebody else and I hate wasting food.

I am happy to ask fo a doggy bag but,should you be having an all-day breakfast that would feed a small nation, you don't really want to eat it later.

Now,this brings me to my obsession,pig swill. Why can't waste food be fed to pigs againminstead of going to landfil?.What a wicked waste that is!

Well with all this horse meat doing the rounds I certainly won't be eating out.

On a serious note when children were young we did not want to eat only in burger bars, and used to visit a French Restaurant, they were most helpful and would cook a dover sole and share between the children only charging for the extra chips, needless to say we would always visit and recommend.

Agree with Jax places like Harvester have one policy for all.

Reminds me of the story - order eggs, bacon, chips and beans menu, but I don't want the beans will still pay full price, but you have to have the beans you are paying for them, talk about jobsworth.

Carol :-S

Brenda it is annoying that even at weddings with set menus, roast dinner for adults, chicken & chips for child's portion. Do they not believe that most parents would prefer smaller potions with vegetables as an option at least :-(

That was my second point,Lolly...not just about smaller portions for folk with small appetites like I have now,but the vegetables for children are surely a better option for children than just the baked beans that seem to come with their meals .

We had my 6 year old great granddaughter and she had sausage egg beans and chips,but Im sure she would have been happy with a roast as that is what she would have had if I had cooked the meal.
I did a stew with all sorts of veg on Sat and a separate puff pastry topping and she had 2 helpings.Her mum does a lot of meals like that,but when they have a menu and look at the children's meals they have no choice.

Like Sharron ,And a lot of us on here ,I hate waste.The amount of meat on the dinner was very generous,this was not a chain but a family run pub that has an excellent reputation...think I should put a suggestion in the box!!

I would do that Brenda, they might just find that they get more family groups coming in.

:-)