Takeout would not sell a kids meal

JohnSwift10

My 11 year old granddaughter fancied a takeout meal but when I went to the takeout and asked for a kids meal the person would not sell it to me because they thought it was for me and I was too old to buy a kids meal.

What is the world coming to if you can't buy a takeout for a kid if the kid isn't in the shop with you?
Good job there was another takeout across the road where they sold me the kids meal.
Crazy

Brie

And why shouldn't you be allowed to buy a kid's meal for yourself?  Lots of people don't want all the adult food and the kid's ones are sometimes a good value in comparison.  I'd def send an email to complain.

Murphybear

Brie said:

And why shouldn't you be allowed to buy a kid's meal for yourself?  Lots of people don't want all the adult food and the kid's ones are sometimes a good value in comparison.  I'd def send an email to complain.

I live in an area which has an above average number of pensioners.  Many of the restaurants/takeaways are happy to sell pensioners a child’s portion.  It might make them a bit less money but if they refused they would lose a lot more.  I belong to a pensioners lunch club and if we couldn’t  get smaller portions we would go elsewhere.  

Pollycat

It sounds an odd business decision to refuse a sale for that reason.

Was it a national chain or just a local shop?

sheramber

When my kids were young we went into a cafe for somethng to eat.

There was nothing on the kids menu that kids ate but there was macaroni cheese on the main menu. Ordered that for them and asked for an extra plate so we could split the portion between them.

The server refused to give us an extra plate saying' you can't do that'.

So the kids shared the macaroni off the one dish.

Mnoee

Lots of restaurants sell kids meals as a loss leader - they don't make a profit on it, but they do from the adult meals. The common reply to this is 'well they shouldn't!', but those people seem less willing to pay a £13 for a kids meal if an adults is £15.

The overheads and staffing costs for a kids meal is exactly the same as an adult meal (if not more, if you count the time clearing up the carnage often left by the little darlings in a sit-down place) half as much food doesn't cost half as much to provide, as the actual food cost is pretty negligible - you only have to visit a supermarket to know that half a chicken breast and a bit of rice/chips/sauce costs about a quid, and an adult portion twice that. 

The £15 adult meal is making a profit, the £7 kids meal is there so the adults with kids can still eat there, so I totally understand the restaurants who will only serve a kids meal with an adults meal. I also understand those that already have staff there, lights and fridges and fryers on, and are desperate enough to get any money at all in the till. Not saying anyone is right or wrong on what 'should' happen, but hopefully shedding some light on why places do this.

Also, the minimum wage worker doing 50 hour weeks who hasn't eaten a meal at normal meal times in the past year probably hates the policy as much as you! 

nyermen

As mentioned, sometimes the kids meal may be non profit (although unless its loss making, I'd have thought you'd want to sell it anyway?).  

But don't underestimate the "not my counter" approach sometimes taken.  I recall a few years a go someone on this forum mentioning how they'd bought something from a shop for £5.05, and they'd handed over a £10 note plus a 5 pence piece.  The assistant called their manager, had a quite conversation for a moment, and then handed back the 5p, saying "sorry sir, we dont do that here".  Then proceeded to provide £4.95 in shrapnel.

(Disclaimer: I forget the numbers in the original story so used my own)

Mnoee

It's the opportunity cost - selling something for no profit might mean you then cannot serve someone who wants to buy something profitable. Even what looks like a quiet takeaway might be flooded with ubereats orders who have the choice between drop everything to cook a kids meal right now for no gain, or try to explain why there's a 45 minute wait. A restaurant has a set number of tables, maybe that couple who wouldn't wait for a table were celebrating a promotion and wanted champagne which has a massive mark up... But at least Mr kids meal and water is happy and will be back next week.