The Kids' Meal Isn't Just For Kids Anymore: Why More Adults Are Going With This Restaurant Option

A good portion of the 3 million-plus Happy Meals that McDonald's sells in a year could be going towards feeding adults instead of the adolescent audience they were initially aimed towards. On a wider scale, adults are increasingly gravitating towards ordering off the kids' menu whenever they have the option, and a Circana finding (via The Wall Street Journal) shows an almost 30% rise in adults ordering kids' meals between 2019 and 2024. Another study by Lightspeed Commerce finds that over 40% adults have ordered from the kids' menu, and a quick search on social media — now replete with adults reviewing kids' menu items at popular chains — shows that this trend isn't slowing down any time soon.

The financial reason for the preference for the typically cheaper kids' meals is clear, and the savings can be significant. Fast food is getting expensive, with some of the most expensive fast food items, like the Double Quarter Pounder with Cheese Deluxe, routinely costing over $10. Happy Meals, on the other hand, are closer to the $5 mark and offer a little bit of everything. The serving size may be smaller, but the fact that many adults don't mind getting a smaller serving as long as they also pay less for it points to a broader shift in eating trends. Plus, smaller servings offer the possibility of variety on a budget — someone looking for a snack will be happy with a smaller entree, side, and drink, rather than having to splurge on full-sized versions of all three. Coming at a time when people are eating out less, adults ordering off the kids' menu is a complex phenomenon that stems from multiple factors, and is getting polarizing responses from people.

In addition to saving money, ordering kids' meals stems from changing eating habits. Fast food consumption has decreased. There is increased awareness for healthy eating and cooking at home, and with fast food considered more as a treat than a customary family or social ritual, adults are content with consuming smaller portions of it. Some have even justified it as less wasteful. There is also an undercurrent of nostalgia, which may get some to order chicken fingers or mac and cheese from the kids' menu. The nostalgia angle plays quite strongly, even leading McDonald's to introduce a Happy Meal for adults.

Not all restaurants are happy about the kids' menu being used by non-kids. Some businesses offer cheaper kids' meals as a loss leader strategy in order to attract families and groups with kids. Consequently, they make less of a profit on items on the kids' menu, with some even saying they sell them at cost, which is easy to believe considering there are still restaurants where kids eat for free.

Thus, rising prices and a fall in people eating out reflect pain points for both diners and restaurants. And while it's ok to order these lower-priced menu items at establishments that welcome the business, when it comes to adults eating kids' meals, don't be surprised or hold it against a restaurant if they insist you order from the adult menu. Restaurants that give free access to their kids' menus may also need to rethink their policies as the trend continues to grow, especially in college areas where shoestring budgets and trends shape the local economy more aggressively.