MENU GUIDES • 5 min read
Feeding Kids Here
Three items on the kids’ menu, a fair amount of the main menu that quietly works, and one dessert that buys you ten minutes.
The kids’ menu has chicken nuggets, a burger and chicken fingers, each with a junior fry and a kid’s drink included. Off the main menu, boneless wings with the sauce on the side, fish sticks and mozzarella sticks all work well.
A wings place is not an obvious choice for a table with children, and yet it works better than most people expect. The kids’ menu is short and sensible, and a fair amount of the main menu is quietly child-friendly once you know what to look for.
The trap is ordering off the main menu at adult portions and hoping for the best.
The kids’ menu
Three items, and each one comes with a junior portion of fries and a kid’s drink included:
- Kid’s Chicken Nuggets — the default, and the safest
- Kid’s Burger — for anyone who has moved past nuggets
- Kid’s Chicken Finger — whole strips rather than pieces
The fries and the drink being included matters more than it sounds. It removes the two things most likely to get ordered separately and then not finished, and it keeps the whole thing to one decision instead of three.
Nuggets or fingers?
They are not the same thing and the choice is worth making deliberately. Nuggets are small pieces, so there are more of them and each one is a smaller commitment. Fingers are whole strips of chicken, which means more meat and less coating per bite — better if the child in question picks the coating off, which many do.
The coating point is worth dwelling on. A nugget is mostly coating by surface area; a finger is mostly chicken. A child who eats the outside and leaves the middle is telling you to order nuggets. A child who peels the coating off is telling you to order fingers.
As a rule: nuggets for younger children and cautious eaters, fingers for anyone who eats a whole portion of anything. The adult versions of both are on the appetizer menu at twelve and five pieces respectively, which is the fallback if the kids’ portion is too small.
What works off the main menu
Plenty, if you pick for texture rather than for what looks like a child’s meal:
| Item | Why it works | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Boneless wings | No bones, consistent pieces, easy to eat | Order them plain or with the sauce on the side |
| Fish Sticks (6) | Recognisable, mild, easy to hold | Nothing — this is the safe seafood order |
| Cheeseburger | Five ounces and nothing on it unless you add it | The Double is ten ounces; do not order it by mistake |
| Mozzarella Sticks (5) | Warm, mild, and famously reliable | Marinara is on the side, not on them |
| Corn Nuggets | Sweet rather than savoury | Genuinely sweet — closer to a treat |
| Chicken Wrap | Mild, and the cucumber sauce is cool not spicy | Ask for it plain if raw onion is a problem |
Boneless wings are the one worth calling out. With the sauce on the side they are effectively breaded chicken pieces, and they scale from five pieces upward, so a child can share the same order everyone else is eating. Our comparison of the two styles goes into the difference.
Portions, honestly
The commonest mistake is ordering an adult portion and assuming it will be shared. It rarely is. A 7-inch sandwich is a full adult lunch, a half pound of shrimp is a starter for two grown-ups, and ten wings is more than most children will get through, whatever they say at the point of ordering.
The kids’ items are sized deliberately, and the junior fry that comes with them is a junior fry rather than a small adult one. If it is not enough, the adult chicken fingers at five pieces are the natural step up rather than a whole second meal. Nutrition.gov’s guidance on feeding children is the reference if you want the general picture rather than the menu one.
What to avoid
- Anything sauced in advance — ask for sauce on the side and let them dip
- The Tiger Steak — jalapenos and a blackened beer sauce, with a warning on the menu
- Loaded fries as a child’s side — there are jalapenos in them
- A 12-inch anything — the 7-inch is already a full adult lunch
- The seafood boil — not because of the heat, which you choose, but because it takes both hands and a lot of patience
On heat generally: almost nothing on this menu is hot unless you asked for it, which makes it easier than it looks. Our guide to what is actually spicy lists the few things that are.
Ordering ahead for a table with children? Ask for their food to come out first rather than with everything else. A junior fry goes cold faster than anything else on the tray, and a child who has already eaten is a much better dining companion.
Dessert, which is the actual draw
Thai rolled ice cream is made to order on a freezing plate — the cream base is poured on, mixed with your flavour, spread thin and scraped into rolls in front of you. For a child, watching it being made is most of the appeal, and it takes a few minutes, which is exactly when you want something to happen.
Ten flavours, four of them fruit-led. Our explainer on how it is made covers what is in each one. The fried donuts, ten to a portion, are the other option and considerably less of an event.
The short version
Three items on the kids’ menu, each with a junior fry and a drink included. Off the main menu, boneless wings with the sauce on the side, fish sticks and mozzarella sticks all work. Avoid anything pre-sauced, skip the Tiger Steak, and save the rolled ice cream for when you need ten quiet minutes. Start on the kids’ menu.
Three on the kids’ menu
Nuggets, a burger or chicken fingers — each with a junior fry and a drink included.
Frequently asked questions
What is on the kids’ menu?
Chicken nuggets, a burger and chicken fingers. Each comes with a junior portion of fries and a kid’s drink included.
What is the difference between nuggets and chicken fingers?
Nuggets are small pieces and there are more of them; fingers are whole strips, so more meat and less coating per bite.
Is anything on the menu too spicy for children?
Very little. The Tiger Steak carries a warning, and loaded fries have jalapeno in them. Almost everything else is mild unless you add sauce.
Can children eat the wings?
Boneless wings with the sauce on the side work well — no bones and consistent pieces. They start at five pieces.
Is there a dessert children like?
Thai rolled ice cream is made to order on a cold plate in front of you, which is most of the appeal. There are also fried donuts.
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