Reply #107: But what about the wastefulness aspect?

[conflictgirl]

I cannot finish the portions at restaurants either, they are almost always way too large. And I agree with the other poster who said that many restaurant meals do not reheat well at home.

I don't want the government to tell me what I can and cannot eat, but I would like to see incentives (somehow) for restaurants to serve smaller portions. I have also had trouble when I've tried to order a 1/2 size order of something or get a child's meal or share with my husband. Many restaurants give DISincentives to people who want to control portion size. These days we can't afford to eat out very often anyway, but it used to really bother me that it was so difficult to get smaller portions. Because I didn't want to take it home because it wouldn't reheat well, that food I didn't eat was all wasted. I have no problem with the self-control aspect, but I really hate wasting all that food.

The solution for many of us is either to clean your plate, or know that you're wasting a lot of food (assuming that it's something that won't reheat well at home, which is usually the case). The government doesn't necessarily have to step in, but restaurants should really make it easier for people to order smaller portions. The "solution" of only having the option to order this gargantuan portion and throw away half of it when you can't eat it all is not a solution at all.