Everybody deserves a bit of happiness in their lives, right? Nostalgia mixed with enjoyment for the little things is what prompts many adults to order Happy Meals at McDonald’s or to purchase that toy that they never had in their childhood. A Florida woman went viral on TikTok when she ordered a kid’s meal for a completely different reason. She never expected that a worker would try to gatekeep her meal with one simple question.
Nomi (@imoniceline on TikTok) shared her experience after she ordered a meal from a Cava restaurant in Florida. She ordered a Kid’s Pita Meal due to the fact you get a smaller portion size than their larger build-your-own pita that typically appeals to adults. Since Nomi isn’t a child, the worker asked her upon placing her order, “How old are you?” Nomi, a bit shocked by the question, decided to defend herself with a fast-thinking lie. She told the worker the meal was for her son. In reality, she pulled over and ate the pita herself. She wrote in the caption of her video, “Like girl give me my s**t.”
Cava, as with many restaurants, does not have an age restriction on who orders a kid’s meal from them. It’s important to note kid’s meals tend to be loss leaders, which means they bring in families and sell at a loss to a company. This is so big families will order the food that actually generates a profit to the company off of their menu.
Viewers sided with Nomi on this matter, for the most part. One woman commented, “I hate when ppl take their job too serious” because, realistically, why would you care what someone orders as an employee? You aren’t the CEO of the company and aren’t taking home their massive profits at the end of the day. Another person asked, “Why was that even her business to begin with? Do ya’ll want the money or no.”
Others have shared that, they too, have been age-checked over the kid’s meal debate. One person said, “That happened to me” and went on to explain that they had to eat off the kid’s menu due to being on a “calorie deficit.” One TikToker joked, “That lemonade hits even better when the whole meal cost $8.” I can’t possibly argue with that.
