Hotel staff shamed me for my room service order, but I don’t care — I always eat off the kids menu, it’s cheaper

You gotta be kid-ding.

An American traveling overseas and hungry for an affordable taste of home was shocked when the staff at her hotel in Japan gave her the third degree after ordering a cheese pizza from the kid’s menu.

Vanessa von Schwarz, a Los Angeles-based social media influencer, sparked a significant debate online after posting about her apparently-verboten meal — and the flak room service gave her after learning she’d ordered below her age level.

“The girl who brought it to my room opens the door and she’s like, ‘Where’s the kid?’” the ticked-off traveler recalled in a now-viral TikTok video with 4 million views, explaining that all she really wanted to eat was a pizza, chicken nuggets and some fries — all of which were apparently reserved for smaller guests.

“Let me enjoy my kids meal in peace,” she begged, in a post titled: “Is it illegal to order from kids menu as an adult?”

Judging by the debate that ensued, the overwhelming consensus seemed to be no.

“I’ve experienced so much push back with ordering off the kids menu but why does it matter? It’s my order? I’ll order as much or as little as I want,” argued one user.

“I often order kids meals…portion size is so much better,” another agreed.

“It’s so rude that I can’t order off the kids menu sometimes. Like I’m broke and I’m not gonna finish the big one, I want the smaller portion,” someone else wrote.

“I hate when places don’t let adults order off the kids menu. It it has to do with pricing, but yeah I’m paying less because it’s a smaller portion — it still makes sense,” another TikToker commented.

Some viewers reasoned that the restaurants offer kids plates at a lower price point because “they’re assumed to be purchased with an adult,” so just ordering kids meals will not make “good profit” for the eatery — although, it didn’t seem like many users cared.

The divisive dining discourse has yielded a wave of outspoken foodies who vouch for adults who want to order off the kids menu, such as self-proclaimed “kids food connoisseur” Ashley Garrett, who educates her followers on how to score budget-friendly meals off of kids menus.

While many adults cited expense as the reason for ordering the less costly meal option, some — especially those who have undergone bariatric surgery — argued that the portion sizes were more appropriate.

“When I got my bariatric surgery the surgeon literally gave me a card to give to restaurants explaining I needed to order from the kids’ menu,” one viewer on TikTok explained.

“That’s so smart — I’m on Ozempic and my portions are a lot smaller, so I order kids meals a lot too,” another added.

However, some called it “cheap” and “embarrassing,” claiming the kids menus are “designed to help parents afford to take their children out” to eat meals.