Mark Dolliver's Takes: Too Much Food on Their Plates

The “hungry man” has long been a stock character of ads in which fast-food outlets and other eateries vow to satisfy the heartiest appetites. Look at the chart below, though, and you’ll wonder whether that approach has outlived its usefulness—particularly for reaching upper-income consumers. The study, by Decision Analyst, found little difference in opinion about portion size from one age group to the next, until one gets to the 65-and-up contingent. Sixty-eight percent of the old folks said the portions are often too large, which suggests restaurants’ “early-bird specials” could afford to get smaller.