Photo: TikTok
It's a clever trick.
By Sanika Nalgirkar — Written on Sep 10, 2022
Having kids who are picky eaters is an endless challenge, especially if that fussiness causes them to favor unhealthy meals that can add up to be expensive over time.
For one dad on TikTok, however, a cunning hack has helped him avoid his children's unhealthy habits.
The dad has a hack for when his kids ask for McDonald's for dinner.
In the video, the dad shows how he puts McDonald's wrapping on homemade burgers to trick his kids.
"When your kids say they want McDonald's," he writes in the text on the screen.
He puts a meat patty on the grill and then put a slice of cheese on it before adding the buns — wraps them in the familiar paper.
His kids excitedly eat the homecooked meal without suspecting a thing — or so he thought.
“It worked until they asked where are the happy meal toys,” the dad wrote in a caption.
Several TikTok users had a solution to this, suggesting the father buy some toys from the dollar store to use whenever he tries the hack.
But one user had an even better idea, "So, for the happy meal toy just grab one they already have that they don’t use. If they notice say oh man, I hate it when we get repeats."
However, some TikTok users were not so impressed by the dad's trick, accusing him of lying to his children and encouraging him to just say no to their requests instead of trying to trick them.
One person commented, “Why not just learn to tell the kids no?”
Another person wrote, “Just tell them that they do not have an option and they eat what you make or don't eat."
Teaching kids to listen when they're told "no" is certainly important but even the most diligent parents know that sometimes taking the easy route is the best option!
Fortunately, others saw that the video was likely just for fun — and related to the struggle of trying to convince kids to give up their McDonald's fixation!
One user wrote, “Now when they grow up they’ll think [McDonald's] used to be significantly better when they were kids.”
Another user wrote, “For those leaving negative comments, just appreciate a parent that puts in [the] effort to make their kids happy."
“I worked as a [manager] for 6 years at McDonald's and this never even crossed my mind! Trying this today!” reads another comment.
Some people also suggested ideas in response to the TikToker's caption about how his idea only worked for a while, suggesting the alternatives the dad can use for happy meal toys.
Sanika Nalgirkar is a News & Entertainment Writer based in India. She has a master's degree in Creative Writing. See more of her writing on her website.