At what age should kids be allowed to meet friends out for dinner at fast food joints?

Last summer this issue came up, now already spring has not sprung and my son's friends are eating at Hardees, McD's and A&W like there is no tomorrow. So, now I am the "mean" parent saying, "Uh, hell no."

I don't mind once a month, but I am in awe of the same parents letting the same kids meet out for dinner each night.

And it is not my son B.S.'ing me....one parent I have on FB has posted about her son meeting out the boys' fast food dinner crowd. Otherwise, I would suspect it was my son trying to hook up with different parties each night.

That's a new one on me, I'd never heard of that.

You and me both. I can not even believe all the same boys are eating out each night.

And where does that money come from, I'd like to know? It may be cheap when it's once in a while but every night it does add up.

Not including my son....but the rest of the kids get it from their allowance. We are in a suburb and some of those kids get over $50 per month in pocket money. My son never has that in pocket money, though he does have spare money during months he gets to work with his dad. He gets $5 per hour.

In my opinion, he should work for nothing, but that is a battle I have lost. But that money goes toward "must have" shoes, tee's and the like.

At what age should kids be allowed to meet friends out for dinner at fast food joints?

I'd say 13/14? That's about how old I was. But each night is a lot, I was allowed maybe once a week, and I did use my allowance.

I would say 14/15 and not every night.

RedBedroom wrote:Not including my son....but the rest of the kids get it from their allowance. We are in a suburb and some of those kids get over $50 per month in pocket money. My son never has that in pocket money, though he does have spare money during months he gets to work with his dad. He gets $5 per hour.

In my opinion, he should work for nothing, but that is a battle I have lost. But that money goes toward "must have" shoes, tee's and the like.

At least your son is being taught the value of the dollar by working with his Dad and getting paid for it. Some of these teens today no nothing about earning their own money, they want and they want and their parents give.

Depends on the size of the town, but certainly not every night. What kind of parent lets their kid eat fast food every night?

I think it more depends on where the fast food place is, and how far a distance it is from the house. Also the time. There's a Coney Island restaurant right around the block from my house; if my daughter wanted to meet some friends up there at around five or six o'clock and have dinner, that's fine. After seven would be an issue.

Tony Marino wrote:

At least your son is being taught the value of the dollar by working with his Dad and getting paid for it. Some of these teens today no nothing about earning their own money, they want and they want and their parents give.

Indeeeeeed, as kids we would've loved to get $50 a week but I find it not only unrealistic but poor planning because yes, we had to work for the money we got and we learned how long it took to build up enough to do anything with.

Tony Marino wrote:

At least your son is being taught the value of the dollar by working with his Dad and getting paid for it. Some of these teens today no nothing about earning their own money, they want and they want and their parents give.

It is insane how parents give and give. I am always on my son's tail about the value of a dollar and he gets it most of the time. Yet there are times I shake my head....