Man leaves the US and immediately regrets ordering food anywhere else. Then they are shocked after seeing the shrimps: ‘real food’

A TikTok video compiling clips of people reacting to food portion sizes outside the United States has drawn attention online. The video, posted by user @pet.love.baby1, who has about 280,800 followers on the platform, shows several short clips of people expressing surprise over smaller meals and different flavors in countries such as Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Italy, and Spain, as well as in parts of the Middle East.

The video’s caption frames the clips as showing what happens “When Europeans get used to American food and go back home.” The compilation includes reactions from several different people, each responding to a different food item or meal.

One clip referenced in the video’s description shows a woman sitting at a restaurant table with a plate of large, whole shrimp. On-screen text in that clip reads, “POV: you order shrimp in Europe 😭😭😭,” which appears to suggest that the shrimp’s presentation, served whole and unpeeled, was unexpected to her.

Several clips  show reactions to portion sizes in different countries

In one clip, a man wearing a plaid shirt and cap holds up a small chicken wing to the camera. He says, “You know you’re not in the US anymore and back in Canada. This is a large wing.” On-screen text in the same clip reads, “The culture shock Canada Vs USA,” seemingly comparing portion sizes between the two countries.

www.tiktok.com/@pet.love.baby1/video/7656744863093820702

Another segment shows a woman in a plaid shirt eating fried fish and chips with mashed peas. She appears to take a bite and then looks at the camera with what seemed to be a disappointed expression. On-screen text in the clip states, “Once again, I had fried fish and chips as well as mashed peas. 😭😭😭😭😭.” Reactions to unfamiliar food are not limited to portion sizes, as one food writer’s experience trying the world’s worst-rated foods also shows.

In a separate clip, a woman standing in a kitchen holds a foil-wrapped dish along with several small spice bottles. She says, “And this is the flavors: salt, pepper, and onion powder. I’m not gonna eat it. There’s no flavor in this house.” On-screen text accompanying this clip  reads, “Europeans after they leave America and have to eat their food.”

A man with curly hair is shown speaking directly to the camera, saying, “When I come back home from Europe.” The clip then shows a plate with a small steak covered in a creamy sauce, along with a small basket of french fries, a bottle of water, and a can of Coca-Cola. On-screen text in this segment  reads, “Them European portion sizes be hitting different.”

Another clip, filmed at a Burger King location in London, shows a woman holding up a standard-sized paper cup. She says, “We’re at Burger King in London. Number one, this is the large cup. Look at this. This is a large.” On-screen text  repeats, “we’re at Burger King in London,” apparently drawing attention to the size of the drink labeled as “large.”

In a separate clip, a woman holds a small cup of McDonald’s ice cream and says, “This is the ice cream. My mom’s dying. This is the ice cream here, bro. What the heck? I thought this was going to be a big a** cone.” On-screen text in the clip  reads, “People that live in the US expecting bigger portions in France 🇫🇷🍦🧊❄️,” indicating the clip was filmed in France.

Another man, wearing a clear plastic glove, holds up a small slider burger and asks, “Ordered sliders, like, what is this little one-bite face a** slider?” On-screen text describes this as representing food portions in the Middle East, stating, “food portions in the middle east are either tiny 😭.”

A separate clip,  filmed at a McDonald’s in Italy, shows a woman holding up a single small chicken nugget while saying, “Look at it. Whoa.” On-screen text reads, “The portion sizes of McDonald’s in Italy 😂.” Other videos online have similarly focused on the chain’s food, including one employee’s viral secrets video about their food.

Another woman is shown holding a small, round bread roll in her palm, appearing to compare its size to her hand while smiling at the camera.

The final segment shows a woman at an outdoor cafe who is shown crying into a napkin, with the camera then panning to a small sandwich on a plate. On-screen text  states, “The plan to share the sandwich failed. 😂.” 

An off-screen voice can be heard saying, “no,” which the video’s description interprets as a reaction to the sandwich being too small to share. The clip then shows a man eating a small portion of food from a narrow plate, saying, “Wait. You gotta go in with one of these.” On-screen text for this segment  reads, “When you take Americans used to Texas sized portions to eat tapas in Spain.”

Several users responded to the video in the comments section. One user wrote, “So they all discovered real food for the first time?” Another user commented, “what’s wrong with the portions 😊” A reply simply read, “Small.” A further reply responded, ” No your portions are too big.”

A user wrote, “We have real food in Europe, not modified one, we are healthier.” A reply responded, “it’s getting worse by the day here as well.” A fourth user commented, “The ‘Europeans after they leave America and have to eat their food’ makes zero senses to me? We have fresh produce and an abundance of spices, herbs etc 😭?”