Family Meal Deals: Are They Really a Good Deal? Here's the Math

Kid-friendly restaurants will sometimes offer family meal deals to help you balance the chaos and feed your family without busting your budget. But are they a good deal? In some cases, yes. For example, you can save 50% if you buy the Olive Garden bundle. Others? Eh, not so much.

Here’s a list of popular restaurants, their meal deals, and what your food would cost as individual orders. I’ve also added delivery costs for the restaurants I’ve ordered delivery from recently. Keep in mind, prices may vary between locations.

For more money-saving tips and deals, download the KCL app.

1. Save up to 47% with the Pizza Hut Big Dinner Box with pizzas.

Satisfy the whole family with the Big Dinner Box from Pizza Hut. You can place carryout or delivery orders through the Pizza Hut app or website. Big Box options aren’t available at all Pizza Hut locations.

Although you have four options (all pizzas are medium, with one topping), here’s the one with the best savings:

Be sure to bookmark the KCL Deals page for even more restaurant savings.

2. On the Border Family Bundles can save you $8.54 on tacos and enchiladas.

On the Border has a few family meals that you can get through their website or app. Their family meals will ask you to choose the protein of your choice and give you the fixings.

Here are a few of the best family meals from On the Border:

3. Grab a Burger King Family Bundle for 44% off individual prices.

The Burger King Family Bundle doesn’t have a crazy amount of food, but it’s cheap. Drive-thru or delivery for the Family Bundle is only available through BK.com or through the Burger King app. Delivery fees will apply.

Note: For a family of four, buy two Mix and Match meals for a total of $24 versus buying individual items for $34.28 to $38.28.

4. Olive Garden Family-Style Lasagna Bundles feed four to six people for under $50.

If you’ve got pasta lovers, Olive Garden’s Family-Style Lasagna Bundle will be a hit. The bundle feeds four to six, which means you may have some leftovers, but don’t count on it. Order for pickup or dine in.

5. Save up to 27% when you buy the Panera Bread Family Feast.

Serve a fresh and nutritious meal with Panera Bread’s Family Feast for four. Pickup is available through the Panera app and website. If you want Panera to deliver, know that their prices are marked up for this service.

Since most of these meals have so many possible combinations, I calculated the cheapest spend possible, as well as the most expensive, for price comparisons.

Your potential savings can go higher with other family feasts including the two Flatbread Pizza, Soup or Mac, or the Premium Family Feast.

They even offer two family feast breakfast options (sandwiches or bakery goods).

6. Build your own Panda Express Family Meal and save $8.50.

You can build your own Panda Express Family Meal. Takeout, delivery ($10 minimum order), and drive-thru are available for orders placed through the Panda Express app and website.

7. Save up to 44% with KFC’s Family Meal Deals.

Although Kentucky Fried Chicken has several bucket meals available, you can save around 56% when you go with the 10-piece Feast or the 8-piece Chicken + 8 Tenders Fill Up. Pick up via the KFC app (available for Android and iOS) or website or delivery via DoorDash.

TIP: If you want to order delivery, be warned — DoorDash’s prices are higher than those on KFC.com.

8. Save up to $15 with Cracker Barrel’s Family Meal Baskets To Go.

The menu says each Cracker Barrel family meal basket should feed five people. The best deal is the All-Day Pancake Breakfast, and the worst is Chicken n’ Dumplins. Curbside, pickup, or delivery ($15 minimum order) available for orders placed through the Cracker Barrel app and website.

Cracker Barrel Family Meal Baskets To Go options include:

Other meal baskets, such as the Scratch-Made Meatloaf and Southern Fried Chicken, can save you somewhere in between $7.46 – $15.51.

9. Save about $7 with the Qdoba Family Meal Deal.

Qdoba Family Meal Deals are perfect for taco night. Although they serve four to five people, I did the math for four. Pick up or have your meal delivered via DoorDash, Grubhub, or Postmates.

Each family meal comes with rice, black beans, queso, pico de gallo, salsa verde or salsa Roja, shredded cheese, tortillas, and a large bag of chips.

You have two options:

10. Save up to 51% on three-course Bob Evans Family Meals with free delivery.

Bob Evans’ Family Meals offer your family eight meal options that each serve up to six people starting at $35.94 (and that includes delivery). Pickup is also available for orders placed through the Bob Evans website. Bob Evans has a $15 order minimum for delivery.

Every family meal comes with your choice of entree, family-sized soup or salad, choice of two sides, a dozen freshly baked rolls, and four chocolate chunk cookies.

Go with the Grilled Chicken family meal for the best savings.

Other meal deals, like the Country Fried Steak and Hand-Breaded Fried Chicken, can save you anywhere from 35% to 51%.

11. Enjoy Denny’s Restaurant Family Packs and save up to 38%.

Denny’s Family Packs are for breakfast, lunch, or dinner and serve four to five people. Pickup and delivery ($5 minimum order) options are available for orders placed through Denny’s app or website. Hands down the best deal is the Grand Slam Pack for $28.99.

They offer other meal deals like the Grand Slam Pack and Premium Chicken Strips Pack, but they aren’t close to those savings.

13. Get a Pollo Tropical Family Meal and save $11.45.

Although Pollo Tropical only has locations in Florida, there are 150 of them across the state. You can select from several Family Meal Deals for around $20. Order your meal for takeout, delivery, and dine in. For the biggest savings, go with the Family Meal Duo.

Their three Chicken Family Meals offer a bunch of food, but the savings is only a few dollars less than buying items individually.