Childfree Friendly Dining
My favorite restaurants have certain things in common: they are relatively quiet, locally-owned, known by word of mouth, serve excellent food, and provide excellent service. And they are not “child-friendly.” Nor, in all fairness, are they child-unfriendly, but they do not cater to children and their underage patrons are well-mannered.
I intentionally choose non-child-friendly restaurants. I experience plenty of stress at work, and my community involvement, while enjoyable, can be hectic; so, when I dine, I like to do so in a relaxing environment, free of distractions. When parents raise their children to understand that eating out requires a certain decorum, all restaurant patrons benefit from a pleasurable dining experience; but when parents don’t teach their children to distinguish between a restaurant table and the kitchen table, a less pleasurable experience often ensues. Noise is a big part of that experience. I prefer a low decibel level, so I also like to avoid bars and “trendy” restaurants which, although generally not patronized by children, do tend to be loud.
Some child-friendly restaurants are easy to identify. Any dining establishment with playground equipment is a sure bet. (It’s also probably fast food, which I haven’t eaten since reading Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser in 2004.) Other restaurants have reputations for being child- or family-oriented. I also take my clues from advertisements—some broadcast their atmosphere, others provide pictures, and still others offer coupons.
Flipping through the monthly coupon magazine that is delivered to my house, I notice that one restaurant boasts the motto: “Where Family is First.” I’m guessing “family” doesn’t mean the childfree couple and their golden retriever. I’ll skip that one. Another announces that it has a “KIDS MENU.” But it has a picture of a man (probably the owner) with two dogs, so I’ll let that one slide and put it in the “maybe” column. Yet another restaurant offers a coupon for a free kid’s meal. Letting kids tag along for free makes this restaurant a definite “no.”
Kid’s night is a night to avoid. A well-known café has a “kids eat free” promotion once a week. I’ll avoid that one on Wednesday night. I look for banners outside restaurants and check websites for kid’s nights and other promotions likely to attract a noisy crowd of any age. (I don’t do “Karaoke Night,” either.)
I read restaurant reviews with an eye toward not only the cuisine but also the atmosphere. A review of a recently-opened restaurant near my home touted the kid’s menu before discussing the adult fare. I wasn’t enticed. When a friend recommends a restaurant, I ask about the dining environment—whether it is quiet, whether the staff is attentive, whether the young patrons are well-behaved. Parents with young children do patronize my favorite restaurants, but there is a certain standard of behavior that is expected and maintained.
Of course, my own eating habits and lifestyle also play into my dining experiences. Most of my friends are working professionals, so we either gather immediately after work for happy hour or we meet later in the evening after we’ve had a chance to go home and change. Happy hours tend to rank on the higher end of the decibel meter, and most of the time, if there are particularly noisy patrons of any age at the bar or restaurant, they blend right into the scene. For “family-friendly” restaurants, a later dinner is usually a quieter dinner. I was astonished when I attended a friend’s birthday party at a popular barbeque joint and, by mid-evening, I didn’t hear much beyond our group’s conversation. (My friend assures me, a pesco-vegetarian, that it’s because all the restaurant patrons had their mouths full of pulled pork or ribs.)
It is quite possible as a childfree individual to enjoy a relaxing dinner, with or without children at the nearby tables. Some advance research may be needed, but it pays off, whatever your dining preference—upscale and trendy, intimate and classic, or any of the variety of atmospheres that serve the variety of diners. And although smaller towns may have more limited options than the large cities, choices abound, giving the consumer the opportunity to vote with her pocketbook.
Copyright Julie Nisley. Published 1 June 2009 in The Zone.
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I worked in restaurants for many years and could not believe what parents let their children do while at a table…crush and break the crayons and throw them around,empty the sugar packets onto the floor, run around the restaurant like it was a playground, and then the mother would request things like sliced bananas for their little angel, which was not on the menu.
It’s like they got off a day of horrible work stress and then brought their kids in just to let them go wild and have someone else deal with it. And these were very straight, upper middle class people. It was unbelievable
(and disgusting).
permalink — 27 June 2009, 22:39