Eating out with the kids?
On these pages, we have tried to provide a list of available restaurants in the area -- not necessarily kid-friendly restaurants, but restaurants for you, for the kids, and/or for your family together. We want to make it easier for you to research your choices, get out of the house, and have a new experience together.
Our tips for dining out with the children?
-- GO EARLY. Never attempt to eat out with young children after they`re already hungry. Go before they usually eat, that way if there`s a wait or slow service, you are not instantly frustrated.
-- Bring something for the kids to do while they wait, or think up family word games to play. Likely you will not have that coveted conversation with your friend or significant other, so understand before you go that your job will still be to manage the kids amusement while you are out.
-- Make a "restaurant bag" of toys or play items, crayons, etc. that the kids can only have at restaurants, that way the toys are a special treat rather than something they are already bored with.
-- Play “mind games” with the kids – make up silly words with definitions, a story that goes around the table (someone starts with a sentence, the next person adds the next sentence and so on), play whisper down the lane, you make it up and you’ll be surprised at what great fun the kids are to sit with.
-- Tic Tac Toe, Connect the dots, and hangman are also great games to play while waiting and talking at the same time. The kids have to concentrate but you can still hold a conversation with the other adults.
-- If you run into a menu that is more “adult” make a deal with the kids to try ONE new thing along with their plain pasta. You’re out and about, might as well try something other than what they eat at home every night!
-- Order their entrée with your appetizer, order their dessert with your entrée. As long as they sit and enjoy their dinner while you enjoy yours, does it really matter what course everyone’s on?
-- If you want a more adult experience, go very early when they’re just opening, and/or pick restaurants that aren’t necessarily kid-friendly, but maybe louder, so no one hears the “exuberance” of your kids. Teach your kids to order for themselves or at least smile at the wait-staff – there’s nothing more satisfying that a kind waiter/waitress playing with the kids!
Remember to have fun…