Banning Kids From Restaurants: A Slippery Slope
A few months ago, there were several national restaurant chains that found themselves in the media spot light for reasons they would have preferred to avoid: serving alcohol to kids by accident. Last year a North Carolina restaurant posted a sign that read “screaming children will not be tolerated.” Just this week a Pennsylvania restaurant announced his ban for any children under the age of 6.
When the alcohol incidents occured, I refrained from comment – I used to work in restaurants and understand how it can happen. Although they were terrible accidents, they served as long-overdue wake up calls for some places to change their operational procedures. Then when the North Carolina restaurant posted their sign, I quietly provided my opinion on the matter. However, with the latest publicity from poor handling of situations with customers with kids, it’s time I weighed in.
As a kid-friendly restaurant consultant, I work with restaurants to help them realize the value of the family consumer, what it means to the bottom line and how easy it really is to serve this customer and make their employees and other customers all happy at the same time. I’m not trying to sell anything, it’s just the way it is and I know so from many years of research and conversation with parents who take kids out to eat as well as the restaurants that serve them. So as The Restaurant Mom, industry consultant, a voice for the consumer, and mom of 2, I see both sides of the idea of banning kids from restaurants.
On MyKidsPlate we fully recognize that there are kid-friendly restaurants, there are restaurants better for what we call grown ups night out, and there are restaurants that are a hybrid of both. Patronage of restaurants is determined by consumers on many things including the food, the atmosphere, and the location. Some restaurants are located in areas that have higher demographics of seniors, for example. Some restaurants are pretty clearly, by their branding and atmosphere, not geared for dining with young kids and that’s ok too. Different strokes for different folks, right?
To some extent I agree with the Pennsylvania restaurant owner that some parents have become ‘too selfish’ and think this is their world and the rest of us are living in it. I’ve seen those parents myself who let their kids run all over the place, scream and holler, and the like. However, I am getting really tired of hearing people from the non-kid population put all parents with kids into this proverbable bucket that all kids act in such a way. The reality is that it’s not all parents with kids that go out to eat and in fact, it’s less than you would think. But because the ones that are so loud or out of control are so noticeable, it seems bigger than it really is.
Restaurants have a dual role when it comes to serving the public: it’s providing good food but in an environment that the people eating it want to be served in. Consumers today are more individualistic than they’ve ever been, putting themselves into their own social groups. This can be seen clearly through social media especially on Facebook and tools like Meetup. The point is that restaurants have been slow to change their marketing strategies to be geared more specifically to the consumers they want in their restaurants. These different consumer groups have different hot buttons about where they want to eat, what they want to eat, and how they want to enjoy it.
In many cases of kids being loud or running around, it’s because they’re bored. If some of these restaurant experiences weren’t so boring, you wouldn’t see as many kids distracting the other guests through their noise or behavior. You hear it all the time, we are in a media overloaded world. Is there really any doubt as to why going out to eat at a boring restaurant can be boring for today’s kid? If restaurants don’t want kids running around and ‘being loud’ than turn up the volume, literally and figuratively. Restaurants that want families as customers (they do spend more than diners without kids) should be doing certain easy things to enhance the experience for the kids which ultimately makes it better for everyone else. Activity sheets are a good place to start but if they are lame, it’s pointless. Sports bar themed restaurant are popular because they are noisy. But if a restaurant doesn’t want families with kids, then it’s the restaurant’s responsibility to create that environment within the restaurant. A ban based on age for an entire population is inappropriate and over the top. Ultimately it is a punishment for those parents who do their job in teaching their kids how to behave and act appropriately.
Last year I was contacted by a mom who said she was banned from a Chicago area restaurant because her kid was crying. When I contacted the restaurant to get more information, I ultimately heard the “two sides” of the story. In this case, the restaurant manager asked the mom to step outside with the crying child because she was getting complaints from other people in the restaurant. That is how it should be handled and done so with dignity and respect. Each restaurant should have a policy for how they will handle those situations and be consistent with it, not discriminatory. Banning people, based on age or for any other reason is a slippery slope we should not go back down. Seniors can’t be banned based on their age. Do we really need to go there with kids? Personally, I think there is a better approach. 
The Pick of the Week: BJ’s Restaurant & Brewhouse
Rather than reading text this week, I wanted to get creative and try something that hopefully would save me some time. It didn’t quite save me time but it was fun. My pick of the week for this week is
The Pick of the Week: Tijuana Taxi Co.
The Tijuana Taxi Company is a fun tex-mex place. The colors are bright and the servers are sweet. Tijuana Taxi Company’s dining room is filled with treasures that will keep the kids entertained while you eat. There’s a real VW beetle hanging in the dining room along with dancing Mariachi’s and life size hot sauce bottles! On Sundays, Bobby the Balloon Guy entertains with AMAZING balloon figures and DJ Rockin’ Rich keeps it jumpin on the patio with music for their weekly car show. They’ve got food for everyone: authentic Mexican cuisine to good ole’ fashioned cheeseburgers and fries. Stop by anytime for great food and family friendly fun!
Tijuana Taxi Company, Davie, FL Tijuana Taxi Company, Coral Springs, FL
Follow the link above for the location nearest you and to download a coupon for $.99 Kids Meals and $5 Off any $25 Order.
The Pick of the Week: CRAVE
What a pleasant surprise CRAVE turned out to be. I have been to this restaurant a few times and it certainly has appeal as both a kid-friendly restaurant and one for grown ups night out, depending on when you go – of course. From the outside and from their website it almost seems to chic to go there with kids but the variety on both menus (adults and kids) may serve to change your mind. The appetizer menu includes a range of items with a twist like tempura chicken nuggets, kogi beef tacos, and seafood flatbread. Then their entrees include everything from a surf & turf, to grilled ahi tuna and a chicken stir-fry. Let’s not forget the pasta. We shared the Lobster Macaroni and the Baked Cheese Penne both of which exploded a fireworks display of flavor before melting off into the sunset of my belly. Next time I go back I’m having flatbread and sushi.
Kids at CRAVE. Sunday nights are kids eat free, one per paying adult and CRAVE offers a wider variety of kids menu items than most casual dining restaurants I’ve seen. Sure, they have the traditional favorites of chicken tenders, pizza, and mac-n-cheese but have you ever seen a Sushi Cone (cooked snow crab, sushi rice, and sweet soy reduction in a crepe cone), Shrimp Guppies (cooked shrimp, sushi rice, and sweet soy reduction) or Smelt Roe Sailboats (smelt roe served in a cucumber sailboat)?
If you haven’t been to a CRAVE yet, give it a try. I hope you will be as pleasantly surprised as I was. Check out their listings on MyKidsPlate.com to see their kid-friendly listings, a video and directions. If you’ve been to any of these locations, you can also rate them on these pages.
MIMI’S CAFE® RECOGNIZED BY PARENTS MAGAZINE FOR HEALTHY, FAMILY-FRIENDLY MEALS
Mimi’s Cafe has been recognized by America’s #1 family magazine as a Top 10 family-friendly dining destination. The findings from Parents magazine’s Best Restaurant Chains survey appear in the April 2011 issue, now available on newsstands. The survey was designed to show where families can get the most nutritious foods for the best price while having the least stressful experience. This is a repeat showing for Mimi’s Cafe, which first made Parents’ list of Best Family Restaurants in 2008.
“The 10 chains on the list get straight A’s for offering families healthy and tasty food with a side of fun,” Parents reports. To compile the list, Parents analyzed the calories, fat, saturated fat, and sodium on the kids’ and adult menus of more than 150 national restaurant chains. Editors also evaluated the quality of the ingredients and conveniences like call-ahead seating, online ordering, crayons to keep the kids busy, and the availability of high chairs and booster seats.
“We are honored to be named one of Parents magazine’s Top 10 Restaurants for Families for the second time,” said Mimi Somerman, Mimi’s Cafe Senior Vice President of Marketing. “We pride ourselves on offering a variety of nutritious and delicious options that both kids and parents love in a warm, welcoming ambience.”
Parents singled out Mimi’s for having one of the most extensive menus in the survey with more than a dozen entrée choices and seven side dishes. Mimi’s all-inclusive kids’ meals range from the new Grilled Chicken and Veggies (176 calories) to all-day breakfast items like whimsical Mimi Mouse pancakes. Kids 12 and under get crayons and their own printed menus with fun activities such as mazes, crossword puzzles, jokes and word searches. Younger guests in high chairs enjoy Mimi’s signature touch: a complimentary bib and a toddler plate filled with cereal, crackers and an orange slice.
The 2011 ranking by Parents magazine adds to a growing list of accolades Mimi’s has relished through the years. In 2010, Mimi’s Cafe was top vote-getter in the Best Restaurant Chain category in The Orange County Register’s Best of Orange County, and a Platinum Plate Award recipient for Kid-Friendly Restaurants by MyKidsPlate.com. Mimi’s also has won Best Family Dining award from the California Restaurant Association, the Kids Choice Award for Best Appetizer from Southwest Florida Parent & Child Magazine and Best Family Dinner by the Daily Press, among others.
Mimi’s offers convenient meal solutions for busy families such as online ordering, curbside to-go, seasonal family meals and call-ahead seating. The Mimi’s Cafe eClub features exciting offers such as free kids’ meals and Buy One Breakfast Entrée, Get the Second Free coupons.
Mimi’s Cafe serves breakfast, lunch and dinner seven days a week in cities coast to coast. For locations, hours, and menu and nutrition information, please visit MimisCafe.com. You can also find Mimi’s on Facebook at Facebook.com/MimisCafe and at Twitter.com/mimis_cafe.
ABOUT MIMI’S CAFE
Mimi’s Cafe is a collection of upscale casual dining restaurants with 145 locations in 24 states as of the end of the first fiscal quarter (July 30, 2010). Mimi’s Cafe is a unit wholly owned by Bob Evans Farms, Inc., a publicly traded company (NASDAQ ticker symbol BOBE), known and loved for its bountiful breakfast, lunch and dinner menus with high-quality cuisine, unparalleled service and tastefully appointed décor.
The Winner of the Wichita Kid-Friendly Restaurant Search
Throughout the month of February, 2011, we held a contest with Wichitacoupons.net searching for kid-friendly restaurants. Each nomination was an entry into a special drawing for a $50 gift card. Nominated restaurants included the following:
CiCi’s Pizza (4 nominations)
Jose Peppers (2 nominations)
Tallianos
Applebees (2 nominations)
On the Border
Cheddars
Sosa Cafe
Freddie’s Frozen Custard
Shorty Smalls (2 nominations)
Golden Corral
Genghis Grill
Red Robin (2 nominations)
Chuck E Cheese
Abuelo’s
Here is the video of the drawing of the winner…
Chili’s Finally Did It! A Kids Eat Free Offer!
So Chili’s has always been one of my favorite to take my kids – it’s usally pretty quick, the food is decent for what you pay, there are a lot of selections for the kids on the kid’s menu (albeit not exactly healthy which is why my kids split a meal) and it’s relatively noisy so my kids can blend in. But one thing I have been waiting for them to do is a Kids Eat Free offer. And they finally did! I got it in my email yesterday and was so excited I’ve been telling everyone about. Right now it’s only in Freeburary as they are calling it, but I’ll take what I can get and if it works like its supposed to, maybe they’ll do it longer!
The oldest Burger King in the land
Last Saturday I found it. Not on purpose but totally accidental. We did a little road trip to Lakeland, FL on Saturday to check out the children’s museum there and although we were almost there, the kids claimed they were STARVING! You know that sound, “mom, are we there yet? I’m starving.” It’s known as the ‘are we there yet-two parter.’ The ‘three-parter’ in case you didn’t know is “mom, are we there yet? I’m starving and I have to pee.” As soon as we pulled into the Lakeland Burger King parking lot, I got the three-parter.
We hustle inside to find what turns out to be a highway gas-stationesque bathroom; it looked and smelled old. I think that was the quickest that my lally gally daughter ever used a public restroom. We finished our business and headed to the dining room to order a bite. I have not actually sat down in a Burger King dining room since I was in high school but you could tell my looking at this place that it would certainly be nominated for, if not win, the award for ‘Oldest Burger King in the Land.’ I’m sure it has not seen a renovation since it opened, I’m guessing late 70′s or early 80′s.
I’ll quickly jump to my point for telling this story… despite it’s age, it was the hottest food I have ever been served in any Burger King or fast food for that matter, since I was in high school. Those closest to me will probably appreciate that statement the most and for those of you that don’t, I am sure you will appreciate it anyway. I’m sure you’ve all been served food that was supposed to be hot and wasn’t or food that was supposed to be cold and wasn’t. Restaurants, many of them, do not serve their food hot except to little kids – the ones who don’t want it hot! I was so darn excited that I got hot food that I wanted to run out onto the busy road with a sign to tell all the passerbys that they should eat at that Burger King because the food was HOT!!! And, to top it off, it was some of the best fountain soda too. You know how restaurants’ fountains have lost their fize? Not this one – it was just the way it used to be – in the old days.
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