Platinum Plate Awards 2010

THE 2010 PLATINUM PLATE AWARD WINNERS HAVE BEEN ANNOUNCED. Read about it here. http://www.mykidsplate.com/blog/?p=382

Nominate your favorite restaurant to receive one of the following awards. Restaurants can be nominated for more than one category but a separate nomination must be placed – one nomination per form. Restaurants can nominate themselves. Deadline is March 31, 2010.

Best Kid-Friendly Restaurant-Chain

The BEST Kid-Friendly Restaurant-Chain is a National chain restaurant (probably an individual location of a chain) that possesses attributes which make it most amenable to dining families covering all attributes from service, to menu, to amenities.

Best Kid-Friendly Restaurant-Small/Regional Chain

The BEST Kid-Friendly Restaurant-Small/Regional Chain is a restaurant  part of a Regional chain with more than 5 but less than 50 locations) that possesses attributes which make it most amenable to dining families covering all attributes from service, to menu, to amenities.

Best Kid-Friendly Restaurant – Independent

The BEST Kid-Friendly Restaurant-Independent is a restaurant with 5 or less locations that possesses attributes which make it most amenable to dining families covering all attributes from service, to menu, to amenities.

Best Kids’ Activities

‘Activities for My Kids’ is the# 1 hot button with parents that take kids out to eat. Activities at a restaurant mean a wide range of things – play areas, video rooms, make your own pizzas, and great activities on the kids’ menu are just a few. Restaurants have a lot of leeway as long as the activity keeps the child engaged long enough for the parent to enjoy part of the meal.

Best Kids’ Menu

A great kids’ menu is defined by value, options, and portion sizes. Providing a great value – does the price equate to the portion size and does it include a drink and/or dessert? Options – great kids’ menus include more items than the typical traditional favorites of chicken nuggets, grilled cheese, and macaroni and cheese.  Portion Sizes – are there different portion sizes for younger kids versus older kids?

Healthiest Kids’ Menu

Families will continue to eat out because of our busy lives. We might even eat out more if restaurants offered healthier selections for our kids. A healthy kids’ menu will go beyond just adding a fruit and a vegetable as a side option. A healthy kids’ menu also offers entrees that are healthy for kids in the areas of fat, calories, sodium, and sugar and are items that kids will eat and actually taste good!

Most Kid-Friendly Amenities

                Kid-Friendly amenities include, but are not limited to:

• Highchairs that are clean and have straps that aren’t broken
• Baby seat hammocks
• Diaper changing tables in both restrooms
• Hygiene cloths in the diaper changing tables
• Booster seats
• Kids cups with lids and bendy straws
• Plastic sticky placemats
• Kids step stool in the restrooms

 

Cleanest Kid-Friendly Restaurant

A clean, kid-friendly restaurant can mean:

• Tables and seats, including highchairs, are clean and dry when families are seated
• Clean restrooms
• Tables are cleared of empty plates and glasses as they are finished with
• Floors are clear of debris so little ones don’t find things to trip over or play with

 

Best Kid-Friendly Community Partner

The winner of this award will be a restaurant that gives back most to the community in which it is located. Examples of giving back are donations to schools, fundraising nights at the restaurant, and participating in various community events.

Best Kid-Friendly Service

A restaurant that provides top-notch kid-friendly service includes servers that use common sense in regards to hot plates and full glasses, servers that speak to kids and treat them as guests and human beings, kids’ food is offered to be brought out first, wait times for seating and for food are reasonable, check presentation is quick and timely, staff treats my kids special, and overall service provided by the entire restaurant team including the hostesses, servers, cooks, and management team is the reason a family wants to come back.

Best Family Value

A restaurant that provides a great value for families offers a menu that has reasonable menu prices relative to the portion sizes on both the ‘main’ menu and the kids’ menu. A family’s experience in regards to value is also affected by the overall experience and whether or not the service and prices together provided a good value and worth coming back.

Best Restaurant for Grown Ups Night Out

Every once in a while grown ups with kids like to enjoy a meal at a restaurant without the kids. A great Grown Ups Night Out restaurant has a great menu, great atmosphere, and service that rejuvenates us and gives us a brief break from parenthood.

 Click here to download the nomination form.

Submit your nomination to nominations@mykidsplate.com or fax to 407-386-3171. Deadline for all nominations is January 31, 2010.