Are restaurant customers with children less appreciated than those without?

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I mad a very horrible experience today at a Brighton Pier restaurant today. I heard so many good things about their food and my friend's daughter loves fish and chips. The restaurant was huge but had only a few tables occupied. We wanted to sit at the window to enjoy the view and the waitress placed us at a table four four with our three children. No problem as my friend's DC sit next to her on the bench and I had the highchair next to me chair. We therefore didn't use more space than somebody with four persons.

Right away we noticed the couple next to us on a table for four complaining about the children. We take our children regularly for lunch to restaurants, they are quiet and well-behaved.

We just sat down, got the children undressed and were ready to order food when a waiter came over and asked the people next to us if they would like to go to another table but their simply replied 'No we were here first.'

The waiter went away, spoke to a colleague and we were asked to leave.

I couldn't believe it. It's a children's friendly restaurant, there were a few families with small children. I was so angry and just said of course, it is your loss not ours.

What would you have done? Shall I send an email to the manager?

I would name and shame if I were you! How utterly appalling!

My parents were once asked to leave a restaurant for talking. The couple at the next time said that my parents and friend talking was ruining their meal, so I can completely believe you OP.

I'm sorry but as a former waitress this doesn't make any sense at all. Why would they ask you to leave for no reason at all? What reason did they give?

Yeah ... I can't get my head around it either.

I've asked this a few times now NewStartInSpring!

name, shame and complain!

We were asked to leave because we were 5 people and they only had tables available for a maximum of four.

That's ridiculous you should email the local paper ad well ad the manager, trip advisor, all your mum friends, their Facebook page etc etc etc

very odd, have been in the fish and chip restaurant on Brighton pier a few times with children, made most welcome. Haven't been very recently mind you, maybe they've had a change in attitude?

I cant understand how they could not put two tables together.

It is a joke that their describe themselves as a family style restaurant on their FB page.

You should post on their fb page, questioning their 'family style' claim.

I can't believe the people at the next table complained, either. Why are people so unforgiving of children?

I thought there was a recession on. Obviously not in Brighton. I agree name and shame and then tripadvisor.

I had visions of the children being stripped down to their nappies.

The Palm court is the fish and chip restraunt on the pier and is over priced and nothing special. Much better fish and chips to be had in most of the little places under the arches.
Not nice but at the end of day they saved you wasting your money on them.

Thanks for clarifying!

Wasn't one of your children in a highchair though? In that case I don't see how they could legitimately say you were too large a party for a table of 4 (as in 4 sitting at the table + little one in the high chair next to it).

The waitress seemed happy to seat you in the first place so their excuse seems pretty lame, especially if there were other tables free they could push together (as you said in the OP that there were only a few tables occupied).

I can't see why they didn't do this / offer to move you to a table where this could happen.

If they didn't even try to accommodate you then I'd contact the manager.

Actually I'm still confused.

If they squeezed you into a table for 4 by the window, why didn't they just squeeze you into a table for 4 elsewhere in the restaurant? If the problem was the other couple complaining.

Very odd.

Not all the reviews on Trip advisor are good.

Let's be honest, if you're after a 'child free' meal somewhere, you don't pick a place that advertises itself as family friendly anyway!

Hope you enjoyed the alternative place Blogging.

Have you commented on their FB page?

Well, if it's the restaurant mentioned further up the page then their Trip Advisor reviews aren't all that anyway!

We were asked to leave because we were 5 people and they only had tables available for a maximum of four.

But surely you would have got turned away at the door, or told to wait until a larger table was free?

Surely they wouldn't have sat you down and then changed their minds.

I would be getting on to the local rag! That is shocking! Definitely post reviews on all the big websites, it's disgusting.

Exactly Yonimitchell . If me and DH are out for a meal together we wouldn't deliberately choose a 'family friendly' place.

However, neither would we ask the wait staff to kick out diners with young children.

Yes to what YoniMitchell said!

I think the point is that OP and party were next to Snotty Couple. Snotty Couple objected to having children seated near them but refused to move because they were there first -- and because there wasn't anywhere to move OP's party of five to they were asked to leave completely.

Or at least that's how I read it.

Yes, we were first placed, waitress who placed us there in the first place took our orders etc.

I'll put the little one to bed now, will be back later.