To complain about no highchair rule

[Lofu]

At a garden centre today we went to the cafe for lunch. I have been before pre covid and know the little corner where they keep the highchairs, so went and got one.
Half way through our meals a server came over and told me off for using a high chair. Apparently they are not allowed to use them because of covid.
This is the first place I've heard of such a thing. Would I be unreasonable to email a complaint? I can't decide whether the cafe are well within their right to make whatever rule they like, or whether it is discrimination of children.

Hmmm.

I don’t think it’s discrimination BUT I’d be pretty pissed off to get somewhere, and have ordered food, to then find out they have no a high chairs rule. It’s definitely something I’d expect to be advertised upon entry tbh because I simply wouldn’t eat somewhere that couldn’t provide one when I had my son with me. He’s wriggly and it would be a shit show trying to eat, and feed him him on my lap.

Yabu. They obviously haven't factored in cleaning and sterilising every high chair after use!

I know it doesn't help for now but we always take our own clip on highchair or tie to chair highchair. Public highchairs are generally pretty grim anyway as they are never properly cleaned.

Nobody said anything to me as I went and got the high chair (which is normal practice there) and the server who brought our meals didn't say anything. A person came over toward the end of our meals and said 'just so you know we're not allowing people to use high chairs because of covid. '. I just said 'sorry, I didn't know, we're almost done'. Completely non confrontational I've got no issues with anyone's tone or manner.

I should mention that this garden centre is attached to a petting farm and play park very aimed at small children, it's always catered to small children.

I got a bit more annoyed when we left via the new designated exit which was onto a patio and down loads of steps without a ramp.

It just seems so arbitrary!

Discrimination of children, oh dear. I agree with a PP that they should have removed them if they are not to be used, but seen as though they are really tricky to properly clean, especially between each use and food tends to get everywhere, they're not being unreasonable.

Most places are asking you not to move furniture at the moment due to social distancing. They probably didn't expect anyone to just go and grab a high chair. Adding an extra chair to the table will reduce distancing. Obviously.

do as we use to do - put dc in pushchair & feed
OR
invest in those folding seats you fasten to ordinary chair
like
www.chasingthedonkey.com/travel-reviews/best-portable-high-chair-reviews/#:~:text=A%20portable%20high%20chair%20is%20a%20portable%20seat,especially%20if%20your%20child%20is%20a%20fussy%20eater.

It's not discrimination against children but it's still stupid. If they can clean tables and normal chairs between customers, they can clean high chairs.

It’s the rules. It’s tough really!!

I wouldn’t complain, but I wouldn’t eat anywhere where I couldn’t strap the nearly two year old into a highchair. No way on this planet could we keep her still otherwise.

Adding an extra chair makes distancing more difficult which is why when I went to Costa with DS last week they asked me if I needed a high chair, I said yes, they took a chair away and replaced it with the highchair, they wiped out down before and after use but I would've been happy to do so and actually had after we used it . If it has a petting farm attached it seems a bit silly to remove highchairs and stairless exit

How odd.

Don't bother complaining, OP. Vote with your feet. Just don't go back.

They will lose a lot of custom.

Can I recommend this in future? www.babymoov.co.uk/home/453-sunday-pop-travel-booster-seat-3661276165724.html?gclid=CjwKCAjwrKr8BRB_EiwA7eFapjthlmWjbfiTd1bKQ_uWX9jS3hstK5RwpGroJmoDDqyFLG0tciXexhoCd0oQAvD_BwE

It's really easy to use and so handy for situations like this!

Wouldn’t go there again, myself.

Maybe this will mean less kids eating out, which I’m all for! 👍🏻

Did they have a sign up? If not they should put one up. But more to let people know that they aren't cleaning down those chairs than because they are BU.... it just gives them extra work if they have to thoroughly clean down high chairs after every single baby customer rather than the usual quick wipe over, and they probably don't want anyone saying they are endangering babies, when it's so easy to put baby on the mum or dads knee.

I just wouldn’t go there again OP. If they don’t want highchairs to be used to they need to remove them from their restaurant or make a sign clearly stating this rather than wait until the end of the meal to tell you off.
I hope you managed to have a nice day out with your little one anyway!

I’d be asking why If they weren’t to be used were they in the usual place?
Surely if they’re out of action someone should have put them away somewhere
How were you to know?

Thanks to everyone giving links to the travel high chairs. I've never seen the need as I'm happy to clean a high chair before putting DS in it, but will certainly get one now!

I suspect it's because of a combination of reasons

• high chairs take up an extra space which may impact on spacing or social distancing rules
• they're very hard to clean - and it's not comparable to chairs. Adults don't tend to pee/poo in nappies, smush their food all over the place and potentially lick the tray.
• it's easier to just have a blanket rule of "no highchairs" than to start making exceptions.

I wouldn't say discrimination exactly, but I certainly wouldn't go there again. I doubt many people with children in high chairs would bother when there are plenty of alternatives. In these hard times, where every customer counts, a family-orientated cafe might regret that. Not sure I could be bothered to complain though.

Surely a high chair could be cleaned in the same way they clean all the other tables and chairs? You don't sterilise them entirely, so why would you have to sterilise a high chair?

Also, I usually remove one of the chairs and put the high chair in its place. It doesn't have to take up more space or make distancing between tables difficult.

dare I admit that I bought a folding plastic one with tray from charity shop - the straps looked new but I bleached them, than when dry I washed them than baked them in sunlight
so recycled & it means safe fairly light weight portable chair that you attach to seat

You sound like a professional complainer

Your OP starts by saying half way through your meal you were told off.

Then in a later post you say you were coming to the end of your meal and the server told you “just to let you know” (presumably helpfully, for future visits) and that you have no problem with their tone or manner.

That’s quite different from your OP.

The situation of not being able to use a high chair? Really annoying, and may or may not be understandable due to Covid.

But you talking about discrimination just makes you sound silly, and you changing your story makes your OP seem like to just like to complain.

Nobody “told you off”, did they?

I wonder how they deal with wheelchairs (as you would have to move chairs?)

I’ve been out quite a bit and everywhere has had a highchair available. In our local garden centre, there are velour chairs. I’d much rather have a toddler in a hair chair that can be wiped down than a standard chair which could end up quite grubby.

How ridiculous. Are we all going to be sitting on the floor soon because chairs can’t be cleaned?! A high chair is no different to any other chair. If they didn’t want them used then they shouldn’t have them out.