To want a coffee shop with a no children policy

[Amiterriblex3]

In a coffee shop and have to listen to a bunch of 2 year old screaming, absolutely screaming at the top of his lungs. Their mothers might be immune to such noise but I am not. I would be embarrassed if my child screamed like that

Child free person here! An old one too … I don’t know if I’m imagining it but I definitely hear more screaming children than I used to. I have a sensitive hearing condition so I notice! I also notice so many people - adults and kids alike - seem to talk very loud in public places. Having said that, I like a mix of people (and dogs) in a cafe. As I’m usually alone it’s nice! And the odd scream and squeal so what it’s life and humans! I don’t know of course but I don’t think every single screaming child has special needs, and I don’t get why those are just left to it and stuff everyone else.

YANBU. Some parents just don't parent their DC. I went for a breakfast with a friend, to a new cafe. There was a table full of mums. There were only 2 small kids, but they were ignored by the mothers while they chatted. They ran around the cafe, they jumped on chairs and tables. They touched and banged all the cutlery and condiments. They banged metal cars along the front of the metal counter.

The mothers didn't stop them, the staff didn't stop them. We mentioned it to the manager when we left and said that we wouldn't be back. Other people did the same and several people sat down, then left without ordering when they realised what was going on.

My DD always sat with me at the table, and was given stuff to entertain her. No way would she be running around disturbing staff and other people. She always had headphones if on a screen after a meal as I would not inflict noise on other people.

A London chain I think. There isn’t one where I live. I’ve been to the one in Paddington, it was OK.

Not sure in what universe you think its ok to ban children from a normal commercial space. Chill out.

Ok, but if we go down that road, where does it stop? We’d have to ban people who are naturally loud or chatty, dogs (even assistance dogs), people with disabilities who might not realise they’re being noisy, teenagers who swear, groups of mates having fun… the list could go on forever. If it feels overwhelming, sometimes the best option is just to invite a friend over for a coffee at home instead — that’s what I do when I’m not up to facing the public.

YABU.
Young children and babies are noisy, even good ones 😁
What about the parents or grandparents who want to enjoy a coffee in a coffee shop?

Don't worry, we're heading for a world with a no children policy.

No one has ever gone to Gail’s wanting a coffee in silence!

They’re unashamedly high volume, minimum comfort.

You do know there are hotels that are adult only? Are hotels not a “normal commercial space”?

Thank you so much for this post

Noise cancelling headphones.
I have misophonia and hate any repetitive sounds - eating and breathing I can hear included, sniffing is the worst. Toddlers screaming are the least of my worries in a coffee shop.

Perhaps if people parented better the subject wouldn't come up in the first place.

I don't mean in the case of SEN etc where I acknowledge things are often more complicated. I'm talking about parents who are perfectly capable of conveying to their children that screaming and running around in an environment like a cafe is not allowed, and fail to do so because they'd rather sit talking and/or on their phones.

There’s a lovely pub near us that’s proudly ‘dog friendly, child free’. Not surprisingly, it’s very popular.

Yeah, they’ve only been around since the 1650s. Positive newcomers to the high street!

I went for a day out to a new local outlet centre, and left after 90 minutes because I couldn't bear the noise of screaming children everywhere. I would have given mine a warning at that age then removed them if it carried on... but then I didn't inflict adult activities onto them and expect them to enjoy it. Gentle parenting my arse, it's pure laziness where parents are too absorbed in their phones.

Ban phones, that's the answer.

YANBU.
My child is an adult and I can't bare snotty nosed toddlers running around in coffee shops.
I just want to drink my tea in peace.

Why would a coffee shop ban a large percentage of their clientele, crazy...

Id rather hear a child having a tantrum ( obviously only if the parent is trying to stop it) than some inconsiderate idiot who watches videos or listens to music from their phone without headphones or even worse having a conversation on loudspeaker!

This is our local and favourite cafe, it has a small book section and has regular book signings and authors visiting. It’s absolutely child friendly especially after school as it serves a very popular locally made ice creams. A lot of the authors are children’s authors so it would be quite hypocritical to ban children from the cafe. I don’t think I’ve ever seen children running around, yes they might get excited about picking their ice cream and I’ve overheard a few get excited their favourite book was free to read ( there is a box of help yourself kids books) or a very dramatic debrief of the school day by a child, but as a whole the children are just as well behaved as anyone else.

I think it’s all well and good wanting child free spaces but unless there is a massive call for it in the area it’s not going to work, many cafes rely on parent groups or parents with young kids coming in throughout the day. Especially atm when small businesses especially ones that sell luxuries like coffee and cake are going out of business left right and centre.

Because they'd be tapping into a different and very much under-served demographic.

Not likely. If this morning in a local shopping centre was anything to go by, this part of the world have been procreating and were all in M&S.

Now, dog friendly places I avoid, unless sectioned off. I like seeing children about the place and mums, because it’s usually mums, getting out and about.

Are libraries all that quiet these days?

I personally find that a bit weird as well but its also pretty different given that you travel to a hotel and they are generally in areas with lots of family hotels as well so people can self select. I don't understand (a) being so anti children that you can't live with a little bit of noise when you're drinking your coffee - for the 20 years before i had kids i still enjoyed seeing even noisy ones around as long as they weren't drastically misbehaving and then i just felt sorry for them, (b) being the sort of person who want to exclude all the mothers who are desperate for a coffee as they have small kids from accessing one of the few public indoor spaces we still have left.

I’d love a cafe set up in the style of a library. Also maybe it would just naturally cause people to be quieter. For the record, I don’t mind babies or dogs and yes it’s not nice when they’re noisy but everyone is entitled to a ‘third space’. 🙂📚