In Reverance to QueenVic who needs some cheering up!

[Flossam]

I thought last night that it would be nice for us to meet up again soon, a lunch time ish meet with the kids (less organisation required that way!), or if you are lucky enough to be kid free for the day come along anyway! Maybe to see some of the lovely xmas lights around central London. Maybe if JL does have an ad hoc santa to see him too! I went to one of the Giraffe cafe/bars a few weeks ago, which I thought might be a good place to go? Not crowded, not overpowering music, smoke free for the kis, good reasonably priced food and very child friendly. Am open to oher ideas though!

So does anyone have any dates they can/can't do? I really enjoyed our meet up at the weekend and QueenVic is having a bit of a hard time of it at the moment and needs some cheering. Hopefully we will be able to help out and all have a good giggle at the same time.

are you sure Sofras is child friendly? I'll be bringing DD who will only be 8wks old, but she will be in a papoose..

That's lovely and easy for me to get to as my bus from dd's school goes through Aldwych and Holborn. Is it necessary though to have a 'proper meal'? We'd be more likely to share some juice and chips or a sandwich at lunch time? Dd's a terrible eater, I don't want to embarrass you all with her wandering around all the time. Are any other 3-year-old types coming?

Not that we live on chips and sandwiches you understand it's just that when out and about dd eats even less than normal. Plus we're very broke leading up to Christmas to pay for a full meal.

But, look at me, interloper, making demands. Maybe we could just pop in to meet you all and have a coffee and snack when you've finished a main course?

The food is usually proper meals there AFAIR. Don't do sandwiches I don't think. If you have any suggestions of places you think are better, I don't mind. QV, this is 'your' meet up, do you have any ideas?

Actually, their under a tenner deal isn't available for parties of more than five. Party menu is £20. Anyone have any other ideas, else we'll end up in Pizza hut!

Oh, please don't let me be the fly in the ointment. I really am an interloper. You guys decide and if I can fit in, I will.

Can't do it if it's £20 - really too skint for that just before Christmas. But don't know Covent Garden well enough to suggest anywhere! A sandwich/soup or something would do me too!

Munker, mortgage, xmas and a car all within a few months mean we're brassic! What about the cafe place in the opera house? There is loads of space up there and they probably do sarnies etc. I'll look now.

Sounds good!

Well, a kind of 'off-the-wall' suggestion may be to meet instead somewhere like the British Library? On the large open ground floor (which has tons of kids all over the place) you can get sandwiches and coffee or sit and eat your own packed lunch if you prefer. There's also the Royal Festival Hall which is a nice easy going place to meet but maybe too far out the way for some people to get to? Also I've a feeling it was being refurbished ...

As I don't know any of you I don't know where abouts you're travelling from. I don't tend to go to Covent Garden other than for shopping so I'm not up on places there to eat.

Up towards Picadilly there's the Rainforest Cafe which is fantastic for kids and you can buy what you want I think but it's not terribly cheap.

British Museum, not British library. Sorry. Dp spends half his bloody life in the library so it's ingrained on my mind.

Floss, yes, that's the kind of thing I was thinking too. Are there going to be many mobile busy-bodies (3+ kids) coming?

DS is 1 and likes to exert his independance and walk whennever possible, even though he dosen't do it terribly well! There is no real website for it, but I have been there before, it was a huge space, and not too busy, although was late afternoon and it is now xmas.. I can ring and see about high chairs etc? One of the reviews says that it operates as a cafe during lunch with 'cold' foods which I would imagine are sandwiches and salads and maybe in this cold weather soup too!

Dd wouldn't need a high chair. Just a strait jacket

Ummm ... where is the opera house? I've only lived in London all my life ...

How many highchairs would we be wanting anyhow? QV, are you coming with both of yours or are you not sure yet?
Lockets, will both DD's need highchairs? God, how silly, I don't know how old kids are when they don't go in highchairs anymore.
Kliest, will your dd need one ?
Hunker, one for your Ds and one for mine.
Essbee and Cadbury minus kids.
Aloha, will you be coming and will you need one or two highchairs?
Hub? You coming or feeling the need to find manly convo's? And a highchair for you? Guess we might have to swap around with them in the end, if we all need them thats going to be about 10 highchairs LOL! We'll take over the whole opera house!

Am coming without DS so won't need a highchair, thanks, Floss

No, dd doesn't need a high chair at all. She quite likes to go in one for a trip down memory lane but is perfectly fine on an ordinary chair.

But where is the opera house?

Oh yeah, hunker. You did say!

Down to 8 highchairs. Any more refusals?

The opera house, sorr. It's just off the market. On the side nearest the transport museum IIRC. Has shops (paperchase is one) at the back of it on the main square.

Thanks for doing the organising, Flossam - much appreciated!

(PS - Harpsi - sorry you can't make it - next year, OK?)

I'll ring them and see if the figure of 8 highchairs is possible...