If Carlsberg made family friendly restaurants...what would you want them to be like?

[rosie79]

I've been disappointed quite a bit at the lack of genuinely family-friendly restaurants and cafes in my city, so have started wondering what would actually make an establishment family friendly in parent's eyes?

There are literally hundreds of cafes and restaurants here, but at the most a few of them offer
a limited unimaginative child's menu (fish fingers, chicken nuggets,pasta chips etc.)
a few sticky high chairs
maybe a peice of paper and some colours
baby-changing facilities
This all seems rather half-hearted, mediocre and boring!
The huge warehouse sized soft-play area has an appaling 'kid's menu' too IMO

Personally I would like a place that :
-Has adequate space somewhere to park/store pushchairs (I don't use one anymore but remember what it was like whn I did)
-A properly thought out child's menu or smaller portions of the main menu with wholesome nutritious meals and variety! Oh and with different portion sizes according to the child's appetite and maybe even baby/toddler meals...
-Children's cutlery
-wet wipes
-stools in the bathroom so they can reach the sink
-a clean well looked after play corner where the children can go while they are waiting for their food or when they have finished and adults are still chatting

I would like all this without having to go somewhere with lots of bright plastic and noise...

what would others like in their dream family-friendly restaurant?

EmmyLou that place sounds ideal!!! Pity it has stopped running, no wonder your family will be bereft without it!

Kandi that place looks good, it's always reassuring when they state that children are welcome! The kid's menu did seem a bit like all the others though, a variation of a theme with the chicken nugget type meal and pasta with tomato sauce, would be nice to find somewhere that offered kids something new that they might not eat at home!

3rd Brighton restaurant on the list (but I think they're many more dotted around the UK) DS absolutely adores Carluccios. Realise there's no play area and a fairly limited (if delicious and great value) kids menu - but the staff seem genuinely happy to serve and help children and the adult options are very nice indeed of course.

Great place in putney (think it's called organic) separate playarea with loads of toys and a peep hole so you can see whats going on. Lovely organic food children size smoothies for 50p. When my freind's daughter split hers they bought another one totally unfazed-great

Pizza express in blackheath is very good, nice kids menu (no nuggets -hand mae spinach and riccota callaloni is ds's favourite).Always bring his first.

Simpley Italian in Rye (Sussex) is excellent again will do anything on the menu, a drink and ice cream for £5 very good value, also a walled garden.

Love the sound of Henllys Farm, sounds like the kind of place I want to run .

Sob...

We went to a "gastro pub" (hate that term) in Herfordshire which was great with the children. It didn't have the toys/accoutrements etc but the approach to food was great. No kids menu, appetiser plates and for children the portions were half size at half the cost. Both mine wanted the fish and chips - proper stuff, you understand! - and they got exactly that - a half sized portion, where the fish had been cut in half and fried separately (not just one divided up afterwards).

And it just made me think - proper food, half size, half price - ITS NOT EXACTLY ROCKET SCIENCE.

I would love all of that plus an organic childrens menu from one year up to 6 years. I often end up bringing my own food ( a snack of a sandwich & fruit) as nuggets & chips etc are just wrong for little ones. My ds is not used to that type of food & won't eat it anyway...or is my 3 year old DS different?

By "all of the above", I was refering to Rosie 79's description

We want vegetables (other than chips & tomato ketchup/sauce)! Contrary to restaurant lore, some children actually like them. I've long thought that no restaurant should be allowed to call itself child friendly unless it routinely includes them in its kids menus. It's basic nutrition, isn't it?

a high chair WITH A TRAY how hard can it be??
when I am asked "beans or peas" I tend to say "brocolli and carrots please"

Cute waiters. Mommys need eye candy

The Olive Press in Preston is part of Heathcotes I think. We've been to the Chop House above it and the staff were good. There's also one near Wigan which had a family day, with a magician that came to the table to do tricks and make balloon animals which was great. Once DD realised the man was really OK she was quite happy to go to a separate area for a full magic show, where they'd also set up as a cinema. That on top of the usual crayons and a good menu was terrific and DD feels relaxed about going there now because she had such great fun.

I'd like somewhere that gives the child a menu straight away and takes their order even if everybody else is still thinking, in order to bring their food first. Avoid chip based 'kids menus' and price small portions of regular menu items. A chill out space with books & colouring for before and after would be a good idea too.

A big pen in the middle for under 3s and tables all round it.
BIG wheelchair/family friendly loos with no gender demarcation - why aren't they all like this?

There is a great cafe on Northcote road away from the station that is exactly as you describe. Play area, half portions of good food for kids, a buggy park, and the doors onto the street fold back so you don't have to fight through the door. The best bit though is the toilet which is just a big room with baby changing and an adult loo and a kids loo side by side. My DS1 (age 3) and I had hysterics having a tandem wee

Anchovy-what pub was it and where?
Sounds like worth a trip....

Anchovy - love your comment that it's not rocket science!! It really isn't is it?!

Jimmy2 nope your some isn't different , my 3 yr old is the same, he doesn't like or eat chips as doesn't have them at home so kids menus usually have nothing on them that he will happily eat!!

Hmmmm, have to say about Cafe Junior (link further down the thread ), it's just too smug. Costs a lot to get in; very expensive if you have more than one child; food tends to be overpriced and a bit odd (DS isn't particularly fussy but I just can't talk him into waffles with cheese and grated carrot) There was once an Incredibly Smug note on the door asking people not to bring in their own food (fair enough) but then going to say they "found Fruit Shoots particularly offensive". Felt that was going a bit far...

Ideal family caff for us would be one that was a little less aspirational / guilt inducing...

Owner must be a mumsnetter .

My DS hates chips and potatoes and beans and tomato sauce, waitreses look at him like he is a freak. Then they look at me like I am a freak when I say look can he just have some bread and butter to go with it then.