How to take a 1 year old to a restaurant?

[2020newmum]

My DS will be 12 months old by the time our local restaurants and pubs reopen. How on earth do you take a baby that age to a restaurant for lunch? We’ve only been a few times before and he was very little so just napped in his pram.

I assume I’ll definitely need to go somewhere where they have high chairs and time it so our lunch coincides with his regular meal time and he eats with us.

At the moment he has home-cooked food for every meal - I could take a tub along in a cool bag but how would I heat it up? Or can he have restaurant food by that age - but what if they don’t have a children’s menu?

Should I take his own bowl and spoon or do restaurants have those for babies?

Should I also take wipes in case he drops loads of food on the floor?

What else do I need to consider?

Mine will be the same age. I plan to just take a tub of snack bits incase he falls asleep or is hungry before it arrives. let him eat something off our plates or order an extra side dish he will like. Take my own baby plate.

I had DS on my lap and he just had finger food off my plate at that age.

Just don't 😂

I always take (took...! It's been a while) mine in his buggy so he can be contained. The high chairs in restaurants are usually those rubbish wooden ones. Snacks, few quiet distractions and a silent prayer (or two)

My theory usually is that if they don’t have a children’s menu then they don’t really want children there. Yes choose somewhere with high chairs and at the right time; I’d go for somewhere that’s family friendly although that’s quite easy I’d say. I started ordering off the kids menu for my DD at just after 12 months; you can’t really take food that needs heating and when my baby was younger I’d take things like little sandwiches and snacks then they’d eat a dinner at home but if you want them to have a proper meal you need to order off the menu.
Also yes to taking bowl and spoon as I’ve not come across places that provide them and I’d imagine you’ll have wipes as part of your changing bag but I think it’s polite to pick up what they drop and do a bit of a clear up. Take lots of toys too to keep him amused.
Id also be realistic about how long your baby can sit for; sitting for 3 courses is unlikely and they may only manage 1. You might end up holding them while eating if they’re making a fuss. Meals out with a child that age can be pretty hit or miss.

I suppose by that age they can technically eat food with salt in it - so restaurant food will be ok if it’s had salt added during cooking? Is that right?

Little bit of food with salt in it as a one off shouldn't hurT.

I'd go somewhere with quick service so if it doesn't go well you can eat quickly and leave

Sandwiches and snacks are a good call rather than food that needs heating, thank you!

I think a high chair would be ideal for DS, as he gets very fidgety very quickly sitting on my lap! At least if he has a high chair it’s something different for him to do for 20 minutes before he gets bored!

You’re massively over thinking this.

I had a feeling I might be It just seems so daunting!

I found one was quite a nice age to go to restaurants (DS was one last summer during Eat Out to Help Out). He just ate bits of what we had - it was how we discovered he absolutely loves truffles (expensive tastes 😂). I agree it's good to pick your restaurant carefully though and have some snacks in case service is slow!

Don’t take your own food, just give them bits of your own meal, or order a side dish. Children don’t need to eat food from children’s menus, it is all just food. The restaurant is a food business, you wouldn’t take your own meal in. Restaurant will provide a side plate and spoon if asked. Would take your own sippy cup.

A few crumbs left on the table is one thing but don’t leave a massive mess. My friends and I noticed that there is a clear divide between parents who are happy to leave chaos behind them and often no tip either, and those who at least try to leave it no worse than it would be had an adult eaten, so picking up anything on the floor etc.

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Be realistic about where you go. Don’t plan a long lazy lunch unless it is nap time. Your baby may be cute, but other people don’t necessarily want to have their meal with them, especially if it is their first meal out for months. If the baby gets noisy, take it out.

We took ds to a restaurant for lunch last summer when he was one. Wa had taken him when he was much younger and that was easier as he just sat in the pram or on our laps and drank milk.
We went to a family friendly pizza restaurant, and it was actually lovely. Yes a bit stressful trying to keep him quiet (banging on the table) saying WOW at everything very loudly. It was so cute though and it felt like such a treat for us all considering what the last year has been like for everyone.
I probably wouldn't take a young child out for an evening meal because I would worry about disturbing other diners I feel lunch time is a bit more acceptable.

I have a 7 month old and was actually thinking this myself as we have never taken him anywhere like that due to lockdown, he eats really well but do I take his own food, just snacks, let him eat a bit of what I’m having etc. Probably overthinking big time 😂 but it’s a weird situation as in normal times I’m sure we would have been out a few times by now, last time I ate out was early pregnancy.

It's hard because kids don't like to sit still long, they want to explore but social distancing means staying put. A pub garden might be best when the time comes so you can walk around a bit without annoying people.

Go at a quieter time (like eat at 12 not 1.30) take snacks to give while you wait for for to come and a couple of toys and books. Have low expectations, our first few trips out were a bit stressful when we were hoping to relax.

Ask around for somewhere genuinely child friendly. It pains me to say it but chains like pizza hut etc are often better as the food comes quickly, the staff don't give a fuck and you know what you're getting.

If usually have a go at picking up the biggest bits of mess but people in restaurants are allowed to leave crumbs, even if they're small! Yes to wet wipes.

You could also try going for coffee/babycino and cake first and working your way up to lunch.

I always found community centre type cafes more relaxing with kids. There's nothing worse than worrying if you're disturbing other people and that will be amplified when no one has been out for months on end!

Hth

Oh and I normally took a plate with me but, inevitably, DS just wanted to eat off my plate or the table (once I'd wiped it). Cutlery is still very hit and miss at 18 months so I wouldn't bother as it would just be something else for him to throw on the floor.

I probably wouldn't take a young child out for an evening meal

There’s no chance of that anyway as he’s in bed by 6.45-7!

Lots of people have success with toddlers in restaurants but for me ages 1-3 were simply not worth it as the amount of attention they needed to keep ‘on track’ was just too annoying. Plus they always seemed to a stinky nappy 3 mins after the food arrived. It gets better though, I love taking my 4 and 7 year olds out!

Look for restaurants with children’s menus. It might not be as quite fine eating as before but it’s better than doing it yourself!

Wagamamas have high chairs that clip to the table and also a good children’s menu. The chain pizza-pasta ones often have two grades of children’s menu, one for “tiny tummies” snd one with a bit more food.

Tip well. However I’ve never scrabble about on the floor trying to pick up all the bits - they can do it much more quickly once you’ve gone with a brush. But: tip well.

Eat and go :)

Wipes. Of course, but you'll need them whenever you go out anyway. We would clean up afterwards including picking up dropped food.

Most restaurants have high chairs. A few have special toddler plates. You can buy a portable strap thing that folds to a tiny pouch so you can put them on a normal chair. Therefore I would say pick the restaurant you want to go to and go there.

Our strategy was usually to feed first at home so they weren't grumpy. Then take snacks to keep them occupied. Plus letting them try bits from our plates.

A mobile phone can also help greatly with keeping them occupied, but some people have strong views on this.

Feed him a little at home first, then order him a bowl of steamed veg and some breadsticks and let him crack on with eating these with his fingers.

Italian restaurants tend to be much baby friendlier than some others.

Places with a garden/near a park are useful too. Babies get restless much sooner than adults.

We used to pick places that we could take the buggy then we'd give dd an early dinner, bath and pjs. We'd tuck her up in the buggy and walk for a bit then have a slightly later dinner with her asleep blissfully next to us at the table

I agree you’re overthinking.

Don’t go anywhere without a children’s menu.
Either order a small side dish or something from the children’s menu that can be eaten as finger food (zizzis for example do a couple of their little soul breads and some veg sticks as a children's dish and DD was perfectly happy munching on that plus a couple of our pizza crusts). Don’t order the children’s spaghetti!

Take a pram toy of some sort that can be clipped to the strap of the restaurant highchair and therefore can’t be thrown or constantly dropped.

If you’re in the U.K., don’t order from the children’s menu. It’s always beige crap- nuggets and chips and plain tomato pasta. What a waste! Agree with pp, let baby eat something actually interesting from your plate.

I agree there's no reason to go for a child's menu especially when they're one. Just let them eat whatever they want. We sometimes order DS a starter or a side - arancini have been a hit before. Brunch is quite a good meal to start with too as it can be quite finger food friendly. We often used to order DS some pancakes and then eat most of them ourselves...