Eating out

[Welshmammy84]

Hi everyone, new to this website and looking for some advice off someone a bit more experienced than me!

I am a first time mother, and my daughter is nearly 9 months old. She is a good eater and usually eats little homemade meals I make for her but will also happily eat jars if I am short on time.

I don't have a huge deal of experience eating out with her. When she first started weaning and we were out and about, we had a little food warmer (basically a flask of hot water) that would easily heat a small jar of smooth puree.However, now that she is eating lumpy foods, this food warmer just doesn't do the job of heating the food. I have also found some places reluctant to heat baby food. With Christmas coming up and my husband having some holidays off work, we want to get out and do some Christmas shopping but I'm just so unsure what to feed my daughter when out. I don't want to risk popping in a cafe or restaurant and they won't heat her food. What do you tend to feed your babies when out? Are there any childrens meals in cafes/restaurants that are suitable at this age (she will be 10 months by the time we get going on our Christmas shopping!).

I would be really grateful for any advice anyone can give me because I'm starting to stress over it a bit! xx

PS I'm also sorry if somemone has already posted about this, please be nice to me!

Hi, you could try heating it and then keeping it in a themal bag to keep it warm. I have one for bottles but you could get a tupperware box with a lid in it if you tried.

What about finger food? Little sandwiches, cucumber sticks and the like which don't have to be heated.
Or try her with cold food - there's no rule to say all her food must be hot, especially if there's no meat or anything which needs heating right up for food safety.

I have just searched for 'thermal bag' on amazon and they have a range of bags that will keep food hot and cold, only about £8.99 for them.

Hope this helps!

I think at 9 months she should be alright eating finger foods when out and about - bring her a little picnic box of rice cakes, cumcumber sticks, sandwiches, a pot of yoghurt, raisins.

DS who is 11 months old eats either a bit of what we are having, but mashed up in a bowl (potato, pasta, bit of cheese, chunk of chicken, chunk of fish) or some finger food we bring with him, (omelette is great cold and easy to hold, veg sticks, pitta/humous, mini baby bel, fruit, bread sticks, toast and philadephia, pasta and pesto) or a cold pot of food ! If you do finger food, she can just eat some of yours too. And maybe a yoghurt for pudding as some other people have mentioned.

Thank you all very much for the ideas, better than anything I have thought of so far! I think that I haven't thought very far down the finger food route as at the moment if you give her a chunk of something, she chomps away on it but because she has no teeth yet she doesn't manage to actually break anything off. But I suppose a soft sandwich with maybe some grated cheese would be soft enough for her to bite a bit off. I also really like the cold omelette idea, could put some soft veg in in like courgettes, tomatoes, etc?. I think I'm really paranoid about what I feed her, I just never think of things like sandwiches, etc. With the cold jars, I just don't like the thought of giving her a cold jar (even though, like you say, it's perfectly safe), but maybe one of the jars that's more fruit based, I think that would be more appealing cold. I have got loads of ideas now but if anyone else has more ideas then I would be really grateful! It's just all so new and I don't want to be giving her something she shouldn't have.

Eliza, just realised I have one of those thermal bags here, I think I had it in a bottle set, I see what you mean about getting a tupperware box in there, so that's another idea, thank you x

Don't worry, babies don't really need teeth to chew - they can do pretty well with just gums! Even harder things like toast or rice cakes can be gummed or sucked til they can be swallowed. Just be careful of things like apple that can break off it hard chunks, or whole grapes that could block her windpipe.

Why don't you have a little practice at home with finger foods? DS is only seven months and has no teeth at all but can tackle things like steamed carrot sticks, broccoli florets cooked til they're soft, eggy bread and his most favourite and his best - can you tell we've been reading Charlie and Lola - is mango. We slice the cheeks off then cut them into strips and he sucks it off the skin. Keeps him quiet for ages!

I did blw (so finger foods from the beginning) and would just share low salt things when out. My kids would have pasta for example, my friend used purees etc. and would order the same pasta then mash with a fork and maybe mix a bit of milk in to cool, the same with jaket potatoes

Or pizza express have plum baby food on their menu

I did BLW and DD is now 10 months and we have eaten out quite a bit.

Often she will have a bit of what we are eating and I ask the cafe/restaurant for a bowl/saucer for her to use. Sometimes, depends on where we are going and how organised I am, as others have suggested, I take some finger foods with us.

Fingers of philly cheese sandwiches, rice cakes, pots of yoghurt or fruit usually go down well.

I recently discovered giving DD a little tupperware pot of chopped mixed fruit, like grapes, apples and dried apricots, will keep her quiet for ages as she fishes about in it to get her favourites out.

My DD is 10 months and not the best eater - better than she was but only really likes bread based products and rice cakes as finger foods - she seems to get upset by the slimey texture of veg or fruit, so although I try theseat home, wouldn't in public - too much food flinging! She isn't great with food too lumpy either. So I've been taking the pouches of baby food - ellas or plum - out and she happily eats these cold, even though she normally has her purees warm.

I guess you could also order something like a basic mashed potato with cheese that you could mash with a fork and feed her.

my ds2 will happily eat jars at room temp.
If we go out we generally take a jar but whether we use it or not depends what the rest of us are having, his mood and the general provision of the restaurant in terms of highchairs etc - we play it by ear. We also take a few rice cakes etc.

Thank you again for all the ideas and advice. I think my problem is I worry too much about what she can/can't have. I never would have thought of something like philly sandwiches, but that's given me the confidence now to try it with her.