I'd an interesting conversation recently with my good friends Oonagh and Fiona, about bringing children to restaurants. We all find ourselves returning to the same few places, and were trying to establish why there aren't more options out there. There are plenty of places that consider themselves "child friendly", but often that can be at odds with their offering.
The majority of places seem to tolerate rather than welcome children, and many kids menus can be lazy and uninspired as a result. Deep fried junk food, or pasta with tomato sauce seems to be the default for most - even for some with lofty notions about themselves. Considering the huge potential upsides, it's a position which baffles me.
I have no difficulty whatsoever with a restaurant not catering for children. What I have a major problem with, is the half arsed, "do it because we have to" attitude of so many places. The minimum that parents have a right to expect is that the same effort, care, and attention goes into their childrens' food, as their own. Apart from the fact that a child's meal can often cost around two thirds of an adult's, it is disrespectful to treat children a second class citizens, and pawn them off with the contents of Iceland's bargain bin.
It's a truism that happy children make happy parents, so I always advise clients who welcome children in their restaurant, to treat them like any other guest. Leaving aside the issue of families making an important contribution to restaurants' revenues, children are intelligent beings who will remember how they are made feel, and are more likely to ask their parents to bring them back to restaurants where they have a positive experience.
Focus on the small details that might improve a child's experience. Some form of entertainment (colouring etc) is always welcome, but other minor details can also help. For example, don't serve children's food on plates that are hot enough to burn them ( regular occurrence). If you pitch your business as a family restaurant, don't trim the edges of your table tops with heavy cast iron which meets at a sharp point on each corner, at perfect head height for a 4 year old ( I'm looking at you Jamie's Italian). Have your staff engage children who are old enough to talk, rather than ignore them. Make sure your toilets have decent baby changing facilities. Put enough thought and effort into the children's menu to make it interesting enough for children to embrace, but also nutritious. Make your portion sizes appropriate for children.
It all sounds pretty simple, right? You'd have thought so, but take my word for it, it's a rarity to find even half of the few examples above executed correctly. This brings me back to my original point about gravitating toward the same few places. Most kids love Wagamama. They are reliable, tick a lot of boxes for children, and have decent, inexpensive options for adults too. Jamie's Italian also make a big effort with their kids menu, and our daughter loves it there. However, in addition to the design flaw mentioned above, I find their pricing out of kilter with their offering. Overends Cafe at Airfield Estate is another firm favourite for families. Their children's menus are well priced and good quality, if a little unimaginative.
My policy when I was in the business was to offer small portions of anything on the menu for children. This is an approach that I really like, as it gives children equal billing with adults, and allows them a much broader spectrum of options to eat. In my experience, it also encourages children to become more adventurous eaters. We enjoyed a superb Sunday lunch recently at Two Cooks in Sallins where they adopted this approach. Our daughter was made feel really welcome, and absolutely loved her half portion of the perfect roast beef with all the trimmings. Delicious, nutritious food, perfect portion size, well priced, warm plate, happy child, happy parents. We'll definitely be back. It's that simple.
The recently opened Coburg Brasserie in The Conrad Hotel, is another restaurant who clearly put some thought into their offering for children. We've been a few times for Sunday lunch or early evening, and have had lovely experiences every time. The food for both adults and children is prepared with the same high quality ingredients, and the same care and attention. The staff are genuinely warm and friendly, and the overall experience represents excellent value for money.
Clockwise from bottom left: Jamie's Italian, The Coburg, The Old Spot, Two Cooks.
Aside from pizza & burger joints, other places doing many things right for children include Michie Sushi, Beefthro, Avoca Suffolk Street & The Old Spot. I'm sure there are plenty more out there flying the flag for the smallies, and I'd love to hear about them. Please leave a comment or send me an email to info@therestaurantdoctor.ie with your suggestions.
Children's food in restaurants has improved immeasurably in the last decade, and I hope to see that trend continue. Parents can help drive that change by refusing to accept sub-standard fare for their kids, and educating them to eat a broader range of foods than pizza and chicken nuggets. For their part, restaurants can contribute by viewing children as people, just like any other customer, and focusing on offering quality food to them. In addition to their parents' regular custom, they might just win some future customers too.