Eating Out With Children

My husband and I share a love of food. We love to eat out and try new types of food. Our favorite is Thai food, especially the dish Phad Thai. When our first child was born we were determined not to give up our "hobby" and continued to eat in restaurants from the time she was born. A recent restaurant outing with our 5 children prompted this post about eating out with children.

Because the cost of eating out with 5 children can be expensive we choose very wisely where and when we choose to do so. My husband says I am too good a cook to waste money on mediocre food outings. But the other night we ate an early dinner at home because we were setting up for VBS at church. It was late when we finished and my husband needed to go back to work when we got home that night( he works out of our home). He was hungry and needed a second wind so we decided to take a trip to our local Chili's. We arrived and asked for a large booth. The kids were given crayons and quickly proceeded to play the games on the menus. Since it was late, about 9:15 pm, and we had already eaten, the kids and I ordered some fries and a dessert to share, while dad ate dinner. When the waitress brought our check she asked us how we were able to get 5 children to behave so well in a restaurant. And we told her. As a reward for their good behavior the manager gave each of them a certificate for a free meal. They were so excited. So I wanted to share our tips for eating out with kids and enjoying it.

1. Never take a hungry child out to eat. A hungry child waiting for food will only become cranky and you will have a hard time keeping their mind off food that seems to be going to every table except yours. So feed your child a snack before you arrive or have a little something to munch on, i.e. raisins, dry cereal, fruit snacks...
2. Have something to occupy their attention. Most restaurants provide crayons and menus to color. But we at times eat at nicer places that do not always cater to children's needs so I always have something for the kids to do while waiting.
3.Let them converse with each other. Eating out is a treat and my husband and I do not want to spend the whole time on child control. We like to be able to talk to each other. So we have a restaurant buddy system, where each child buddys up with another( a big family helps!)to play the games on menus and color.
4.Practice at home. We are fortunate to be able to eat dinner in our home together just about every night. We require them to behave at our home table much the same way we do in restaurants. This helps them to be comfortable with what we require while eating together. And so when we arrive in a restaurant they know the appropriate behavior.
5.Show them who is boss. In our family while eating out my husband and I work as a team, with him as the leader. He is very good at reminding them to keep their voices low and appropriate. They know there will be a consequence to bad behavior and this helps us to enforce our rules.
6.Watch YOUR attitude. Many time we observe parents who do not even try to reign in rowdy children. It makes for a wonderful example of what not to do, but a miserable eating experience for every one else. They act as though they have a special right to ignore their children and allow them to run around or climb over the seats. We have had other children climb in our booth and color with us without the parents even caring. Keep in mind that there are others eating in close proximity. Remove disobedient children when correcting behavior. Many times we have taken a child to the restroom or outside for an "attitude change." Do not allow your child to peer over the seats or booth at other diners. Do not bring noisy toys or handheld electronics for them to play with that will disturb others.

We hope this helps and wish you many happy dining experiences!