http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-12440906

Why is it that in other European countries taking kids out for a meal is completely normal and not only tolerated but encouraged and expected.

I appreciate that certain places are pretty much adults only but are parents really expected to limit themselves to eating at big chains with wipe clean surfaces? Is the sound of a littlun doing what littluns do really that annoying?

Perhaps European kids are better behaved when they are with their parents? I have not been into a restaurant in Europe where kids are running around and screaming IIRC?

Eh? Eat where I want with the little one, she’s very well behaved and can sit through a relaxed 2 hour sunday lunch with no issues 😕

One of our group brought a baby with them to a restaurant in Iceland. The waitresses confiscated it and returned it when we left

i think its a few bad parents who let there kids scream and run around the place ruining it for the parents that actually look after there kids properly.

I always thought you paid a premium at a posh restaurant for good food; never understood that you paid extra to choose who else is dining 🙄 Having said that, I would expect the manager to ‘have a word’ to the parent/guardian of an unruly or out of control child.

Was once in a smart eatery when one of our party put her baby on the t1tty at the table. That caused a few whispers 😀

Why is there a young child eating fast food?

I did not imply that your baby was badly behaved Loco 😉 I have no problem with well behaved children eating in a restaurant but I do object when they are not 🙂

don’t mind well behaved kids or even excitable little ones but when the parents seem to be making no effort to control them, or apologise, it’s too much.

I’ve had kids crawling under my feet and throwing food at our table and the parents do nothing. on the other hand i’ve had parents apologise for babies smiling at us.

I’ve been a waiter and all it takes is a quiet polite word. something along the lines of ‘keep him at the table otherwise one of us will fall over him and i’d hate to see him hurt’

Did you actually read the article?

It’s mythology that other countries in Europe deal better with children, says Harden. Turkey is the only place Harden has been that seems to happily accommodate boisterous children in restaurants.

This doesn’t seem to support what you said in your first post.

I always thought you paid a premium at a posh restaurant for good food; never understood that you paid extra to choose who else is dining

You don’t but it is reasonable to expect (and to give) a certain amount respect to your fellow customers.

It’s the attitude of some parents that their children be shown consideration whilst simultaneously showing no consideration to others that bothers.

the most amazing thing about that article is that someone has actually written a book called “the Guide to Living Childless by Choice”. Presumably found on the same shelf as “the Guide to Identifying your Arse from your Elbow” and, part two, “the Guide to Wiping your Arse once you’ve Found it”.

Take my son (4) quite often to eat in my local pub/eating house. He’s pretty much well behaved, doesn’t shout/throw things etc. and on when he does a quite word calms him down.

One Sunday there was a couple next to us probably mid/late fifties. On this occasion he didn’t get up from his seat he was just laughing and joking with us. He wasn’t being loud and certainly no louder then the table at the other side of us. The woman turned to the man and under her breath said, “See, now you know why I don’t like kids”.

They got up shortly after and left.

[Edit] what gets me as well is I’ve never seen this couple in the pub before or since.

I think the problem over here is historically is pubs are not seen as a place for children, and in some extremes women. They should all be in the house out of the way is the mentality of some, particularly the older generation. It’s the same when pubs go from being just drinking pubs to serving food to stay open, people don’t like it.

It’s changing, slowly, for the better but will take some time to get there.

Yeah I did read it and I disagree with the bit about Europe. Mainly because I go there lots and see kids in pretty much every restaurant I go to, secondly I am Greek and am completely aware of the European attitude to dining out with kids.

Its a funny thing isnt it? I heard somewhere that the sound of a child’s cry is interpeted differently on a subliminal level by those with kids & those without. Something to do with a nurturing instinct being active? Not sure if thats true but it might explain a few things. Although it could be a complete load of old tosh… 😕

Depends on the child, some arn’t too bad pitch wise, however some of our freinds childrens have got cries at just the right pitch to pierce you to your soul 😯

Yeah I did read it and I disagree with the bit about Europe. Mainly because I go there lots and see kids in pretty much every restaurant I go to, secondly I am Greek and am completely aware of the European attitude to dining out with kids.

So you chose to ignore the parts of the article that you don’t agree with and have a rant about the stuff that you do? Not exactly a well balanced approach is it? As for being Greek, how exactly does that give you a better insight into how the rest of Europe as a whole treats children? Granted I’m British, but I’m led to believe, by some of the more liberal parts of the press, that Europeans do not have some homogenous culture and that there are actually one or two differences between them.

Thought this was going to be a DAM ROADIES WOULDNT SAY HI TO ME type thread.

The way we see it is that if the restaurant/pub has high chairs and is OK about us bringing a pram in then there is no problem, but we don’t take them out in the evening when they are tired and more likely to have an “episode”. If the place is busy or has too many distractions we’ll give it a miss also.

Our two are usually far too busy stuffing their faces to make a noise anyway.

A happy well behaved child is preferable to a self absorbed twunt shouting into his/her mobile phone for half an hour.

Depends on the parents. Some are bringing up delightful kids – no problem at all. But some are rearing screaming, attention seeking, food throwing monsters.

Most other diners are quite happy to see my delightful child when we take her out for a meal.

It’s only a minority that roll their eyes or make snide comments, but they shouldn’t be so tight and go out for the early bird special at toddler dinnertime if they want a quiet romantic dinner.

Nothing worse than a pair of self absorbed arseholes tutting at a happy family.

Nothing better than encouraging kids to annoy said self absorbed arseholes either. 😈

[self-absorbed-arsehole-disclaimer]Joke.[/self-absorbed-arsehole-disclaimer]

I actively encourage my kids to throw food around the adjacent tables…Makes for a quieter dining experience, when every one else has left 😀

joolsburger – Member

Is the sound of a littlun doing what littluns do really that annoying?

Yup

Mysteriously when our kids were little I agreed wholeheartedly with JB but now they are large and theoretically off our hands I seem to have slipped to the opposite opinon!

Well I’ve never had any trouble taking our kids anywhere for food. Staff have always been excellent and other customers often smile and talk to the kids. So I guess your talking out of your arse.

Crappy iPhone pic.

Italians their favourite. by Lee Collis, on Flickr

Going to also add that I’ve always seen lots of kids at restaurants, my parents always took us I remember going for Indians, Chinese and Pub meals from a very young age.

Nothing worse than a pair of self absorbed arseholes tutting at a happy family.

Nothing better than encouraging kids to annoy said self absorbed arseholes either.

[self-absorbed-arsehole-disclaimer]Joke.[/self-absorbed-arsehole-disclaimer]

The same can be said of some parents & their kids..

ps not pointing fingers or laying blame at anyone here – just saying some parents can be utterly oblivious to how annoying their littlun can be to others sometimes..

Nothing worse than a pair of self absorbed arseholes tutting at a happy family.

I quite agree. A bloke and his mate made some comment as me and my family were leaving a cafe last summer. I only caught a bit of it ‘good effing riddance mumble mumble’. He and his mate didnt want to repeat it to me outside despite me really really asking them. 😳

Possibly not the best example to set my boys but some things boil your piss, no?

At a fairly fancy restaurant a few weeks back. A pair of screaming kids chasing each other around the tables while parents look on, occasionally delivering a faintly admonishing, “Chardonnay, dahling, please don’t take the bread from other people’s tables…”

Fortunately managed to deliver a good kick when one of the little brats came crawling around under our table, which kept them away for the rest of the meal.

Don’t object at all to kids in restaurants, but parents have a responsibility to keep their own children under control.

Agreed that is out of order but kicking a kid is far worse but I suspect your trolling.

Is the sound of a littlun doing what littluns do really that annoying?

Haven’t read the article, or the posts, but if the sound of a ‘littlun’ is that screaming noise, then yes it is really annoying.

Too many feral …

depends on the kids and parents or the people there in general as does any dining experience
My kids are ok only once played up we left …they made even more noises during that exit than whilst there
Has anyone actually tried asking the parents to do something? I would not let them take my bread without comment personally.

Kicking a small child is well out of order if true

A happy well behaved child is preferable to a self absorbed twunt shouting into his/her mobile phone for half an hour.

+1000

Has anyone actually tried asking the parents to do something? I would not let them take my bread without comment personally

I haven’t had anything like that happen to me, but I think on the whole parents tend not to take negative comments about their kids or their parenting ability in a positive fashion 🙂

flaperon i find it amazing that you are trying to ingratiate yourself on here by admitting to kicking a child. which by the way is assault, no matter how annoying they were being.
if you are just after a reaction, congrats.
kids running around is annoying. and parents should, in my opinion, keep their kids at their table whilst in a restaurant. its just good manners. time to eat is time to eat, not time to play. if the kids want to play, leave. if they are kicking up a fuss at the table then thats a different matter. but kicking a child is bang out of order.

Miserable buggers

Yep guilty! Too many badly behaved children and dogs around for my liking 🙄

As someone whose kids have grown up, I really don’t want to eat surrounded by badly behaved kids!

A happy well behaved child is preferable to a self absorbed twunt shouting into his/her mobile phone for half an hour.

Oh yes. Totally agree.

Children are like dogs. Well-trained ones are fine. Badly trained ones aren’t, and an annoyance to others. But I’ll tell people if their kids (or they themselves) are annoying me, I won’t just sit there and tut under my breath. Or, I’ll slip the little buggers some vodka in their orange juice. Soon shuts ’em up. 😉

One of our group brought a baby with them to a restaurant in Iceland. The waitresses confiscated it and returned it when we left

They confiscated a baby? 😯

They confiscated a baby?

Similar thing happened to me in Vancouver. Went to the Kobe with my bro-in-law for some Teppenyaki(sp?). When it was time for chow a couple of very pretty waitresses took my 2 y/o daughter and played with her while we ate.

Below ten, they annoy other people in the restaurant. Over 13 they just annoy you.

Does dinner time for toddler’s really clash that badly with dinner time for adults? They’re in bed by seven ffs.