?? food from other restaurants, in your space??

Annoying people are annoying whatever the age.

Truer words have never been spoken. My family has had more problems with behaviour from "adults" than with children. When did the 5th Fleet land for shore leave in Louisville? Has language devolved to the point where every conversation has to have cursing in it? Find some new adjectives, people!

I am far less annoyed by the kid acting out than I am by the adult who refuses to turn the cell phone to vibrate or silent and lets it ring 7 times (with a horrid ringtone) on full volume before picking up the call in order to have a unnecessarily loud conversation. often this person will repeat this several times during the meal.

How in the world can any grown person believe that this is acceptable behavior? yet, I witness it over and over again.

There are, however, one or two posters - I would never say which ones - who are decidedly anti-child. I have noted which restaurants they work at, and I won't go, with or without children. I would ignore these folks and focus on the ones who welcome all ages. After all, outside mythology, none of us have sprung fully grown from our parents. All of us will be young and a bit messy - and old and a bit messy - and we should have a little patience.

alright, spill the beans . . . who hates kids?

Me .... There is a slight chance they may become people.

Two things a man hates when dealing with kids and women.

Number one (with women) "We need to talk"
Number two (with adult kids) "Daddy I love you"

Both are going cause you trouble and/or money.

Two things a man hates when dealing with kids and women.

Number one (with women) "We need to talk"
Number two (with adult kids) "Daddy I love you"

Both are going cause you trouble and/or money.

Just... wow.

Since when is being a picky eater considered misbehaving?

Sorry Beth - I guess I didn't make myself clear. My point regarding children was that a good number of parents let their little angels run wild (probably because they are busy chatting on their bluetooth) and don't really seem to care an iota that they are seriously disrupting my evening.

I'm not speaking about a small child who may be cranky or fussing a bit, that is completely understandable. I'm referring to the unattended child who ate dinner rolls from my table, or my personal fave - the child who was running around with a napkin cape who deposited a plate of pasta/sauce on my lap.

My picky eater comment was directed toward a friend of ours (30+ yrs old) who refuses to try anything new and most times chooses not to dine out unless she knows in advance that boneless chicken and potatoes are available.

My picky eater comment was directed toward a friend of ours (30+ yrs old) who refuses to try anything new and most times chooses not to dine out unless she knows in advance that boneless chicken and potatoes are available.

I can't imagine imposing upon myself such restriction.

And people think I'm picky when I express displeasure over the group's decision to go to O'Charlies...

Yeah, it's kind of mystifying isn't it, when an adult won't try something new? I mean really, they won't even TRY it! I just think that is kind of bizarre. But then again, I was the kid who didn't like ice cream!!!!

Michele, I'm there with ya on the kids that run wild. Don't you feel kind of bad for them? I mean, if their parents are paying so little attention to them beahving like that in public, I can't help but wonder if they get any attention at home. Pasta/sauce on the lap, huh? That's a story I wouldn't mind hearing the end of.

Okay, I think I am the mom of the world's pickiest child and it drives me nuts. My husband and I are not picky at all and it drives me crazy. With that being said, I always give my child an option that I know he will eat, but I also always put the veggie etc on his plate that we are having too. He is still under two, so I can't really make him take a bite, but sometimes if I leave him alone he will try it. I don't give up and I try over and over. Because of this he all of a sudden has a new found love for green beans and pasta, so it does work. I once read that it can take ten times to get a picky child to try a food and another ten times to get them to really like it.

With that being said, I would never bring food to a restaurant that came from another restaurant. The only thing I generally bring along is a small bag of say cheerios or goldfish crackers, mainly to keep my child satisfied until the food arrives so he doesn't disturb other diners by fussing because of being hungry. Again, he isn't quite two, so patience isn't his strong point yet.

Most places do offer the standard nuggets, pizza etc. I will order that usually and give him some stuff off my plate as options to TRY. If he likes it, I know that next time I can split that with him. I am one of those moms that often request another substitute than fries. I always pick another side that is on the menu and I always offer to pay the additional cost of that item. I have never had anyone not accomodate me as of yet.

I am very lucky to have a mild mannered child that doesn't act up much, but of course he does occasionally have a fit. In that case, my husband or I take him to the car while the other parent will settle the check and get to go boxes if we can't calm him down in a timely manner. I also usually apologize to the diners around us. It makes me sad to see parents that let their kids just run wild. I would never dream of letting my kid do that.

Getting back on topic, I recall a time when I worked the Bristol downtown and a four top of women were seated before a performance at the Center. They only ordered a couple bowls of black bean soup and water. OK.

I got back to the table to find that they had pulled a slab of ribs wrapped in foil out of their purse along with several cans of soda.

It was an odd moment . . .

There are times when a gluten intolerant person comes into the restaurant and we accomodate them with something that isn't on our menu. There are times when we get a phone call asking if we have whole wheat pasta (which I tried and didn't work) and we tell them to bring theirs and we will cook it for them. When children come to the restaurant, we have pretty much made it a policy that whatever is on the menu can be prepared in a kids portion. However, if a parent requests something else and we have the makings, we will do it. It's never about what is a ridiculous request, it's about what makes a customer happy and eager to return. If a parent wants to bring McDonalds, that's ok. If a person wants to bring a birthday cake, that's ok. Now, the ribs wrapped in foil with sodas on the side, that would be an issue that would have to be addressed.

Okay, I think I am the mom of the world's pickiest child and it drives me nuts. My husband and I are not picky at all and it drives me crazy. With that being said, I always give my child an option that I know he will eat, but I also always put the veggie etc on his plate that we are having too. He is still under two, so I can't really make him take a bite, but sometimes if I leave him alone he will try it. I don't give up and I try over and over. Because of this he all of a sudden has a new found love for green beans and pasta, so it does work. I once read that it can take ten times to get a picky child to try a food and another ten times to get them to really like it.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/10/dining/10pick.html

I thought you might enjoy this article about picky eaters. Being the "bizarre" picky eater that I am (just kidding Beth K. ), I found it most enlightening.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/10/dining/10pick.html

I thought you might enjoy this article about picky eaters. Being the "bizarre" picky eater that I am (just kidding Beth K. ), I found it most enlightening.

I liked the "Experts Suggest" story (http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/10/dining/10pbox.html?ref=dining) but even if you call 'em "power peas" I'm still not eating 'em!

When my brother and I were kids, my parents implemented "thank you bites." That meant we had to try everything at the table, no matter how non kid-friendly it was.

As a result, my brother and I learned that we loved everything from artichokes, to bean sprouts, and even *gasp* collard greens, and broccoli.
When I have kids, I plan on using the same approach.

Getting back on topic, I recall a time when I worked the Bristol downtown and a four top of women were seated before a performance at the Center. They only ordered a couple bowls of black bean soup and water. OK.

I got back to the table to find that they had pulled a slab of ribs wrapped in foil out of their purse along with several cans of soda.

It was an odd moment . . .

How was it handled or was it ignored?

ribs in foil, now thats good
where were the ribs from??