Havana Rumba

Today I took five of my students to go play Lazer Blaze. Afterwards I decided to take them over to Havan Rumba. It was mid afternoon so I told them this was just a snack. I ordered the two tapas "samplers" It was amazing. THe kids really enjoyed the food which I was glad about. Only one of them had ever had cuban food and that was because he won a gift vertificate to H.R. at on eof our events. I was really glad they stretched themselves, and tried new things. THe highlight of the meal was when I commented on how good the calamari was and said, "That's great squid!" On eof my students who hadn't tried it yet said, "That's squid? I thought it was onion rings!" Quite funny. ANyway, I just wanted to share my experience. Great job everyone over at Havana Rumba!
Kris

Glad you had such a good experience! It's always fun to see people try new things and really enjoy it. HR is my favorite restaurant but it is a chore trying to get my kids to go there, and when I do put my foot down and insist on going they only order off the children's menu. I don't understand how I can love ethnic dishes, spicy foods, trying new things- but end up with kids who only want to eat mac n' cheese and french fries

I don't understand how I can love ethnic dishes, spicy foods, trying new things- but end up with kids who only want to eat mac n' cheese and french fries

Do you have your kids try any of the ethnic fare? I know at HR the cuban beef dish is on the kid's menu, and I think it's only $4. If they didn't like it, you could have it for lunch the next day. My five year old LOVES it, but all my kids have eaten ethnic food since they could chew. The same five year old also loves foie gras and wants to have her birthday dinner at Seviche, so the down side of having them like all that food is that it can get expensive to feed them (I'm not complaining, but sometimes it is cheaper to pay a babysitter than to buy them dinner out! )

Of our kids, the oldest was very adventurous eater as a child, now is the "mac n cheese mom". The middle child was Miss "I will only eat a snow cone" at ethnic festivals and is now the foodie. The youngest asked for sushi for his birthay dinner, but who knows in 10 years?

We always offered the kids opportunities to try every kind of food, but learned to be prepared for them wanting something else. I also found sometimes it was better to let them try it at home, either make it or takeout - maybe less intimidating for them?

Of our kids, the oldest was very adventurous eater as a child, now is the "mac n cheese mom". The middle child was Miss "I will only eat a snow cone" at ethnic festivals and is now the foodie. The youngest asked for sushi for his birthay dinner, but who knows in 10 years?

We always offered the kids opportunities to try every kind of food, but learned to be prepared for them wanting something else. I also found sometimes it was better to let them try it at home, either make it or takeout - maybe less intimidating for them?

That's funny, because I've had the opposite experience. If I play up a restaurant as a magnificent treat, my son is more willing to try it than if it's just another meal at home.

I guess they're all different.

I love that people are trying to get their children and young members in their life interested in different types of food. There are so many parents I know these days who let the children dictate what they will and won't eat, and often feed them hotdogs, pizza, and chicken nuggets just to keep them quiet. I don't have kids, so it's not really fair for me to judge this, honestly, but when I was growing up, you ate what Mom fixed, or go hungry. I was fortunate enough to have culinarily adventurous parents, which has helped create the food fanatic I am today. They lived in Japan for 3 years while Dad was in the service, and I remember sucking my thumb so I could smell the shrimp tempura sauce on my hand. And I'm old and from a small town, so this was not something we could go out and eat. But some kids, AND adults, just want the basic meat and potato meals, including my oldest brother to some extent, so it just depends. Anyway, just wanted to commend you all on you efforts to at least expose and encourage your kids to try new things.

Odd that our son was willing to eat whatever we were eating. My wife and I enjoy every kind of ethnic food around and our son has rarely turned up his nose at anything, modeling his folks. He has wrinkled his nose a few times and avoided whatever he didn't prefer on the next visit but he hasn't ever said no to our explorations. His current favorite is indian, tikka masala and vegetable biryani. He's on the way



Good to see you awake, Suzi. Hope all went well with the surgery!

Oh yeah, how are you doing, Suzi? Wishing you a speedy recovery!!!

Thanks guys! They kept me an extra day because I have still some trouble walking, and the surgeon took a bit more bone out than he planned. Still need the cane and trying not to go off into La La Land on the meds!

Back on topic, when my girls were growing up, we did not eat out as much as we do now, not to mention there were not the choices there are now! I was in food service and cooked a lot of different things at home. Our biggest fun in the summer was the Heritage Festivals, we loved the foods and entertainment (except for Julie's "snow cone years"!). Eddy, the youngest, has really gotten more exposure than the girls and will try just about anything. We have had sushi picnics, he helps make perogis and prefers "real" (his word) mexican, though as a teenager he will generally eat anything that does not bite him first!

I am still amazed when I see people let their children dictate what they will eat - of course I can't understand how parents can let the kids run wild in restaurants, whether it is Mickey D's or the Oak Room either - whole 'nother topic! I have friends that will make a whole different meal for their child if they don't want what the family is eating. My kids would have starved, got leftovers or made a sandwich, but not get me making multple meals. I never let my kids have a lot of fast food, we packed a lot of lunches for trips to avoid that trap. Eddy and I are dinner buddies on the nights Dad works late, we try a lot of new places.

I guess part of the problem is that while I love to cook, I never make ethnic or spiced dishes as home. I cook mainly what I grew up with- roasts, meat loaf, swedish meatballs, chicken stir-fry. But I love to eat different foods by chefs who really know how to prepare them. I really wish that restaurants would offer more 'adult fare' on the kids menus. I don't want to pay for adult portions when they may end up hating it and not eating it, and most restaurants I have been to only offer the same old stuff on the kids menu: hot dog, burger, chicken strips, and pizza.