Posted on 11/14/2005 5:51:48 AM PST by Cagey
Parent Says Restaurant Offers Kid Food, So It Should Cater To Kids
"We were surprised at how many times we would see children really out of control," McCauley said. "And we actually had people leaving the bakery because the children were so out of control."
So, he put a sign on the door at kids' eye-level, asking children of all ages to use their "indoor voices."
"We thought it was just a friendly reminder to people that when they come here, just be considerate of the people around them. We had no idea the kind of controversy that was going to explode out of this," McCauley said.
But some parents who spoke with NBC5's Natalie Martinez took immediate offense to the sign. The angry mothers said there are plenty of places in the Andersonville neighborhood where they can take their kids, even if they're acting out.
"I've e-mailed friends and said, 'Just so you know, this man has a sign up. I know there are lots of other options, and I'd encourage you not to go there,'" parent Kate Bremmer said.
When she spoke with Martinez, Bremmer and her kids were picking out goodies at a Swedish bakery, where all kids are welcome.
"Our custom has been to offer a cookie to every child that comes into the store for as long as I can remember," said Kathy Stanton-Cromwell, the co-owner of the bakery, which is just a few doors down from A Taste of Heaven.
Stanton-Cromwell said the cookie serves as "a good calmer" for kids who are acting up.
Bremmer said A Taste of Heaven "is not a five-star restaurant," so she thinks it should cater to kids, not the other way around.
"They offer ice cream cones and cookies and lots things that kids love, and therefore, I don't think that they should make such an issue of it," Bremmer said.
Other parents enjoying lunch with their kids at A Taste of Heaven were more diplomatic.
"I have mixed feelings about it. It's a little off-putting," one mother said.
Linda Wallace, also a mother who eats at A Taste of Heaven, said she thought McCauley was "sort of brave" for putting up the sign.
"It did cross my mind that he might offend some people," she said.
McCauley said he loves kids, although he has none of his own. He said he has no immediate plans to take the sign down.
Yep, and it's getting more so every day. ;-)
I usually boycott angry moms.
Then I tell them to keep quiet.
I'm sooooo sick of "parents" who think "manners" are inborn. Teach the kids to behave or keep them home until they understand.
i just know i am going to be a crotchety old lady waving my cane at misbehaving little snots AND their parents. i raised my 3 to know how to behave and i have zero tolerance for the lamebrains that are out there trying to REASON with out of control toddlers.
Heh, works every time! Does a nifty job of 'breaking the pattern' so that you can get the kid's attention, get right down to eye level and 'explain the situation'. ;o)
Who the hell are you, telling people how to run their business in a free country?
Fine go elsewhere - BUT STOP YOUR WHINING, YUPPIE.
It's easy to see why the children are out of control, after seeing the parents have a temper tantrum over this sign.
Maybe he asked her to use her grown-up voice with him. That tends to tick off an adult child.
I tend to agree with you. We didn't take our boy/girl twins out to eat (except for fast food places with play places) until we knew they could behave. It isn't the kids' fault, but it is fair to ask that "indoor voices" be used. This seems like a fair reminder. It is addressed to kids who can read, and they certainly should be able to restrain themselves. The restaurant must have had some complaints that kids were NOT being made to behave in the restaurant, and the blame for that falls on the parents, not the kids.
My personal "favorite" was a woman in front of me in a checkout line whose little "darling" kept screaming at the top of his lungs, and her response was to plead in a wimpy voice, "You can't do that in here.....OK? Thank you". Meanwhile, the screaming never stopped.....
I have noticed that frequently it's the parents with the worst kids who are the quickest to take offense if someone suggests kids should not act like heathen devils in public.
All 3 of my boys, from a very young age, were civilized to the point of being easy to manage in public places. I used to have people come up to me at restraunts and compliment me and them. And, they were all, from first to last, born in a little over 3 1/3 years.
susie
Yeah, well, my retort to that was "Well, I love you, but I sure don't like your behavior right now."
It happens, sometimes, when a willful child it butting heads with a willful parent. Never happened to me in public, because those intense discussions were usually confined to the house.
Excuse me, but kids are kids no matter how much of a good parent mom or dad is. Geez, just yesterday I was in a non kid friendly type of restaurant with my kids, my sisters kids and we had a hard time keeping them settled down. My kids were misbehaving and we did everything we could to get them to act like adults, but they are kids, and kids who act like kids is normal!!
ALL children take offense at being corrected.
The angry mothers said there are plenty of places in the Andersonville neighborhood where they can take their kids, even if they're acting out.
I agree. My 7yo is no angel, by any stretch of the imagination, yet it is very rare that she needs to be corrected in public.
So what? It's his business and I like the way he runs it. That's all that matters to me.
That reminds me of the one time my oldest (who was probably about 3ish at the time--old enough to know better) took a candy bar from the shelf as we were checking out and took a bite of it. I have no idea what possessed him, but I snatched it from him and told the clerk to add it to my total. She said, "oh, that's ok, he can just have it."
I was horrified and demanded that she charge me for it, and then I ate it myself in front of my son. He also got paddled for it. I didn't want the candy bar, but I wanted him to know that stealing was never right. He's 28 now, and to my knowledge doesn't steal....
susie
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