We've eaten out loads in the past week since I've been off work and have a few meals planned this weekend when my Nan comes to stay. I'll definitely be dieting a week today, all this eating isn't good for the waistline at all!
Last week we went out with some good friends of ours who don't have children and they commented on how good Henry was at dinner, which is always nice to hear, but also how organised we were. I think it's really easy for childless people to assume it's so easy when they see a well behaved toddler at dinner, so it was nice that they recognised the effort involved too. We are by no means experts, we've had our fair share of disaster dinners where one of us has had to pace up and down with the miserable baby while the other one eats their dinner in record time, but I do feel like we are much better prepared than we ever were before which has made for a much happier dining experience for all of us. Here are our top tips for eating out with a toddler:
• A restaurant bag
We have a restaurant bag for Henry that only ever comes out when we eat out. It has the usuals like a bib, cup and plastic cutlery (which so few restaurants seem to have) and then some little toys that Henry really loves. Because he only gets them when we go out, he's still really excited to see them. Some of our favourites are some little wind up toys, mini Aquadraw mats and stickers. Henry also LOVES when we buy him a magazine, Peppa Pig ones are always a hit and buy us a good hour of peace while he plays with the free toy, scribbles all over the colouring in pages and plays with the stickers...definitely worth their ridiculous price tag and the toys are then added to our restaurant bag.
• Choose your restaurant carefully
Let's be honest, there's nothing worse than a crying baby when you're at a romantic restaurant on a Saturday night. We tend to stick to eating nice and early in family friendly chains to avoid the glares from those lucky couples who get to eat three courses in peace! Henry is also an absolute star as long as he can eat the whole time. There's nothing worse than when a restaurant is really slow and Henry is really hungry! Choose somewhere where you know your toddler will like what you get them to eat. Anywhere that does bread and olives is a hit for us, it means Henry can eat straight away while we wait for the main courses to come out. Some cafes and restaurants have little play areas or have lots to look at, and this is also something to think about when planning to eat out. The restaurants that we've found have the best children's menus are Wagamama, Harvester (surprisingly brilliant), GBK, Nando's, Pizza Express, Frankie and Benny's (such good value) and Ask. I'm really not a fan of places that serve absolute crap on their children's menus; all of these places just do smaller versions of their adults' food, but serve it in a more child friendly way (and price).
• Stick to the one course.
We've had so many meals where we've been out with friends and the dreaded question, "Is anyone getting starters?" is asked. In my head I'm screaming "please nooooo" thinking that I really only have an hour of a placid child remaining and if we get starters, that will probably run out just as our mains arrive. It's one of those things that only parents of toddlers will truly understand. No garlic bread, no matter how good, is worth a miserable child at the end of dinner. We tend to order quickly, have one course, and then on the off chance that Henry is still happily playing, have a pudding as an extra treat!! Don't push your luck and order the tasty looking antipasto platter....you'll live to regret it!
• Family members
Our best meals are when there's more of us than just the three of us. Henry's Marmar and Parpar are both brilliant in helping out at dinner and his Parpar is more than happy to take him for a little wander round outside if he gets bored. Make the most of going out with family or friends, even if they do insist on ordering those bloody starters! We also make the most of having family close by for when we really need a long, relaxing dinner. Date night doesn't happen often in our house, not because we don't have a babysitter, but because we love taking Henry out with us. But sometimes I really really want to order that antipasto platter and I really really don't want to have to wear Peppa Pig stickers throughout dinner. Sometimes I really don't want to have to carry a massive handbag stuffed with Henry's restaurant essentials and I would rather talk about politics and celebrity gossip than sing the wheels on the bus. And that's ok. Sometimes eating out with a toddler is an absolute nightmare and my honest advice is, on those days where your toddler is just 'in one'...get a babysitter or a takeaway!
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