Are you a new parent that has just about given up on taking your kid(s) out to eat – well please don’t give up. I’m a mom of two kids; I have a 3.5-year-old son and an 8-month-old daughter. When my son was much younger, my husband would get so frustrated he declared one day that we were never going to go out to eat. If I really wanted something we would do take out or we would just call a baby-sitter and we’d go out without our son. After calming my husband down, I explained to him that the only way our son was going to learn how to behave himself in restaurants is by continuing to take him out and get him used to the idea. That doesn’t mean that we didn’t go through some patches and that we didn’t leave a few restaurants mid meal, however, I can tell you it was all worth it. Just keep at it. My son is an angel and now looks forward to eating out and wants to know which restaurant we’ll be eating at. Here are a few tips for eating out with the kids:

• Keep doing it on a regular basis. We typically like to go out to eat as a family at least once week – it doesn’t have to be a fancy place. Asian restaurants are great places to take your kids. Adventure past the kiddie pizza joints.
• Order for the kids first and ask for the kids food to come out first.
• Don’t order off of the kid’s menu – most of the selection is terrible and very unhealthy. Do you really want a cheeseburger from a Chinese restaurant? I also, find that the quality of ingredients they use in kid’s meals are inferior to what they use on the adult menu. Also, some places serve juice and dessert and sometimes they bring out the dessert with the menu – your kid will most probably not eat their meal if they see a cookie on their plate.
• Walk your child around while you are waiting for the food or have one parent take them outside so they don’t feel so confined. Whenever possible I love showing the kitchen to my son – he loves watching the chefs cook. Asian restaurants often have an aquarium, which can take up a few good minutes. Then there is always a trip to the bathroom to wash your hands.
• Talk to your kids and engage with them so they don’t get bored.
• Ask for the check early and pay before you are done eating that way as soon as you are finished eating you can walk out the door.
• Go to restaurants that are loud – so if your kid is a bit loud no one will notice and you don’t feel like you are disturbing other patrons.
• And lastly, order a cocktail for yourself – it helps calm the nerves!