Ever tried to clean up ketchup off carpet?
In a restaurant? Armed with only a napkin and without anyone noticing?
That was me in a Ruby Tuesday just off the interstate in Missouri earlier this summer. Our toddler had launched a revolt while my wife and I were having lunch, and he wasn't interested in being patient.
That's when he threw a small bowl of ketchup on the floor (after French fries and other items had already found their way there).
After my futile attempt to wipe it up before anyone noticed, we practically ran out of there.
That's one of the last times we've taken our son to a sit-down restaurant. Since then we've limited our stops to fast-food restaurants where we can get in and out quickly and there's little chance of items suddenly taking flight.
A sit-down restaurant is out of the question for now, but we'll keep working on it. If his parents have any say, he'll handle himself better.
He is only 2 (or as I like to tell people, 2!).
But ban him and his family from the restaurant entirely? That's what a Houston restaurant did last month.
La Fisheria, a seafood-Mexican restaurant, announced it would no longer accept parties that included children 8 years old or younger after 7 p.m.
"We are a family-friendly restaurant," the announcement read, according to the Houston Business Journal. "But we also respect all of our customers ... thanks for understanding."
Others, it turns out, have similar rules. Another restaurant in Virginia doesn't allow anyone 18 and under, while one in Pittsburgh announced two years ago that children 6 and under are no longer welcome.
I understand why restaurants make these decisions (read: flying ketchup). Apparently most other folks do as well. The Houston company reported increased business after the announcement, and the replies on its Facebook page are overwhelmingly in support.
Yet I can't agree with dismissing all children under the age of 8 as being disruptive. There are ways to handle these situations better (a family section could work).
I don't want my son ruining anyone's dinner more than the folks who own the restaurant. I get it.
But we're talking about young children here. Are we treating them as if they're adults?
Adam Daigle 918-581-8480
adam.daigle@tulsaworld.com
