Grant Achatz: what do you think of a child ban at Alinea?

[Anonymous]

Diners at Alinea in CHI were pissed that a couple brought their 8 month old baby to the restaurant and it bawled through throughout the dinner disturbing everyone. Dinners at Alinea cost $500 per person and require reservations 3 months in advance.

Achatz is considering banning children altogether.

The restaurant: https://content.alinearestaurant.com/html/index.html

Achatz the chef is a tongueless chef who prepares his food by smell. Here are some of his dishes;




Idk, maybe I've been out of the loop a while, but this looks, woah.

[Anonymous]

No sensible person would take a baby there. It's a shame there are people so clueless that the restaurant needs to spell it out with a formal ban.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No sensible person would take a baby there. It's a shame there are people so clueless that the restaurant needs to spell it out with a formal ban.

+1

[Anonymous]

It is insane to bring a baby there.

[Anonymous]

They should have just kicked out the couple with the baby.

[Anonymous]

Who were they?

[Anonymous]

I would never, ever, ever take a baby there. Both for myself and for those around me. How clueless do you have to be to do something like that?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No sensible person would take a baby there. It's a shame there are people so clueless that the restaurant needs to spell it out with a formal ban.

Exactly.

Although I guess assholes that would wreck dinner like that for everyone are the sort that need official rules.

When the baby didn't quiet quickly, they should have been offered a choice: leave immediately or pick up the tab for everyone in the restaurant. But, really, just leave.

I immediately thought of the Nora/Ruth's Chris threads, though.

[Anonymous]

If you have the money to eat there how in the world can you not afford a babysitter for an evening?

[Anonymous]

the babysitter could have cancelled at the last minute. Alinea's has a no cancellation policy.

[Anonymous]

I wouldn't feed those dishes to my dog let alone pay $500 for it.

[Anonymous]

He is not tongueless. And his sense of taste has returned. He did chemo and radiation instead of having his tongue removed.

I read that the babysitter canceled at the last minute. Tough. The parents should have had backup, given the price of the dinner (which is not $500 per person, it's between $200 and $300). Why subject other diners to your baby?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I wouldn't feed those dishes to my dog let alone pay $500 for it.

Family bucket of KFC chicken, party for one!

[Anonymous]

It's a 3-4 hour meal. It's "dinner theater". Dinner as performance art. I don't get how people won't just take turns taking the baby outside until it soothes. Assholes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:He is not tongueless. And his sense of taste has returned. He did chemo and radiation instead of having his tongue removed.

I read that the babysitter canceled at the last minute. Tough. The parents should have had backup, given the price of the dinner (which is not $500 per person, it's between $200 and $300). Why subject other diners to your baby?

Exactly. This isn't Olive Garden. If no one can watch your baby, you stay home...you don't subject every other person there to a screaming kid.