Non-parenting In Breweries

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Over the weekend I popped into a DC brewery on Saturday afternoon (for the sake of the family involved I won’t say which one.) Immediately I had to swivel to avoid two toddlers running by. I was inclined to give the family the benefit of the doubt, as the parents were following close behind. But as my short visit wore on, my patience with this family wore out. Their children ran into a employees’ only area with brewing equipment while the parents were in a different room. The kids then started banging on items around the bar before commencing running around. They ran in and out of the taproom leaving the door to the (not warm) outside hanging open for minutes at a time. The staff had to intervene three times within 30 minutes. I had some empathy for the father running after the kids who looked exhausted. But it was time to go. Maybe one parent could stay, but these kids were looking for something to do.

It was a weird choice on the part of the parents to expect that things would turn out differently, though. Toddlers don’t sit still at tables while adults talk — at least not for more than about 10-15 minutes while eating. The adults had no constructive activities with them for their children to engage in, so of course the little ones took off running. And, while I absolutely do not want to see any harm befall a child, my reflexes tend to be terrible when I’m 2 beers deep into my afternoon, my back is turned, an no one told me that I was expected to be a community babysitter.

I was reminded of the way Midlands had to ban under-21 visitors on nights and weekends due to safety concerns. My understanding is that their staff intervened one too many times when parents did not, including preventing children from running into Georgia Avenue.

I want breweries and beer gardens to remain open to families so that my friends and I can continue to enjoy them together as our households grow and change. I wonder what a good solution is to keep everyone safe and comfortable. Common sense isn’t always so common.

My toddlers would sit at restaurant tables while the adults ate. I cannot think of a single time when one of them ran around a restaurant.

We did have one time that we were having a late dinner with old friends at a nice restaurant that ran very long.

When our then 2 year old finished eating he took his Thomas train under the table and played quietly there for about 2 hours. When we left there were several people nearby who remarked that they had no idea we had a young kid with us.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Recently read an online review of a local brewery that was critical because there wasn't anything for her kids to do. "They were bored after 20 minutes of exploring."

Haha!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I love the trend of having beer gardens in the US like they do in Germany. But the breweries in Germany will often have an entire children's playground outside with picnic tables surrounding it -- which is great if your kids are old enough to play on a playground without a parent. Great fun, but more for ages 5 and up -- probably not toddlers unless you plan it for naptime and have the kid sleep in a stroller.

How do you all feel about dogs at breweries? I have some thoughts on that . .

No dogs should be allowed at any restaurant, brewery, coffee shop, grocery store or food establishment.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I love the trend of having beer gardens in the US like they do in Germany. But the breweries in Germany will often have an entire children's playground outside with picnic tables surrounding it -- which is great if your kids are old enough to play on a playground without a parent. Great fun, but more for ages 5 and up -- probably not toddlers unless you plan it for naptime and have the kid sleep in a stroller.

How do you all feel about dogs at breweries? I have some thoughts on that . .

No dogs should be allowed at any restaurant, brewery, coffee shop, grocery store or food establishment.

I love dogs being allowed everywhere, just like Germany! Here dogs can really only sit in outdoor seating at restaurants, or they can go in to my bank lobby. I'm not sure why they are allowed at my bank, but everytime I go, someone is in line with their dog. It is pretty funny.

In Germany there are more places that are dog friendly than kid friendly.

Just like kids, dogs should behave when they are out and about. I don't take my dog anywhere but I have taken past dogs to outdoor seating at restaurants. She would never bite but so many kids would maul her because she was cute that we had to stop taking her. She did not really enjoy strange kids hanging on her.

[Anonymous]

Where do people go to that they see hordes of kids running around and crawling on the floor? We take our young kids to restaurants a lot and I have rarely seen this kind of behavior.
Kids should be socialized at an early age. Not only in spaces reserved for them, like daycare and playgrounds, but also and more importantly in the everyday world. That is what happens in a healthy society. Seeing adults interact and learning how behave in different social settings. Finding their place in society.
All over the world kids are welcome everywhere, restaurants, weddings, banks, cafes... In the meantime America is raising sociopaths. I'm not exaggerating much.

[Anonymous]

I agree that we need more family-friendly places in the DC area. I've been to restaurants (mostly in Europe) with outdoor play spaces, and it's awesome to keep everyone happy and entertained.

But parents are never off the hook for watching their kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Where do people go to that they see hordes of kids running around and crawling on the floor? We take our young kids to restaurants a lot and I have rarely seen this kind of behavior.
Kids should be socialized at an early age. Not only in spaces reserved for them, like daycare and playgrounds, but also and more importantly in the everyday world. That is what happens in a healthy society. Seeing adults interact and learning how behave in different social settings. Finding their place in society.
All over the world kids are welcome everywhere, restaurants, weddings, banks, cafes... In the meantime America is raising sociopaths. I'm not exaggerating much.

I don't see it often out in public --maybe once a year-- but I did see it on Saturday.

I'm inclined to offer empathy and the benefit of the doubt when I can. Maybe these kiddos missed nap time. Perhaps the family was traveling from out of town to visit with friends, so they didn't have access to their usual kit of of toys and art supplies. Sometimes the children involved have invisible medical or developmental disabilities that it's not my business to know about. It is the parents' business to know their children's limitations, though. If your kid isn't ready to handle this situation, don't make him or her do it. It's also the parents job to assess risk; loose supervision on a playground is very different from loose supervision on in a crowded space over hard floors around unstable metal furniture and glassware.

For the most part, it's nbd to me as a patron who was there without children that day. When I got tired of the kids banging into my butt, shrieking, and leaving the door open, I left. I was also more than a little freaked out that someone was going to crack a small head on the concrete floor or get hurt by pulling over glassware from a high-top table or toppling a tall metal stool; providing first aid and helping with accident reports is not my idea of a good time. I just think that, given that breweries don't have to let children in, it would really stink if this type of behavior led to more establishments banning under-21's. It's already happened at least once in DC.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Does this brewery have things that entertain children on site. Some breweries have games and things specifically with children in mind, so clearly they are welcoming the family set. If the brewery doesn't have those things, maybe they should just be adults-only establishments.

Drinking at a brewery with your kids is dicey anyway. Does one parent not drink? Someone needs to be with it to watch the kids and to drive home.

Uber or Lyft solve this problem.

[Anonymous]

As with everything, it's all about the individual kids and how they (and their parents!) do in spaces like that. Some are great. I've been to Atlas with friends who brought their 4-year-old, and he was perfect. He played with his trucks on the table, talked about 4-year-old stuff like if dinosaurs were fat (??), and occasionally wanted to go look at the vending machine.

By contrast, I have been to The Brig with kids who were running around and under other people's tables, and their parents had to take them out of there after half an hour. You just have to know your family and their limitations.

[Anonymous]

I don't think this post should be specific to breweries. There are breweries that are kid friendly - I forget the name, but there is one in VA that has an actual kid section, like separate area for families with young children. It's more open, there are picnic tables and even a few small toys. I've taken my son there to meet up with friends before, and it's fine. BUT, I still have to parent. I can't drink much and I need to keep an eye on him. It's nice that it's an option though.

Caboose doesn't have an actual kids section, but it does have a wide open space and some kid friendly stuff on the menu so I've taken my kid there before.

We've also done a lot of wineries, and brought stuff to picnic and play in the grass. It's lovely.

I would never take my 3 year old to a busy brewery that didn't have a kid's section simply because it would not be enjoyable. Even if both parents were there, what's the point?

I think this more of a mea culpa from this parent than an overall trend that needs to be addressed.

[Anonymous]

What IS it with millennials and breweries+beer gardens ? Why such a ... passion? Sincere question from a Gen X

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Over the weekend I popped into a DC brewery on Saturday afternoon (for the sake of the family involved I won’t say which one.) Immediately I had to swivel to avoid two toddlers running by. I was inclined to give the family the benefit of the doubt, as the parents were following close behind. But as my short visit wore on, my patience with this family wore out. Their children ran into a employees’ only area with brewing equipment while the parents were in a different room. The kids then started banging on items around the bar before commencing running around. They ran in and out of the taproom leaving the door to the (not warm) outside hanging open for minutes at a time. The staff had to intervene three times within 30 minutes. I had some empathy for the father running after the kids who looked exhausted. But it was time to go. Maybe one parent could stay, but these kids were looking for something to do.

It was a weird choice on the part of the parents to expect that things would turn out differently, though. Toddlers don’t sit still at tables while adults talk — at least not for more than about 10-15 minutes while eating. The adults had no constructive activities with them for their children to engage in, so of course the little ones took off running. And, while I absolutely do not want to see any harm befall a child, my reflexes tend to be terrible when I’m 2 beers deep into my afternoon, my back is turned, an no one told me that I was expected to be a community babysitter.

I was reminded of the way Midlands had to ban under-21 visitors on nights and weekends due to safety concerns. My understanding is that their staff intervened one too many times when parents did not, including preventing children from running into Georgia Avenue.

I want breweries and beer gardens to remain open to families so that my friends and I can continue to enjoy them together as our households grow and change. I wonder what a good solution is to keep everyone safe and comfortable. Common sense isn’t always so common.

Eh, no thanks.

I have two little kids (2 and 4). Once they are mobile, it's just not a good idea to take them anywhere they can't run and TOUCH most of the things around. It's just how it is. My older one is getting the age where she has a bit more reason and would sit and eat, or at least would watch a show on the iPad while I had a beer. But the 2 year old? No way. He'd be a terror. When we go out to eat (fast casual) it lasts about 15 minutes before they are restless.

I love beer. I love breweries. I could see going to one to see some friends, but I would be too busy trailing my children to even be able to drink one beer.

Find other activities to do with your friends once you all have kids.

Perhaps I have particularly compliant children, but my 3 year old is more than fine in any restaurant if I give him crayons, food, maybe a truck or two. He's certainly not running around and touching everything. I like breweries because they're more laid back and generally louder and you generally have a little more flexibility for what you eat and drink (or whether you eat, really).

I agree that if you have challenging children, you need to be more thoughtful about where you go but I don't think that just because SOME children are challenging means that restaurants and breweries need to ban all children.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Does this brewery have things that entertain children on site. Some breweries have games and things specifically with children in mind, so clearly they are welcoming the family set. If the brewery doesn't have those things, maybe they should just be adults-only establishments.

Drinking at a brewery with your kids is dicey anyway. Does one parent not drink? Someone needs to be with it to watch the kids and to drive home.

Uber or Lyft solve this problem.

You do realize that the kids in OP's scenario and the kids PPs are largely discussing are all young enough to need car seats and/or booster seats in vehicles--don't you?

So I guess you assume these parents taking Uber and Lyft (so both adults can drink) are also going to book only ride shares that come with child car seats or the parents will...haul car seats into the brewery with them to have for the Uber home?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I love the trend of having beer gardens in the US like they do in Germany. But the breweries in Germany will often have an entire children's playground outside with picnic tables surrounding it -- which is great if your kids are old enough to play on a playground without a parent. Great fun, but more for ages 5 and up -- probably not toddlers unless you plan it for naptime and have the kid sleep in a stroller.

How do you all feel about dogs at breweries? I have some thoughts on that . .

No dogs should be allowed at any restaurant, brewery, coffee shop, grocery store or food establishment.

I love dogs being allowed everywhere, just like Germany! Here dogs can really only sit in outdoor seating at restaurants, or they can go in to my bank lobby. I'm not sure why they are allowed at my bank, but everytime I go, someone is in line with their dog. It is pretty funny.

In Germany there are more places that are dog friendly than kid friendly.

Just like kids, dogs should behave when they are out and about. I don't take my dog anywhere but I have taken past dogs to outdoor seating at restaurants. She would never bite but so many kids would maul her because she was cute that we had to stop taking her. She did not really enjoy strange kids hanging on her.

Dogs are NOT human.

They do not belong in anyplace that serves food or sells things.

Keep your damn dogs at home.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What IS it with millennials and breweries+beer gardens ? Why such a ... passion? Sincere question from a Gen X

And dogs everywhere?!?

They are so so rude and self centered.