Parents who walk into a café or restaurant and leave their parenting duties at the door are driving local restaurant and café staff to despair. Of particular annoyance is the trend for parents to retaliate toward establishments that have chided their children, by dishing out bad reviews online.
While staff at popular eateries are quick to point out it’s the minority allowing their children to run amuck, the damage those children can do is major.
Richmond hospitality staff regaled the Waimea Weekly with tales of out-of-control children that included having a brand-new $400 table repeatedly stabbed by a two-year-old wielding a knife, and attempts to destroy a $40 menu much to the amusement of his parents.
“It’s becoming hard in the hospitality industry because sometimes parents treat us like a playground,” says one local owner. “Some very nice children come in and have pleasant experiences. But the ones who don’t create damage and are time-consuming.”
Staff and owners all share the sentiment that a restaurant or café is a place to eat, not a place to play.
All parents can admit bias toward their own children, but it’s necessary to step outside of that family bubble when out in public and intervene during inappropriate behaviour from your off-spring.
Ultimately the best way for parents to teach good manners is to model them.