Horror stories: Dining out with kids

"At a local Chinese restaurant the other night, we watched a 3- or 4-year-old little boy leave his seat six times in half an hour. The second time he got out of his seat, he ran over to the large aquariums in the center of the restaurant and tapped on them so hard that one of the employees had to ask him to stop, at which point Mom came over and got him and paid attention to him for about three minutes and tried to feed him some stir-fry, which he promptly tried to throw at her. The fourth time he hopped out of his seat, he went around to different, empty tables in the restaurant, climbed into the chairs and banged the clean silverware on the table so that it sounded like the clashing swords from a medieval movie. Not exactly the makings of a peaceful dinner." — Shelly Strahan

"I have, many times, in many restaurants, refused a seat next to a family only to be glowered at by the host/hostess/server while being seated at a table on the busiest route to the restroom. Likewise, I have sat in a section of mostly older people and couples when the host/hostess/server seats a family of six or eight next to us. I believe there should be some sensitivity on the restaurant's part in seating that does not just accommodate the next server's turn." — Lorraine Nelms

"At the Blue Iguana on my first anniversary with my husband ... we went early, and there was no one seated around us, which was very nice (considering) the reason for the evening. After we ordered and our appetizer came, a family was seated nearby with older children, maybe 8 to 12 years old. They were quiet, except for normal conversation. Our entrees arrived and a couple minutes later another family was seated very close to us. They had two small children with them, as well as an infant, and the baby started crying loudly. These parents made no attempt to keep the children seated, and it was quite some time before the baby was calmed. So, my husband and I ate as fast as we could at this point because even at the small table we were at, we could barely hear each other talk. Also, we couldn't carry on a normal conversation without getting looks from this family because during our supposedly private conversation, we occasionally used curse words. Sorry, but not our place to have to watch what we say; we don't have children. My main point is, there is definitely a difference in the way families can handle themselves and their children in a restaurant, and these two families are a case in point." — Gretchen Jarvis