Yesterday I went on an obnoxious rant about how I am terribly sad to see the summer end. One thing that I have enjoyed all summer was the ‘kids in the kitchen’ cooking series. I started it because I thought it would be a fun feature to inspire the kids to get in the kitchen during the summer and give them something to do. I also started it because I have featured kid cooking tips, recipes, etc., before and have gotten good feedback.
When I started these posts at the beginning of the summer, I mentioned that it was going to be a ‘mini series’ and these ‘kids in the kitchen’ posts would be every Friday for 10 weeks, basically just for the summer until school started again. With school is starting (or already started) for most of the country and this series should be winding down. But my question to you is; should I keep the Friday ‘kids in the kitchen’ series going? I have a lot of good ideas for future ‘kids in the kitchen’ posts, including recipes, tips, and fun suggestions that I am giddy to share with you. Should I save these ideas until next summer and bring back the kids cooking series then and do as I have done this summer? Or should I just feature kids cooking ideas periodically or should I make this a regular Friday feature?
Please let me know what you think! I really would love to hear!
Well for today’s kids in the kitchen post I am sharing Kid Friendly Restaurants (Part Two). I shared part one of this post earlier in the summer. Part one contained specific restaurants that are fun for kids or cater to kids. For part two, I am sharing ideas for fun restaurants for kids that are more ‘national’ or ‘international’ and you can find no matter where you live.
Coffee Shops- Ok I know what you are thinking, coffee and kids, totally don’t go together. But I beg to differ. Many coffee shops these days know Mommies need afternoon coffee breaks and while they may not be able to get away from the kids altogether, any time to sit back for a few minutes while the kiddos play or are entertained is appreciated. Coffee shops are taking note of this and there are quite a few around the country that offer everything from playgrounds, to toys, to Mommy and me classes. There are even coffee shops in my city that occasionally have children’s story time, puppet shows and kids musicians. And don’t worry these coffee shops know you don’t want to serve your kids coffee so they offer a variety of kid friendly beverages and snacks such as hot chocolate, smoothies, milk shakes, fruit and yogurt parfaits, cookies, and popcorn.
Tea Houses- Alight, not another common stomping ground for kids but just like the coffee shops, if you find the right one it can be perfect! Doesn’t every little girl loving playing dress up and having a tea party? Many tea houses realize this and offer tea party packages. I have seen some locations do only packages that you can purchase for a group (birthday parties, Girl Scout troops, etc.) and have to have a set number of children. But other locations offer specific tea times on certain days of the month for mothers and daughters and walk-ins. Again these ‘tea’ parties are designated for children and allow them to dress up, drink lemonade or sweet tea, and eat PB and J ‘tea sandwiches.’ Call tea houses in your area to see if they offer any programs like this.
Frozen Yogurt Shops- This is probably the most commonly available ‘kid’ restaurant. And compared to other frozen treat shops (ice cream parlors, sno cone stands, etc.) frozen yogurt shops are more ‘hands’ on and perfect for kids and adults because it allows you to be the ‘chef’ and freely prepare your self-serve yogurt treat by hand selecting your custom toppings. Just be sure and let kids be kids, even if it means strawberry yogurt with gummy worms and gum balls!
Pizza Buffets- This one is a no brainer. Kids and pizza go together like peanut butter and jelly. But the pizza buffet, well that is pure heaven for kids. From the extreme variety, not to mention dessert pizzas, to, most often than not, video arcade games, pizza buffets are a great place for a kid to be a kid!
Dinner Cruise- This is totally be.on.your.best.behavior.or.you.are.grounded type of dinner but oh so worth it. A dinner cruise is defiantly a splurge for a special occasion, but because it is such a special experience it is defiantly a memorable one. I remember being able to go on a dinner cruise on a few occasions as a kid and I remember feeling so grown up. It was so much fun and one of my fondest childhood memories. Even if you don’t live on the ocean (I don’t), if you have a lake nearby I am sure you can find a cruse for you!
Leave a Reply