As any parent knows, eating out in a restaurant with children can be a bit of a dicey game. Sometimes your kids are angels, and other times you just want to crawl under the table ... if it wasn't such a horrific mess from all the food they'd thrown down there. But what if your bill depended on how well-behaved your children were?
A Reddit user recently posted a picture of a receipt from an Italian restaurant in Washington named Sogno Di Vino with a title "If only all restaurants did this for people with kids ..." On it there was a $4 discount for "well-behaved kids". A sweet gesture, and I bet those parents were pretty proud.
But the whole thing makes me kind of nervous.
Can you imagine if you were charged more for those times when your children aren't quite so good (as plenty of commenters suggested should be standard)? Or if the next time you didn't get a discount?
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Eating out with children is already filled with plenty of pressure for parents. Every raised voice, every dropped spoon can make a mom feel like all eyes in the joint are searing into her. And yes, sometimes children are out of control and should be removed from a restaurant. No one deserves for their meal to be interrupted by kids gone wild, but there also needs to be a certain amount of tolerance for families dining out without parents feeling like they're being judged even more. Most children just aren't going to be seen and not heard, and as long as mom and dad are making sure they're not heard too loudly, they deserve a little bit of a break. Having a random waitress decide what "well-behaved" is could be all sorts of problematic. I also can't imagine that restaurants really want to get into a battle over the bill with "those" parents who always deny their precious little ones ever do anything wrong.
Would it be nice to be rewarded when the planets align and you all make it through dinner delightfully? Absolutely. But I'm not sure it's worth the price you'd pay for the days when your kids act more ... like kids.
Would you welcome a policy in which your restaurant bill was adjusted according to your children's behavior?
Image via Reddit
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Comments 68
I think that's a great incentive! Use the discount to get the kids some dessert! :)
My children are almost always being told how "polite" they are and how they are a "delight to have" but when they were younger and I was still teaching them those manners everyone always comments on, they weren't always a joy to have around. So, when I went out and they were a little too noisy or "misbehaved" at a restaurant, I'd apologize and usually leave a bigger tip for the waitress, plus I've always cleaned up after my own kids, and I've taught them to clean up after themselves as they got older. I've actually insisted a manager get my child a mop when they spilled their soda. I don't think I should get a discount for raising my children right, I did it because it's my job. I can tell you if they had tried to charge me for when me kids were what they deemed "out of hand", they would most defineately have had an ear full....and I would have taken my tip back.
It is a private restuarant and they can award great behavior as they see fit, I think it is AWESOME and good for them.
I think it sets a great example. I know I enjoy my meal more when my children are well-behaved and I expect them to be.
The server may have given that discount out of pocket since they appreciated the children's behavior.