The terms "Kid-friendly" or "Family-friendly" restaurant has always made me cringe. Before I had a baby of my own, this term always conjured up images of a restaurant that welcomed messy, bratty children either sitting in their high chair screaming or traipsing around the dining room while their parents continue to chow down on their meal, all the while being totally oblivious to the disruption their children are causing. Now as a parent, both terms still makes me cringe as I image places like Applebee's or Chuck E Cheese. Just because I have a child doesnt mean that I need to dumb down my palette so to speak. So when I talk about family-friendly or kid-friendly I may not be looking at the best restaurants (I dont expect a 5 or even 4 star restaurant to go out of its way to attract families), but I also hope to look at dining establishments that are at least a step above Applebee's. I also would like to add, however, that if I do choose to take my infant to a nice restaurant I would prefer not to get glares from the wait staff.
My son is currently 10 months old and so far only has 2 teeth. He doesn't seem to mind going to restaurants so we occasionally take him places with us. My son likes to watch my husband and I eat and try to eat with us, even if he has already had his dinner. However, with only 2 teeth, we have to be careful about what we give him to chew on. That is why I was quite pleased one Sunday when our little family went to Mimi's Cafe for breakfast. When we were seated they brought a complimentary "kids plate". They brought an appetizer plate full of goodies well beyond the normal fare. The plate consisted of a ramekin of Cheerios, an orange slice, crackers, and of course a kids menu full of activities and crayons. I found this to be very thoughtful! I can't really order off the kids' meal for him yet, so I think it is nice that someone in the company took a minute to think about families with little babies.
I have also been to the Cheesecake Factory when they have offered crackers and fruit! Why don't more restaurants do this? Though this would not be a major factor in my decision on where to dine, I would certain lean more towards a restaurant that took this kind of consideration!
It isn't complimentary Cheerios, but Bravo Cucina Italiana will often give kids a ball of raw pizza dough to play with. They will even bake it for children so make dough sculptures of shapes! What fun! My son had fun squeezing the dough which occupied him for a good 10 minutes!
I'm curious if there are other places out there that have similar services. If anyone knows of other restaurants that give complimentary snacks to babies and toddlers, please feel free to share similar experiences with other great restaurants.
Thursday, March 06, 2008
Family-friendly Restaurants
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
A Romantic Dinner
Ok, so I am a bit late on this one, but I thought I would share my Valentine's Day menu. I decided to cook a nice meal this year instead of going out to a restaurant. I was excited about the chance to make something that I woiuld not normally make!
This year's January/February issue of Cooking Light had a Valentine's menu consisting of rack of Lamb, truffled polenta, and a spicy sweet pepper relish so I decided to follow that. I added a side dish of peas sauteed with bacon, mainly because I wanted a bit more color .
The lamb chops were excellent, which was exciting as it was my first attempt with lamb! I started with chops right out of the refrigerator which may not have been the best idea. The chops were a little underdone after baking for 15 minutes, so I put them back in for a couple minutes. I think that 20 minutes of baking would have worked better, or letting my chops get to room temperature. Besides, this little setback, the lamb chops were very successful!
For the polenta, I made my own from scratch rather than using the Cooking Light recipe that used instant polenta. Polenta is really not hard to do and I started that first and then working on chopping the ingredients and preparing the lamb. The polenta worked really well as an accompaniment, especially since I get sick of mashed potatoes as an accompaniment. The spicy sweet pepper relish was not as big of a hit. I think it was a strange thing to pair with lamb and I didnt think it worked very well. I also just dont think I liked the recipe. I loved the peas and bacon! They were such a nice green! There is something about lamb and peas that makes me think of spring!
All in all, I think the meal was a hit. This lamb chop recipe is great as a romantic meal, but it would also be great for Easter or for entertaining! Again, the recipe is from Cooking Light and is as follows:
Fennel and Rosemary-Crusted Roasted Rack of Lamb:
1 tablespoon fennel seeds, crushed
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 garlic cloves, minced
1 (12 oz) French- cut rack of lamb, trimmed
Cooking spray
Rosemary sprigs (optional)
1. Preheat oven to 475 degrees.
2. Combine first 5 ingredients in a small bowl. Rub lamb evenly with garlic mixture; place on a broiler pan coated with cooking spray. Bake at 475 degrees for 15 minutes or until a thermometer registers 145 degrees (medium-rare) to 160 degrees (medium). Garnish with rosemary sprigs if desired. Yield: 2 servings (serving size- 3ribs).
Friday, February 15, 2008
Molten Chocolate Surprise
As a cook, I look just about anywhere for a good recipes. As a mom, I like recipes that are easy. I usually make a variety of different types of recipes, some that are more time consuming than others. Yes, I am a stay at home mom so of course I am sure that many assume that I have time to make complex meals every night, but this is not the case. Anyway, I really like the Kraft Foods magazine. It is a free food magazine that arrives at my home every couple of months or so. It is free because it is, of course, an advertisement for Kraft foods. All of the recipes use at least one Kraft product, of course, you can always substitute for another product. This magazine is by no means gourmet. It is geared towards families and those who may be cooking for kids, but there are some nice, quick ideas in there. PREHEAT oven to 425°F. Microwave chocolate and butter in large microwaveable bowl on HIGH 2 min. or until butter is melted. Stir with wire whisk until chocolate is completely melted and mixture is well blended. Beat whole eggs, egg yolks, sugar and flour with wire whisk until well blended. Gradually add to chocolate mixture, beating constantly until well blended. LINE 12 medium muffin cups with paper liners; spray with cooking spray. Place 1 cookie, upside-down, on bottom of each cup; cover evenly with batter. BAKE 8 min. or until cakes are firm around edges but still soft in centers. Let stand 1 min. Carefully remove cakes from muffin pan. Invert onto dessert dishes; remove paper liners. Serve with whipped topping if desired. 
A couple of nights ago, I made a dessert from the Kraft magazine, these little Chocolate Molten cakes. This was really a fun recipe to make! You start with a Chips Ahoy cookie in the bottom of a muffin cup and then cover it with a batter made of eggs, chocolate, butter, powdered sugar, and flour. As the cake bakes, it gets hard or solidifies at the edges and then slowly moves toward the center. Once the cakes are finished baking you invert them, take the cupcake liner off and this is what you have.
When you cut into it, you get this wonderful molten chocolate center! These cakes are not only fun to make, but they were delicious! Not to mention extremely easy! I think this recipe would be excellent for a potluck or family get together or even a wedding shower or baby shower. The only small problem I can, was that the cookies were a little big for by muffin pan, but I just shaved the edges of the cookies with a serrated knife.
The recipe is below. You can also get it by visiting the Kraft Foods website where you can also sign up for the free magazine or by visiting this link.
Molten Chocolate Surprise
by Kraft Foods
15 min
28 min
1 doz. or 12 servings, one cake each