Family-Friendly Fare
A guide to Britain's most child-friendly restaurants
Gone are the days when parents turning up to a restaurant with children in tow were met with barely hidden expressions of horror. Now everywhere from celebrity haunt Locanda Locatelli to local restaurants welcome families with open arms. We've hand-picked our favourite places around the country, but we're always looking for more. If you think we've missed out a real family gem, let us and other parents know here.
Cornwall: Morocco Red, Eden Project
Situated slap-bang in one of Britain's biggest family tourist attractions, the Eden Project's restaurant gets an 'A for Effort', particularly as everything is cooked fresh to order. The site itself is massive, so you can always walk off the calories you put on.
We like: the gluten-free, dairy-free and vegan options on the children’s menu
Where: Eden Project, St Austell, Cornwall
Price: £4.25 for a main course with a Cornish yoghurt for dessert.
Click here for The Eden Project website.
London: The Blue Kangaroo, Chelsea
This central London restaurant has become very popular because of its integral downstairs play area. Parents can choose to eat here or in the restaurant which has a big screen with live link to the play area. ‘Staff should be taken out and... canonised,' said The Guardian.
We like: the fact that the chicken nuggets are made with organic chicken
Where: The Kings Road, Chelsea, London
Price: £4.95 for a main course and drink
Click here for The Blue Kangaroo website.
London: Frizzante at Hackney City Farm
Surrounded by animals this may be the perfect place to explain where food comes from…or maybe choose the vegetarian breakfast instead! This city farm's café won the Time Out Best Family Restaurant 2004 for its organic food and lively atmosphere.
We like: the laid-back atmosphere and all the entertainment of the farm
Where: Hackney City Farm, 1a Goldsmith's Row, E2 8QA
Price: Ultra-thin children's pizzas - £2.50
Click here for the Frizzante website.
London: Giraffe
Voted Best For Kids in the 2005 Observer Food Monthly Awards; ‘Giraffe is that rare British beast, the family-friendly restaurant which manages not to scare off the young and childless.'
We like: the space for buggies, the emphasis on fresh and healthy food.
Where: [London-only] Battersea, Chiswick, Hampstead, Islington, Kensington, Marylebone, Muswell Hill, Richmond, Heathrow, Spitalfields, Royal Festival Hall
Price: Any main, plus ice-cream and juice, 12-3pm, Monday to Friday - £4.95
Click here for the Giraffe website.
London: Rainforest Cafe
Yes it's big and brash and likely to give most adults a headache, but the Rainforest Cafe has a huge appeal for kids with its wildlife sounds and light show accompanying the meal. The menu is reassuring global with plenty for adventurous children and it's good to see fruit salad included in the desserts.
We like: clear references on the children's menu for gluten, dairy and egg-free options.
Where: Shaftesbury Avenue, London WC1
Price: £10.25 for main course and desert
Click here for the Rainforest Cafe website.
London: Tamarind
At first glance a Michelin-starred restaurant wouldn't be the first place you'd think of taking your brood, but chef Alfred Prasad is apparently keen on helping kids expand their palate. That aim was behind Tamarind's decision to offer a free gourmet Sunday lunch to any child under 10, as long as they're accompanied by an adult ordering the £24.50 tasting menu.
We like: the child-friendly, mildly spiced menu
Where: 20 Queen Street, London W1J 5PR
Click here for Tamarind's website
Gloucs: Demuths Vegetarian Restaurant, Bath
This award-winning vegetarian and vegan restaurant welcomes children with open arms. There's a specific kids menu available during the day up until 7.30pm and it's full of healthy and delicious options. When the kids get fidgety, there's crayons and scrap paper to keep them happy.
We like: the signposting for food that's wheat-free
Where: North Parade Passage, Bath
Price: From £2.75 for sandwiches
Click here for the Demuth's website
Wales: Talardy Hotel, St Asaph, Denbighshire
Jelly Beans playrestaurant at the Talardy Hotel might not have the most innovative children's menu on the planet - most main courses include chips - but it does have the added bonus of a huge soft play area. If the weather's good, families can eat outside in sight of the sandpit, bouncy castle and toddlers lawn. We like: that there are two age ranges on the children's menu, taking account of older kids' appetites. Where: St Asaph, Denbighshire Price: £7.50 for main courses on the children's menu and £8.95 for meals from the Junior Choice menu.
Click here for the Talardy website
Scotland: The Bridge Inn, Ratho
One of Scotland's most-lauded pub for family-friendliness, The Bridge Inn has an extensive children's menu balancing pizza and cheeseburgers with corn-on-the-cob and melon cocktail. There are child-changing facilities, highchairs and an outdoors playground. We like: that the fish and chips on the menu is fresh haddock, locally sourced Where: Ratho, just by the Union Canal, 5 minutes from Edinburgh Airport. Price: £3.50 for two courses.
Click here for the Bridge Inn website
Nationwide: Pizza Express
Good fresh food that takes next-to-no-time to cook - what more could any frazzled parent want? Add to that, the fun of seeing the pizza chefs throwing the dough in the sky and you have a combined education/nutrition experience with garlic bread thrown in! We like: the online restaurant finder showing if baby changing is available Where: Nationwide Price: The classic Margherita starts at just £4.95
Click here for the Pizza Express website
Nationwide: Yellow River Café
Ken Hom's chain of family-friendly restaurants actively welcomes children - Hom is firmly of the belief that kids should learn to eat healthy food when they're very young. Food is cooked fresh to order and there are highchairs and babychanging facilities available. We like: the weekend buffet - great for hungry families. Where: Islington, Portsmouth, Solihull, Bournemouth, Guildford, Staines, Reading Price: Children's bento box, starter, main course, choice of steamed rice or noodles and prawn crackers £5
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