Drinking With Kids Around
There’s a nice bar down the road from my house, actually within walking distance to many neighborhoods, that has a huge patio area with volleyball courts, horseshoes and lots of picnic tables. There is a large sandy area and plenty of roaming space- it reminds me a lot of a German bier garten! There’s only a couple of things missing to make it real: good food and a playground for the children to play on. That’s right, a playground. The beer gardens in Germany are, believe it or not, family-friendly hangouts. You can have dinner, a beer, and chit-chat with your friends all while the kids roam around, giving you some downtime. Sure, they are usually smack dab in the middle of the city where either public transportation is available or it’s within walking distance to your apartment or house… that way, you don’t have to worry about drinking and driving. Cause that’s certainly not cool.
This bar by my house has become the hangout of choice for my friends and I when we want to get out for a drink; It’s close by and it’s a nice environment. I’ve driven by several times on a Saturday during the day to see a bounce house set up for the kids and several families hanging out. A couple of weeks ago, while we were there one night, I asked the lady who works there (who also happens to be the owner’s girlfriend) about those events. Before I could get more words out of my mouth to tell her that I thought it was cool to have a family-friendly establishment in town, (she must have thought that I was going to complain about it) she said she doesn’t agree with having kids around “bar-type” establishments and that kids shouldn’t be around when you drink. I told her that I disagreed and the conversation quickly moved on to something else.
This leaves me wondering if most people agree with her. Why aren’t there more beer garden style places around? Is it really taboo to drink in front of kids nowadays? I know that most of my friends would also like a place to go hang out where they have a beer while the kids run around and play. After all, it’s not really about getting drunk, but more about being social, relaxing and having a good time. It’s within walking distance to most of our houses and when it’s not, we make sure to have a sober driver to take the ones who drink too much home. We are responsible drinkers who watch out for our friends. Isn’t it better to teach our kids to drink responsibly than to hide it from them? Odds are that they will be trying it out in their teenage years and if we can teach them early to drink in moderation- to be a responsible drinker- will they not be as swayed by it if we keep them completely in the dark about consuming alcohol? Does making it taboo make the drink more appealing to them? What do you think?
I know that the Nutty Brown Cafe has a nice little sand pit/ play area for the kids and they serve drinks, have live music and are a successful, family-friendly establishment. I’ve even seen kids at concerts at Stubb’s and thought that was cool! Do you wish there were more of these family-friendly establishments in town? Or do you prefer to leave the kids at home while you go out to drink and socialize? Do you have limits on how much you’ll drink if you drive or do you always make sure one of you is stone-cold sober?
July 13th, 2009 at 11:08 am
I couldn’t agree more with you. The hubby and I are always on the lookout for kid friendly places but have such a hard time finding them…especially where the food is good!
BTW: I am thinking that I might come to your happy hour on Friday. I will let you know for sure by Wednesday. I have been a blog stalker for a while so I figure it would be good to have some faces to go with it…plus, a margarita on a hot day, you can’t beat it!
July 13th, 2009 at 11:19 am
Totally agree! More place for the whole family would be great! We don’t drink much, but we also don’t hide it from ur child. He needs to see that’s a part of being an adult.
July 13th, 2009 at 11:26 am
I do agree I think it would be nice to have a place like that. I think the problem is most people don’t think other people know how to be responsible and drink not to get drunk in front of their kids. It’s sad that some people don’t but not everyone is that way.
July 13th, 2009 at 12:42 pm
You are a terrible mother!! Drinkers are evil! Ok i just had to say that cuz i am mean and hateful! ha ha ha. I def agree about the unmentionable establishment. It would be great if there was a playscape or something like they have at central market. it would be less crowded then CM and they have good beer. I really think it would draw more daytime business on nice weekends. I don’t understand the whole taboo about drinking in front of your children. There is a big difference between being drunk around your kids and having a drink while hanging out. I say you should just open up your backyard and charge like 5 bucks a head
BYOB.
July 13th, 2009 at 12:56 pm
I, also, agree that it would be nice to have more places that both parents & kids can enjoy. I wouldn’t have said that before having kids but it’s so hard to blend the two for whatever reasons. The beer gardens in Germany sound awesome; wow maybe they’re ahead in their parenting skills. (do they have less messed up spoiled kids?)
July 13th, 2009 at 1:00 pm
I agree, as well. We go to Waterloo on 360 when we want to “be social and relax” while the kids play. The food is all fried and greasy, but the environment of sitting on picnic benches in the shade while your kids slide and dig around in a huge sandbox only a couple of feet away is nice once in a while.
July 13th, 2009 at 3:21 pm
I agree with you too sister! It would be nice to go and grab a beer while watching the kids play, I’m not talking getting drunk!
I wander if there is a liability issue on these bars that allow children in.
July 22nd, 2009 at 11:32 pm
I think the taboo here come in to play b/c it is a bar…known as a place to drink and that is about it. I think it is fine to drink in front of your kids. I don’t see anything wrong with it and I, too, wish we had more places here to do that at.