Are EAV Restaurants Kid-Friendly Enough?

From the Editor's Desk

EAST ATLANTA — With many my neighbors in their late 20s to mid 30s, parents pushing (or joggers running with) strollers is a common sight in the Village.

One complaint we've heard at East Atlanta Patch from our friends and neighbors though is that the Village's food spots are to smokey for a night out with the little ones.

A few establishments in recent years, have gone smoke-free or partially smoke-free, such as Tomatillos and Midway Pub to address those customers' needs.

But East Atlanta resident Susie Boggs-Antell, a mom of two, raised an interesting point the other day.

So many places have trivia nights and other weekly events geared toward adults, what if a place or two had something on a regular basis that catered to parents and their kids?

Though I don't have kids, she has a point.

So many of my neighbors who are parents plan their date nights out around when their kids have sleepovers at friends' homes or with Grandma and Grandpa.

And they sometimes hesitate going on family outings for dinner because at some places, they feel as if they're imposing their kids, who may be a little rambunctious, on others.

One of my childless neighbors refers to those animated kids as "free-range children."

Boggs-Antell, an artist, runs Art Attack, a a weekly program that stimulates kids' artistic and creative sides with their parents at Hodgepodge, the East Atlanta coffee shop.

But that's in the day and parents want some fun time at night with their kids, too, she said.

Her suggestion, something akin to a weekly trivia night geared toward kids.

It might foster good will and customer loyalty with those establishments, much like pet-friendly eateries — the EARL and Midway Pub — have done with dog owners who eat on their respective outdoor patios.

East Atlanta isn't the only neighborhood with an armada of strollers on the streets, of course. Kirkwood, Candler Park, Glenwood Park and Grant Park, among others all have contingents of parents and young children.

What do you think? Should restaurants do more to cater to young families?