Dining out with baby/toddler?

Question

How old was your baby/toddler when you started ordering food food your child? My son is 15 months old and we still share our food with him when we go out to eat. When is a good age to order a meal just for him? Obviously he won't eat it all, but leftovers are great. What are your opinions and experiences? Also when do buffets typically start charging for children?

Answer 1

My 1 year old daughter eats more than I do.  

Sometimes we'll share and sometimes we'll order her own meal, depending on our appetites.

Answer 2

get chicken or a burger from the kids meal, take away the roll, cut it up, and give him half of it, with 3 or 4 fries and some veggies if possible.

kids meals come with jello or ice cream usually, so get jello or vanilla ice cream and give him a few spoonfuls

Answer 3

Buffets usually start at 2, we have ordered for ours since she was 18months, somedays she will even finsh off a kid portion in the restauraunt!

Answer 4

Usually my b/f's 3 year old just eats off of ours but of course some days she's in here "i want my own food" mood so we get her her own kids plate and save leftovers for the next night. I'd much rather her eat off of ours that way there she can have a variety of things to eat as her father and I eat completely different foods, and then there is always the we get to save money factor also. Three is when they start charging at most buffets, we go to one where they don't start charging till 6!!

Answer 5

my son is 18 months and I still share food with him .. around here most buffets start charging at age 3 ... My baby is a big eater .. he would have no problem finishing a 4 piece happy meal .. but still Id rather share .. I guess its a thing with us moms to let go .. =] Besides, it helps me eat LESS!! ...

Answer 6

Most buffets start charging you for children when they are 5 years of age, but most won't be too big of sticklers about it. I never bothered to by my son his own meal till he was about 5. He simply wasn't a good enough eater for me until about then, but all children are different. If you know your son will eat an entire kids meal, then you can order one for him when that time comes. My one friend had a son who was a heck of an eater and she started at about age 3 for him. He'd eat almost everything on the plate! So you can make your judgement off of your child. But i'd say 5 is a normal age to start thinking about it. I used to work at a buffet and some kids never did start eating well and only picked at a few things and we wouldn't make their kids pay, one was aged 7. He barely ever ate!

Answer 7

If there is something on the menu he likes (and it's a small portion, or you are fine with leftovers), you can start ordering now.  I would often get my daughter something like a dish of cottage cheese, or soup, or an appetiser when she was a toddler/preschooler.  (Much healthier and more interesting than the typical 'kiddy menu' deep fried c**p.)

And most buffets start charging when the child is 2 or 3.

Answer 8

my son is 16 months.  i started ordering food for him early, but mainly because he choked on a lot of foods so i would order soup.  the salt content in restaurant soup is usually high so i always mixed it with water.

the only time i order him food now is when he can't really have what we are eating.  if we order steaks for example, he can't have it as we don't order well done.  in that case we just order him a kids plate.

a tip with food and toddlers... the doctor said at that age kids tend to make their own "food groups."  pastas, pizza, breads, etc.  it is our job to mold their palates!  giving different flavors of food and encouraging fruits and veggies will help develop better eating habits.  this is what i am doing with my son.

if you have looked at a kid's menu you know that they only have stuff like mac & cheese, pizza, spaghetti... simple stuff.  it is good you are giving him your food instead of limiting him to this.

Answer 9

We started ordering food for our daughter when she was about 18 months old. For the few bucks more I would rather get something for her that she is more likely to eat and order what I want for myself rather than something she can/will eat.

Answer 10

Just share some of your food with him.

Answer 11

My daughter was 3 when i thought it would be a good time to ordering food for her but she would just leave it all.

She is now 4 and is even happy to order her own food and enjoys talking to the waitresses...and eats all the food put in front of her with no fuss.xx

Answer 12

When my son started finishing off his plate at home then we started ordering him his own kids meal when we ate out. He was probably around 3, which is when most buffets start charging for children (just for this reason! because thats when they start actually eating lol) I would say that 3 is a good age but it really depends on how much your child (and you) want to eat.

Plus when they're around 3 yrs. old they really get into being the "big" boy/girl and choosing their own meal makes them feel very independant.

Answer 13

This is a great question!  My daughter is four now, and she's been nibbling off our plates since she was about the age your son is now.  We've found that we don't want to spend the extra money for a meal she isn't going to eat much of, though - so unless the child's meal is free, I think it's totally acceptable to ask for a small plate so they can try what the adults are having.

Some buffets start charging around 3 years old, and usually they have some gimmick like so much per year of child until 12, and then the adult price.

Answer 14

my daughter is 2 and i ordered a childs meal for her at ikea the other day and she didn't touch a thing. In future i will just ask for an extra plate so I can put a bit of my food on it.

Answer 15

About three years is good, most buffets charge at three and up.

Answer 16

My elder boys started at 14 months. We went out for a Pre-Christmas dinner, and ordered them a kids meal.

They were all ways great eaters, and the place we went, we had been once regulars. So they made up really small kids meals, cheaply for us.

We went to a Birthday Party for my cousin's Girlfriend last month. And my younger 2 are still only newborns. We were charged a fee of $5- for them to event enter. Wasn't really impressed, and can say I will not be going back there.

I think it's normally 2yo they get charged here. However, my elder boys were really big eaters, & I wouldn't have minded every paying a small fee for them.

Answer 17

I would start now.  Left overs are great and makes the next days lunch easy planning.  Then you get to order whatever grown up food you want.  That'll be fun to do again huh??!! :)

Answer 18

I lawysa shared at this gae too. My son was probbaly about 3 when we ordered him his own food and my daughter 2. Most buffets 3 and under are free.

Answer 19

well, my baby is 16mnths old now and i have been ordering food for him for a little while now. its great, cause he can have the left overs the next day for lunch. so it just depends if you want to pay extra money for a meal or just let him eat off your plate. but i find it much easier to get him his own meal w/pleabty of veggies cause kids can be so picky with food.  but thats just me. g-luck

Answer 20

It all depends on the parents and what they feel is comfortable for them. A child can eat french fries and cut up chicken as long as they can chew it. If your child can eat food off of your plate then he should be able to have his own food on his own plate. The fries would be good to start with that way he can pick them up off the plate himself and eat at his own pace. Different places start charging at different ages however I think the typical age is usually 5 and up at a buffet.