Evening Post Extract

WHERE IT’S A TREAT FOR FAMILIES TO EAT

With a renewed commitment to food and a need to bring in different customers in the face of the smoking ban, many pubs are now becoming more family-friendly places, good for a meal out for mum, dad and the children.

But that doesn’t mean navigating the kids-and-pubs maze is always easy.

The JD Wetherspoon chain grabbed headlines recently by announcing new rules on how many drinks parents will be served when they’ve got the little ones in tow. But even for most parents who wouldn’t dream of combining a family dinner with a many-pints drinking session, a family night out at the pub sometimes sounds like more hassle than fun.

That’s what Louise Holland said before heading out, family in tow, to try the family pub dining experience for the Evening Post

“I tend not to go to pubs and eat out,” she explained. “If we go out we go to places like Frankie and Benny’s or Pizza Hut.”

Before going out, Louise did her homework.

“The first hurdle was just ringing around and finding places that would let us in.”

Four-year-old Sam fell asleep in the late afternoon. Mum let him get his rest, and the family didn’t venture out until 6.15.

They reckoned they’d try the city centre. The Malt Cross had a licence for children, but only until 6pm. The Pitcher and Piano had one, but only until 7. Fat Cat also had a children’s licence cut-off, while the Orange Tree had no children’s licence and the Castle had no evening meals.

“And the John Borlase Warren was a definite ‘no children and no licence for children’,” Louise said.

Previously however, somebody had mentioned good things about its Canning Circus next-door neighbour, the Falcon. She rang, and found they were licensed. More than that, she spoke to somebody who sounded as if serving the little ones would be not just acceptable, but a pleasure.

“When I phoned up, the guy was really helpful,” Louise said. “He said ‘We don’t do children’s menus but what we will do is smaller portions for the children’.”

A helpful attitude from staff is important to the Hollands, particularly with Sam. “Because of (Sam’s) food allergies, we needed to ask about ingredients,” Louise explained. And it gets specific. They need to check labels on ketchup bottles, find out what’s in fish batter.

At the Falcon, this was no problem. Louise was impressed, not only by the fact that staff were helpful, but that they were knowledgeable.

“Because it was home-cooked food, they could verify what all the ingredients were,” she said. “It was lovely for us to go for a meal that obviously wasn’t just microwaved or heated up.”

The family ordered from the less-expensive specials menu. Ellie took seriously her Evening Post spying mission, and came away with some important intelligence on what she liked.

“Ellie took her clipboard and was writing down things like ‘friendly’, ‘helpful’,” Louise said.

She also had a huge pork sandwich, which she put away with abandon.

Mum and dad had a fish pie and pork-and-veg dish respectively. The only one who wasn’t quite won over was Sam. Because of his allergies, Louise explained, he doesn’t always get a particularly diverse diet. He likes fish fingers and chips, but what was on the menu as “posh fish fingers” didn’t quite cut the mustard.

“I don’t like these chips - they taste of potato!” he informed his mother. “I don’t like these fish fingers - they have fish in them!”

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