Kids in Taprooms?

As long as they are well behaved, I could care less. Same as with pets.

 

It's obvious that this site isn't one big homogeneous group. Having said that, I still find these discussions a little strange.

The overall vibe of this site reflects:

- spreading the word to others about good beer
- site users who are strangers behave as if they are friends
- beer-it-forwards
- leaving some for the next person
- a crazy dedication of part of one's life to beer
- everything revolves around brewery taprooms
- standing in line for 3 hours to spend $20 on one beer is preferable to a free Bud Light
- everybody look at the beer I am drinking now
- beer isn't just beer
- beer is multifaceted
- beer is a big part of one's life
- breweries are an important part of the community
- etc.

I'm not saying that I subscribe to any of the above, but I'm calling it like I see it.

What's strange to me is that you get to a topic like a family being out and enjoying themselves at a taproom... and some people here simply not wanting others to do that. You have people acting like places that serve beer are universally places where people get attacked with pool cues... that they can't also take the form of an open place that's both inclusive and an important part of the community. Is such a place really an unappealing concept? I would expect people to want perceptions of beer to climb out of the ghettoizing idea that it's necessarily attached to a specific group of people pounding a bunch in a dim room after they leave work but before they get home.

 

I am just curious how you went from responding to "asking for opinions" to definitive words such as "should?"

I assume what you are saying is that it is your opinion that they should not do it. Which is fine, but is still an opinion versus a statement of fact, which some of your posts come across as, intended or not.

Personally, I couldn't care less if you bring your kid to the tap room. Just don't expect the patrons to act differently. I think most have the right attitude in this respect. In fact, I am not sure I've (personally, by definition) seen more than a handful of families with kids over the age of 3 that stayed at any non-brewpub taproom longer than it took to eat a meal (brought or food-trucked) and grab a beer and a growler.

 

As the parent of a 15-month old, I have to say that my answer to the question is, "it depends."
First of all, it depends on the kid involved. We are lucky that ours is a pretty mellow little guy. Unless he's overtired or hungry, he will more or less just take in the scene wherever he happens to be. The worst we can normally say (besides inconveniently soiled diapers) is that he flirts with all the pretty girls (he prefers blondes. ) It comes down to the parent taking an honest look at the offspring involved and deciding if he or she is a good candidate for going out.
It also depends on the brewery / tasting room involved. I've been into craft beer a long time, and I think I've been to only one place that I really would hesitate to take a kid - I was there around noontime, and myself and my brother-in-law were the only ones there besides staff, and I just got a weird vibe from the place. I obviously wouldn't take him to Dark Lord Day, but from what I saw, a regular day I wouldn't mind. Some releases seem to be more family-friendly than others; I've seen people with babies at one, and really weirded my a teenager at another. Most breweries these days seem to expect and even welcome families in, with non-alcoholic beverages and usually food and recreational opportunities for everyone.
It also depends on time of day. I wouldn't take him late at night, but if we were to plan to do our business around lunchtime, or even leaving before he starts to get into the pre-bedtime crankiness, I would not have a problem. OF course, if he gets fussy beforehand, it's time to cut the visit short.

 

I think you missed the OP question. He asked us, the community, our views on kids in a bar setting. If we felt it was cool, not cool, etc. So I took it as what do we think, how do we view it, our honest opinions. With that said I feel most of the posters myself included were all in favor of kids going when the place served food, it was earlier in day, and the owner of the place was open to the idea. I think we as a group also said that if the kids were acting bratty to please leave for the sake of others. And I also believe like myself we expressed our personal choice when it comes to kids/bars. I think many people highlighted (This is what I would do), not what you need to do. As a whole I felt it was a very good discussion, it was fun to hear each persons take on things and to be honest it opened my eyes some to aspects I overlooked. So I felt it was a good post as a whole, people expressed passion but I felt everyone was pretty honest and respectful.

 

Plus for the first time in all the times this discussion came up there was actually a poster who admitted that he/she drank beer and then drove with child(ren) in the car. Usually folks with kids ignore telling us whether they do or not, except those few who take public transport with kids. And I tend to suspect some of those are lying, which I have found most folks do consistently about their buzzed driving habits.

I love it when folks compare this country to England. My nearest brewpub is 7 miles away, a hilly 7 miles, and it is $35.00 including tip to get taken by taxi and back again. I can bike it or walk it for sure, but not with a child or children along. This country is 80 times the size of England with only 6 times the population. The difference that makes England a safer placer to drink is obvious.

Since there is no uber nor train service anywhere nearby here, I am willing to bet that almost every person I see drinking at either a restaurant that brews beer or at a taproom, with child(ren) gets in that car and drives afterwards.. That is part of it for me, besides the uncomfortable feeling of being expected to curb my behavior to standards of being around toddlers, which partly defeats my reason for going out in the first place Thinking,"gee is that asshole gonna get in the car with his kids after drinking that?" Sure I feel that way about adults, and worry about the folks on the road who will now be a danger, but when you see an innocent child dragged along and then an adult who consumed alcohol carrying the child out the door...

 

I can totally understand bringing kids to certain brewpubs or restaurant/bars if they have something for kids to do (like the great arcade machines at Barcade, the ping pong tables at Frankfurt Hall or the Skiball machines at Forgotten Boardwalk Brewing)

Having said that though, it boggles my mind when people bring their kids to a locale where there is literally nothing for their kids to do but watch people drink. Seems pretty selfish to me. Why don't you bring your kids to the aquarium and just enjoy your delicious beer when you get home? Just my 2¢

 

Have you never heard of designated drivers? I can only speak for myself but if I take my family to a brewery/winery, my wife and I decide before hand who will drive. If a brewery my wife typically drives. If a winery, I drive. I understand you have a major aversion to buzzed driving with kids in the car, and I completely understand and agree with that sentiment, but to assume that everybody who goes to a drinking establishment with their family absolutely must be driving drunk with their kids in the car is asinine.

 

Actually earlier in the thread I guessed it was about half of folks with kids out consuming alcohol.will drive. Don't really know the percentage, but I bet it is close to half. What percentage do you think it is?

 

The question is too open ended. There is a large spectrum of bars/taprooms/brewpubs out there. Some are certainly inappropriate for kids. There are really two questions here (ignoring the bar vs brewpub vs taproom):
1. Are bars/taprooms/brewpubs that cater to families a negative
2. Are bars/taprooms/brewpubs that cater to families an appropriate place to bring kids

Brewpubs are intrinsically the same thing as a restaurant for all intents and purposes. You generally have a bar area and then a restaurant area. I really wouldn't treat this any differently than a normal restaurant that happens to also brew their own beer. I'd go there for dinner with my family and I probably wouldn't go to the bar with my family. Depending on the goals of the brewpub and the quality of their beer it may make sense that prior to 5/6 their bar area might cater to families. I've got an 11 and 13 year old so if the atmosphere was right and they served age appropriate drinks and snacks I could see going with my family at 3 in the afternoon and getting a pint for me and my wife and something fun for the kids. I probably wouldn't go to the bar after 7 but I would get dinner there with my family. In either situation I wouldn't be drinking more than what I would drink at any restaurant and feel I could safely drive home.

Bars depends on what you define as a bar. A pure bar probably isn't a family friendly atmosphere and unless they are a restaurant atmosphere during the day I probably wouldn't bring a family. A great example is Armsby Abbey in Worcester MA. They are more bar than restaurant but they do serve food and great beer. I believe they are 21+ after a certain hour. During the day I'd take my family there for lunch or light snacks in the mid afternoon and again have an appropriate amount of beer (granted an appropriate amount of beer is interpreted differently by different people but its still no different than what you'd do at a run of the mill restaurant or sporting event).

Taprooms are also dependent on their atmosphere and age/maturity of your kids. I think it makes sense for these places to switch to 21+ after a certain hour but during the day I think it also makes sense for taprooms to be kid friendly. My life revolves around my kids for most of the year. If we stop into an occasional taproom that is family friendly I don't think that's a big deal. If its not family friendly I might stop in for a quick growler fill or can purchase if it wasn't a long line and it was on the way to somewhere we were going. If it is family friendly then hey if I get a quick beer and they get a fun soda/snack/play games then its not a big deal.

So to answer the two questions I posed above:
1. No I don't think they are a negative but it does make sense to have age limits at least for the bar during the evening
2. I think this is the same answer as anywhere, if a place is family friendly then its appropriate to take a family if you can control your kids, you stay an appropriate amount of time for your particular family, and you can control yourself (e.g. drink responsibly).

 

Sir, may I respectfully suggest that every instance you state above that you indicate to be selfishness of others regarding their feelings about not liking children to be around them while engaged in adult activities can more easily and justifiably be accusations of selfishness against folks who drag their kids to places that make and serve alcohol. .

I raised two boys and believe it or not, the unselfish thing to do with them was to pick activities that are about the children being children, and there is a literally endless amount of them to do. Of course, sometimes I got tired of thinking of them first, and wouldn't it be great to drag them to a taproom and get a couple, but, guess what, that comes with the territory.

You want to teach your kids about brewing and drinking responsibly? Brew at home, and explain that daddy respects beer and will never drink and drive, not even after one beer, and especially with children in the car.

 

Again I think it goes back to the establishment. Assume we're talking about a taproom that allows kids. Think "child seats and kids menu" as has been discussed. I show up with my wife and 2 kids. You are there with your buddy. You're saying I shouldn't bring my family because its selfish to impose them on you? Sorry but you're the selfish one there. You're trying to impose your own rules at an establishment. That's not the patron's choice to make - it's the owner/operator's.

Now a different venue where maybe there isn't an explicit rule barring kids but it's clearly not kid-friendly - hopefully parents get the picture. If not, I'd say the parents are the ones being selfish in that case.

You make great points about drinking and driving, BTW. Honestly, everything else is just disagreements about societal norms, but that component is about safety and I agree a lot of people are probably driving home buzzed after 3 or 4 beers which isn't OK. It's certainly not selfish to expect the roads to be safe

I used to bring my kids to the local watering hole - more a restaurant that had good selections of craft beer - when I lived in Chicago. It was a half a block away. Now I live in the suburbs it rarely happens - because it means I have to convince my wife to go to a brewpub and not drink.

 

I respect your opinion that any level of alcohol is not appropriate to drive with children but that's tangential to this discussion. The question is whether its appropriate to bring children to an establishment that makes and serves alcohol.

In raising children its not about giving up everything, its about being willing to give up anything for them. If you are spending every weekend dragging your kids to breweries or taprooms then you probably have your priorities out of whack. If you go to a taproom here or there with your kids is that selfish? Have those kids lived less of a life? I don't think so. Its the same as if you go to a friends house for an evening that doesn't have kids. If they are entertained and happy then you will all have a good time, if they are bored then none of you will have a good time. The key is that you teach your kids that we all make sacrifices in life but we still respect each other. When I sacrifice for my children I expect a level of respect from them of my time. Likewise on the rare occasion I ask my kids to make a sacrifice I respect their time and make sure I am taking them somewhere where they can enjoy themselves. This is why many taprooms are becoming family friendly, they are providing a place where both adults and kids can enjoy themselves.

Alcohol will likely be served at your friends house just like it would be at taproom and you have to make a personal decision on what if any level of alcohol for the driver is appropriate.

 

Wait, you don't keep track of how many breweries/taprooms your kid has visited and brag about it and treat it as some sort of accomplishment? Bad parenting on you.

 

as a parent of two kids aged 8 and 5, I have taken my kids to taphouses and breweries. In fact we go to Troegs with kids whenever we go to Hershey Park (because the food is really good and the beer is solid as well) Truth is many are kid friendly the Sierra Nevada place out of Asheville for one (Malt Disney World) . Other places are not that great and realize some places prohibit kids, like Cellarmaker in San Francisco. Other places although have great beer and may allow kids, I would not take my kids there (Three Floyds, great beer, and food, and a place I love to go to but loud death metal is a bit much for a 5yr old, heck they may not even allow kids anyway)

Just be judicious. I found that is what being a parent is all about sometimes.

 

And expect strong opinions from some. I asked a similar question when traveling to Asheville and San Francisco.

 

Wow never thought this topic would become so polarizing.

 

Hello OP,

You may have already abandoned this thread for more important matters. If so, hope all is well for you, your wife, and new daughter.

The answer to your question of whether kids should be allowed in bars/taprooms is, it depends. What it depends on is the type of establishment, the time of day, and the child's temperament.

Places with a dangerous clientele or very loud music are obviously inappropriate. After dinnertime is too late. Seeing a kid in a taproom at 10 pm would make me think of Child Protective Services. Finally, if the child's behavior is obnoxious or the kid is just really unhappy to be there, better to leave.

Pubs where children feel welcome tend to be my favorite places to be. I have warm memories of my old favorite pub in Boston where families would be there for breakfast on Sunday. Very relaxed and civilized.