389209 Fri Apr 06 19:34:25 -0700 2007 5 12 Boston Area 0 2458380 With two little kids in the South End we've fallen into a kid-friendly Picco/Dish/GOE/Joe V's rut. But this Sunday night we have a sitter coming at 6 and two hours to eat before we have to be somewhere at 8. So... The clear Boston Chowhound consensus seems to be The Franklin. Can we get a table (within a reasonable period of time) if we go at 6 on Easter Sunday? If we're better off playing it safe and get a reservation, should we pick Metropolis, Union, or Sibling? I'm embarrassed to be asking for help picking a restaurant in my own neighborhood, but now that I go out rarely I hate to waste the opportunity on a place that was great 5 years ago but went downhill when I wasn't looking! Fri Apr 06 19:34:26 -0700 2007 80325 coldtoes 1 2458521 The safe thing to do on a rare adults-only night out is to go with the reservation. The Franklin on an early Sunday is sometimes a no-wait situation (I experienced an immediate-seating happy moment on an early Sunday night very recently), but it's a crapshoot. Not the worst night for the Franklin, especially at 6pm: if I were handicapping it, I'd say your odds were even to wait no more than 30 minutes. But you have to imagine the worst-case scenario. With a reservation, I'd call it a toss-up between Metropolis and Union, two places I like a lot, in no small part because of their consistency. Union has an edge if you want a proper cocktail and a bit more luxe atmosphere, but I think they're both pretty good values for the South End (especially since Union simplified its menu and lowered its prices). Union feels a bit more formal, but Metropolis' coziness is charming, too. (They're both Aquitaine Group establishments with a lot of shared DNA, like servers that float between the two.) Sibling is far less interesting to me, despite recent suggestions from friends that its food has improved. There's something decidedly suburban about it, maybe not the restaurant's fault, just the crowd it draws. But ugly decor and mediocre bartending do not help. I need to give it a revisit, but for now, it's in my third tier of South End choices. Fri Apr 06 21:24:30 -0700 2007 2458380 10143 MC Slim JB 2 2461319 Thanks for the good advice. We've decided to gamble on no reservation, based on your thought that we have a decent shot of getting in within half an hour, and the fact that Open Table shows the same availability for the other restaurants today that it did Friday afternoon. We figure we can check out the Franklin and if the wait is too long, easily dart over to Union or Metropolis and still get in. I appreciate your help! Sun Apr 08 12:09:10 -0700 2007 2458521 80325 coldtoes 3 2461404 i don't know how old your kids are, but alot of restaurants in the south end don't have high chairs, and purposely are not kid friendly. sibling is one of those. Sun Apr 08 13:06:17 -0700 2007 2461319 30273 hotoynoodle 3 2522012 I forgot to come back and post my experience but did want to follow up. Thanks again, MC Slim JB; taking your advice paid off. We headed over to the Franklin at 6pm Sunday, which was conveniently Easter. And, I'm reluctant to release this information to the public, but if you want to waltz right into the Franklin with no wait, go on Easter night! We had our choice of tables, and when we left at 7:30 there were still two unfilled tables plus a dozen seats at the bar. (But let's keep that our secret, shall we? I think I'll go back next Easter!) Of course the food was delicious (and my tangerine cocktail was yummy.) So glad I listened to the chowhounds! P.S. to hotoynoodle - I think you misread my original post - we were going without the kids. My kids are pretty well behaved but I wouldn't dream of taking them to Sibling, Union, or the Franklin! (They do go to Metropolis for brunch only.) We're just past high chairs, but if you need one in the South End, Garden of Eden is your best bet; otherwise you have to hope to have the only toddler in the restaurant so you can get the one highchair! Fri Apr 27 15:59:57 -0700 2007 2461319 80325 coldtoes 4 2522678 Thanks for the follow-up report, I wish more folks did that. Glad it worked out! You can now say you knew The Franklin Version 2.0, before the currently-underway makeover happened. Fri Apr 27 22:07:35 -0700 2007 2522012 10143 MC Slim JB