42735 Wed Jan 11 16:45:44 -0800 2006 8 1 San Francisco Bay Area 0 207781 We have a 1-month-old baby and would like recommendations for baby-friendly restaurants for lunch or early dinner. We would need to be able to potentially get the food to go on short notice if the baby starts fussing. Places in the Richmond or Inner Sunset would be most convenient, but would consider other parts of SF. I am looking for casual but not bare-bones type places (maybe along the lines of Park Chow?). So far we've taken the baby to Kitaro and Boulange de Cole Valley for lunch (baby slept!) and Rigolo for breakfast (had to leave after 20 minutes). Wed Jan 11 16:45:44 -0800 2006 0 Anya L 1 207825 I've got an 11-month old, and went through the same situation. Our girl slept a lot when she was really young, so it was easy. Some places we really enjoyed during that time was: - Georgio's (3rd Ave/Clement)- best thin crust pizza in town, and SUPER kid friendly. - Bistro Aix (Steiner/Chestnut)- 1/3 of the dishes are great, and it's nice to sit in the heated/covered back area and not disturb anybody. Good luck! Wed Jan 11 19:33:21 -0800 2006 207781 0 Tatum 1 207899 Congratulations on the new addition to the family! I was wondering what had happened to you and now we know. Glad you're out and about and especially that you're back here. Besides Giorgio's, there's also Gaspare's on Geary for thin crust pizza and red sauce Italian, though I've had better luck at Giorgio's. On Irving, we've liked Darla's for burgers. Link: http://www.chowhound.com/topics/show/41244#198834 Thu Jan 12 03:09:02 -0800 2006 207781 0 Melanie Wong 1 207920 Thank you both for the suggestions. I was thinking Giorgio's or Gaspare's might work. Look forward to trying Bistro Aix and Darla's (those burgers sure look good). Thu Jan 12 12:01:56 -0800 2006 207781 0 Anya L 1 207921 We have an 8-month-old and a 6-year-old and have been forced (due to a combination of hunger and cabin fever) to take the baby out earlier than we did his older sister. Places we've been recently: * Rigolo, which you mentioned. I love the Bryans burger. * Koi Palace (lots of babies, and very loud. We get there ten minutes before the doors open, so no wait.) * Park Chow, of course. It's practically becoming an inner Richmond parent stereotype. We've been every 6 weeks or so. However, the last 2 or 3 times I went the food was not as good. * Lam Hoa Thuan on Irving * Beach Chalet for brunch. I'm possibly the only person in San Francisco who HATES non-dim sum brunch (I just feel ripped off somehow). This one was pretty ok. * Zazie in Cole Valley for lunch/brunch. * Crepes on Cole in Cole Valley (basically a cafe though). * A16. I went to A16 with the baby on my birthday, and the server was very understanding when I asked her not to "course" the dishes, but to bring them out as they were ready (I was prepared to bolt if necessary). Oddly, the baby chose to sleep happily through lunch, which made the request pointless. They weren't busy, so she sat us at a 4-top although there were only 2 adults, which gave ample room for stroller parking once one seat was removed. Mmm, burrata. In general, I've found dim sum works best with babies and small children. The white noise keeps babies asleep, the meal is fast-paced, and you can always just leave. Marcelory Thu Jan 12 12:14:37 -0800 2006 207781 0 Marcelory 1 208104 I'll share my experiences in case you want to venture further out. We had a great experience at Incanto in Noe Valley. We told them we were bringing an infant, and they gave our larger party a round table where I could breastfeed with some privacy and that was close to a hallway to the restrooms in case we needed to walk her a little (which we did). Our server was delightful with the baby, which was an unexpected bonus. We also had great experience at Maritime, a seafood restaurant on Lombard near the Marina. Again, more secluded table in back, great service, and the food was very good. We had great service at Slanted Door and Bix, but can't recommend them with an infant, they are both extremely loud places and she became overstimulated about half-way through the meal -- in general, avoid places with lots of hard edges where the kitchen and dining clatter get amplified, or where a jazz trio competes with bar and restaurant noise. Also, we had a bad experience at Fresca Noe Valley, where they refused to consider the stroller as a seat and thus gave us a tightly-spaced 4-top for five people + stroller, it was a very uncomfortable night. We also found that lunch works well almost anywhere, since an infant will likely sleep through. Our first nice lunch out, with wine and everything, was a late one at Chez Nous, which never would have worked at night. Too crowded. And I echo the suggestion for dim sum, it's the perfect meal, since the noise level is about right and you can always bolt if you need to -- no courses to wait for. Good luck and have fun! Fri Jan 13 00:50:48 -0800 2006 207781 0 bernalgirl 1 208259 Chenery Park in Glen Park has Kids Night every Tuesday. The food is good to very good, not the best, but the Kids Night ROCKS if you have little ones. They are super accommodating and have tons of experience handling all ages of kids and new parents, too. Plus, the other diners are prepared -- they've been forewarned that it's family night, and most of them will be sympathetic to a fussy baby because they've been there. Can't recommend it highly enough for a decent meal out with a kid. Congratulations! Link: http://www.chenerypark.com/ Fri Jan 13 22:20:02 -0800 2006 207781 0 jaekie 2 208638 Yes, I'd often take advantage of the Tuesday night family night at Chenery Park if my kids were still kids....btw, the bartender there (who I think is a part owner?) once told me that they do some of their best bar business on Tuesday nights. :-) IMO, to make the most of your visit, the best items on the menu are the southern influenced items. Great pecan pie. Tue Jan 17 12:34:19 -0800 2006 208259 0 susancinsf 1 208414 I was at Day One in Laurel Heights today and noticed a book called "The Lila Guide for Baby-Friendly San Francisco." I thumbed through the restaurant section. Looks like it might be a good book to own. Link: http://www.lilaguide.com/index.php Sun Jan 15 19:44:24 -0800 2006 207781 0 KathyR