Gross and Unsafe Highchairs

[GastronautMN]

We take our toddler daughter out to a variety of restaurants from family oriented to fine dining. I find that almost universally highchairs are frankly pretty gross and obviously uncleaned. Is this something unique to the Twin Cities or is this just par for the course.

I personally feel that if a server brings a unclean high chair for my pride and joy that's akin to bringing an obviously dirty plate or a glass with lipstick on it.

I've also seen some downright unsafe chairs that look like they are about to fall apart, pinch the child or they have broken/missing straps. If you get so much wear and tear on your high chairs that they are beaten up doesn't that mean it's a significant portion of your business that should be catered to?

I'd love to hear what other people do and if they think it is appropriate to reduce your servers tip. I'd also love to hear what servers who post think.

I know it's a hassle to deal with kids and that they frequently leave a mess. But I am always concious of that and always tip better and pick up after my kid (yes the floor too).

I'd also love to hear what people think an apporpriate tip is for diners out with kids.

[jenniferee]

I would like to reply about the unsafe highchairs in restaurants i live in scottsbluff and we have a 2year old son and me and boyfriend have taken our son out to eat and
most of the restaurants we have been to the highchairs have had broken seatblets or missing bars no isn't that like a safety hazard i want to know what we as parents can do about that r we suppose to take our own highchairs with us i just want kids to be safe don't restarurants have enough money to buy new highchairs.
i also always clean up my sons mess on the table and on the floor the best i can someone please reply

[Atomica]

Have you actually read the thread? There are suggestions on what to do. I suggested a nifty Chicco product (above). Your 2 year old is not going to be using a high chair much longer, however. My 2 year old no longer will deign to sit in a high chair.

Saw a nifty Rubbermaid high chair at a restaurant. Why can't everyone buy those? Much easier to keep clean and far sturdier.

[chef chicklet]

I also have a chair for our 2.3 yr old that I use here everyday at the house that sits on a chair and is strapped on. Its durable plastic made by Safety 1st. I don't know if that brand is around anymore since I picked it up at a store that recyles baby's items. It replaced a very bulky standard high chair. It folds down with the seat coming out for clean up and storage. Don't know where you live, but you can find really great items for a small percentaget of the original price in the stores that specialize in recycling infant and toddler's items. The items are often new or barely used. Good Luck!

[Atomica]

My daughter seems to find those ubiquitous wooden high chairs really uncomfortable. I'm not horribly concerned about their cleanliness unless it's obvious that there's gloppy food pieces stuck to the chair (I can't remember such an incident, actually). I don't know how big your child is, but this product really saved our bacon for many months. She's a bit big for it now, but at the time it was the best baby item I owned.

http://www.babydirect.com/p-5766-chic...

You can throw the fabric parts in the washer.

There is only one restaurant ever where I've seen some more ergonomically designed and comfortable high chairs. My kid stayed in this high chair and seemed to find it very comfortable. They were definitely industrial (sturdy plastic and gray), meant for restaurant use, and I don't know why more places don't buy them. They are a lot sturdier than the wood ones you see everywhere and looked like they'd be much easier to clean.

Also, I do let my child open a jam or two and eat them with a spoon, and she does grab things, but I think it behooves parents to consolidate and clean up what mess they can for the servers and not to leave a giant mess and spills on the floors and table. Many of these places are restaurants I want to return to, and I want to be welcomed back, not merely tolerated. Also, carry a small backpack or something with stuff for your kids to do. It's not hard to carry around a Ziploc of crayons and a few pieces of paper, or a mini Magnadoodle.

[Azizeh Barjesteh]

As a server at a nice restaurant, my only real complaints would be the mess that many people let their kids leave, or the people that are annoyed at us because we don't have toys for the kids. As though it's our job to provide amusement. So, the unprepared parents usually feel it's okay to allow their children to tear apart the sugar packets or play with the centerpieces and condiments. Always makes for fun sidework when you've got to get everything back to normal after a kid rampaged it.

[meatn3]

The idea of reducing the servers tip because the high chair is dirty is just wrong. Chances are the person who was responsible for cleaning it after it was last used is not the same person that is serving you. Additionally, the type resto most people are comfortable bringing babies/toddlers is often the type place where the majority of the servers are younger students who have not yet viewed a highchair through the eyes of being a protective parent. It simply is not a blip on their radar.

If the high chairs are not adequately clean, speak to the MOD. Same as if the restroom needs attention. Granted, an alert & responsive server should notice this if they bring it out - but often the hostess or bus person brings the chair & the child is already situated before the server has visited the table. Most resto's try to get the chair out quickly so the parent is in the aisle for the least amount of time. This lets the parent get the kid off their lap faster, reduces the chances of the preoccupied parent bumping a tray or disturbing neighboring tables. Generally a server will wait until the parent has been able to be seated - a distracted parent makes the ordering process bog down considerably.

[chef chicklet]

The only chairs that I've encountered lately are the ones you scoot up tot he table, there is not a tray. Anyway, I wipe them down with wipes, the ones made by clorox. And I have little plastic table liners that I purchased at Babys R Us, you remove the sticky strip covers on each end, and then afix it directly to the table. They will cover almost the entire end of a table/booth.

That way food doesn't touch the table. When we leave I peel it off, and stuff it in the bag, then toss it, or I ask if the wait staff can. These little things are wonderful, and the staff always comments and ask me where I bought them.

[maplesugar]

I've seen those disposable placemats I think they call them? I was tempted to try them but DS tends to pull the tablecloth off at home... dunno if they''d work for us but for a couple of dollars I'm willing to try, especially if it means I have less to clean up at the end of a meal...not that's he's a super messy kid.

BC (Before children) we went to a qsr with a couple who had a then 2 year old. By the time the meal was through there was a RING of mac 'n cheese on the floor around his highchair. The Dad was like:"oh just leave it I'm sure the servers..." and I stopped him and suggested the mess was beyond reasonable expectations and perhaps he should help his wife (already searching out paper towels etc) pick it up. I felt awful for her and swore that when I had kids I'd n-e-v-e-r allow them to make such a big mess.

[chef chicklet]

My two year old has seen them on tables (while out dining) since he could sit in a hire chair. He has tried to pull them off once. We just told him no, and stuck it back. He was sticking his mouth on the edge of a table, that is when we decided to start cleansing all the areas, and we saw these covers. I use a tablecloth too, so don't use them here.

I got them more for sanitary reason than mess, but what's nice these have
Sesamee Street characters on them, he likes to point to them and we talk to him. And when he's done we just pull it up, make a wad and ask if they will dispose. Honestly when out, I have rarely had the mess around the floor..YET. He's usually pretty hungry, I don't allow snacking crackers or drinks before dinner, so he's a great little eater.

[meatn3]

Your technique is the best way to deal with it - you are removing the variables and know that your child has a hygienic set up! You are also the rare parent that does clean up. Sad to say the vast majority of diners with kids seem to feel a break from cooking equals a break from parental responsibility. It is not a joy waiting on these people - getting ground mac n cheese out of carpet is a thankless endeavor. An extra couple of dollars tip doesn't replace income lost due to missing a turn in rotation of being sat because your section was still being cleaned up from under supervised kids.

[chef chicklet]

I know what you mean, I've seen that also. I don't what happens to some people when they dine out with kids.

[dagwood]

I always tipped extra when my kids made a mess. Usually an extra $2-5 depending on how big a mess and how nice the server was to my kids. (And I still always cleaned up the floor and table as best I could) Now that they've moved out of high chair stage (4 & soon-to-be-7), I will still tip extra if they make an extra effort with them, smile, make conversation, etc.

I never really had a huge issue with dirty high chairs. I was always of the belief that germs don't stay alive too long on dry surfaces, so never really worried. (my kids rarely get sick) And I don't remember seeing anything too gross on a regular basis. I'm in the Northeast.

Would a booster seat work better for you? I guess it depends on the child. My kids always hated high chairs and wanted to sit in a "regular" seat ASAP, so I would just let them sit up on their knees from fairly early on. I think my daughter was done with high chairs by the time she was a year and a half.

[cackalackie]

When I needed them, I was just pleased when the restaurants had them available.

I can't understand the reasoning of reducing a server's tip because of the standard of the high chairs. If anything, I'd tip better if I knew I'd left it a bit messier because of the kids.

[hannaone]

Just a note on the restaurant side of things.
It took me two months to locate high chairs that I felt were safe enough and "cleanable" (Most household type high chairs are a nightmare to clean) enough to purchase for my restaurant. I tested the different parts buy pulling/pushing, twisting with all my strength and the chairs seemed to be fine.
It took a total of one week of young customers to destroy the belts on one of them, and took another month to locate replacement straps.
The chairs were broken or missing pieces (cross bars worked loose, foot bars loose, retaining screws/bolts missing) within about 6 weeks.
Cost of chairs $175.00 each.
Cost of straps $45.00 per set (when available)
Cost to repair and "child proof" the equipment $100.00 per chair.
As far as cleanable? I often had to take the chairs into the kitchen and hose them down after some customers were finished, a simple wipe down could not get rid of some of the "deposits" left behind.
There simply is not a great selection of high grade high chairs available for restaurants to purchase. They have to actively seek out the equipment and would probably be better off having them custom made by reputable local merchants.

[smartie]

eww I agree, most restaurants have disgusting high chairs which are sticky, filthy, bits of food are in crevices. When my children were at the highchair phase I bought a seat which clipped onto tables and we took it with us everywhere.

[maplesugar]

We have three ages 6, 3&1/2 and 2 - I know what you mean about dirty/unsafe/half broken high chairs. The problem isn't unique to the Twin Cities...we're in Canada and have travelled cross country with the kids and the situation varies and it's not always the higher end places that have the cleaner/safer chairs. I'm also one of those parents who makes sure to pick up whatever fell off the highchair and usually use a baby wipe to get the worst of it off the chair(tips are on the higher side if they make an effort to acknowledge the kids and bonus points for a kids menu that's more creative than chicken strips/mac 'n cheese). I can't count how many times I've pestered a server for a clean one/one with all the requisite straps intact. My youngest does his best Houdini impression if the seat belt is missing.(I'd rather be less of a bother to other diners and keep DS seated) I can remember on our last outing we were at brunch, the chair they brought us was missing one of the two pieces of the buckle and he was up to his usual and a server shot me a look like "can't you control him?"and I motioned for her to come over, showed her the missing part and in five minutes she was back with one that had all its bits. My local grocer doesn't have straps in the seats but recently offered free ones that you can hook and unhook onto the carts yourself. I keep mine in the car so when we go to a resto with the kids I bring the strap with me and it's long enough to replace the belt that is so often broken/missing altogether.

IMHO if a restaurant is going to allow kids (and the speed at which they can find a highchair is usually a good indicator of how well they accomodate children) then they should maintain the highchairs to the same standards as their regular tables and chairs. I'm sure if you swabbed some of the restaurant highchairs we've been given you'd find all sorts of ick.