Kid-Friendly Restaurants in Key West

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Key West, FL -
When I think of a "kid-friendly" restaurant, it's not because there is a menu to color with a free pack of crayons, or a roving clown blowing up balloons. The things I look for are things like space to move around in (like a patio, a lawn, or a beach), friendly staff who are at least open to the idea that your child might know how to behave, and food that shows kids a bit of respect. I know a lot of kids subsist on chicken fingers and macaroni and cheese, but if you want yours (ever) to branch out, or if you want them to learn what it means to "dine out", there has to be some creativity applied to a restaurant's kid's menu.

Blue Heaven in Key West, for example, has one of the best grilled cheese sandwiches EVER on its children's menu...

Some of my favorite restaurants in Key West for children, for example, prepare foods that are simple and familiar and not too out-there (most kids don't like olives, for example), but are a step up from what they would get at a fast food restaurant or out of the freezer at home.

Blue Heaven in Key West, for example, has one of the best grilled cheese sandwiches EVER on its children's menu–––made with Vermont cheddar and homemade bread. It's yummy, top quality, and I gladly eat the leftovers. At Salute, they serve 4 fried Key West pink shrimp with a side of grapes, and it's only $5. Plus, there is a beach right outside and the kids can run around barefoot, then sit down to a glass of fresh lemonade and dinner.

Michael's,which serves the best steaks in town, serves a child's portion filet. Why not? Why not have Junior dress up a little and learn how to eat a nice steak in a nice restaurant? When we take our kids to Café Sole (where my 9 year old looks forward to her favorite food, Chef Correa's exquisite lobster bisque) they get to go back in the kitchen and torch the tops of their crème bruleés for dessert (so much more fun than a coloring page). At Sarabeth's, David Case treats young customers like visiting dignitaries, always addressing them directly and waiting on them hand and foot. This is another great experience for kids: understanding what attentive, gracious service is like. My daughter likes the lemon pancakes there as well as the French toast. Her other favorite breakfast spot (for French toast) is Camille's, where the bondage Barbies and the other wacky knickknacks dispersed throughout just crack her up, and where they always have Etch-A-Sketches and coloring books, as well as the fastest service in town.

At other restaurants, where there is no children's menu, my kids either eat the appetizers (the chicken satay at Seven Fish, for example), a Caesar salad with chicken (Southernmost Beach Cafe's is great, as is Sunset Pier's at the Ocean Key House), or they split an entrée (teriyaki chicken at Ambrosia is one of their favorite foods, period).

I've had great experiences at Key West restaurants, dining with my kids, because Key West is friendly and welcoming, and used to families. Even Nine One Five (the island's most stylish, South Beach-style restaurant), that used to not encourage children now has a white, designer high chair available. Why? Because once the owners, Stuart and Josephine became parents, they realized that parents, like them, still want to visit the same restaurants they always have, but now with their children.

Parents should dare to let their children try new things in new settings, restaurants should allow for smaller portions and interesting twists on simple foods to welcome children as diners, and everyone should think outside the chicken-finger-and-fries box. Now eat your vegetables.