NJ Restaurant Bans Kids Under 10— Was it the Right Decision?

by Peter Candia

With the news of a popular Tinton Falls Italian joint—Nettie’s House of Spaghetti—banning kids under 10 years old, I have to ask myself: Is it worth it? Seriously, I agree more than most that kids can be a true pain—especially in the dining room. They get in the way. They’re fussy and often loud.

Realistically speaking, though, does banning kids actually work? You not only alienate part of your customer base that has young kids, but it comes off as pretentious even to many who don’t. On the other hand, for experienced diners, this makes Nettie’s a more alluring restaurant. Who wants their date night or business dinner ruined by the screams of a toddler? Certainly not me.

Additionally, for the workers, this could be a sigh of relief. During my bartending days, I have tripped over children too many times to count. Dropping a tray of dirty martinis at the peak of a dinner rush because you tripped over a Hess Truck is enough to make anyone freak out. Now we’re both crying, AND I smell like olive juice.

Banning children from restaurants isn’t technically new—there have been many places that prohibit children after certain hours, but that differs from an outright ban. Parents of well-behaved children are understandably outraged that their kids will not be welcome at Nettie’s House of Spaghetti any longer, but does that mean it’s wrong? Obviously, there was a breaking point, so what was it?

Nettie’s revealed in an Instagram post that recent events led the team to make this difficult decision. While they are upset to alienate their fans with children, they felt this was the best decision for the continued quality that people have come to expect from the red sauce joint. Time will only tell if this was the correct decision. This is set to take effect on March 8.

What do you think about this ban on children? Was it the right decision or a discriminatory one? Let us know in the comments below. As always in the Twitterverse, opinions vary.

About the Author/s

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Peter Candia is the Food + Drink Editor at New Jersey Digest. A graduate of The Culinary Institute of America, Peter found a passion for writing midway through school and never looked back. He is a former line cook, server and bartender at top-rated restaurants in the tri-state area. In addition to food, Peter enjoys politics, music, sports and anything New Jersey.

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4 comments

Karen Summers February 17, 2023 - 10:02 am

Will they also ban obnoxious drunks and habitual complainers?

Reply
John Doe February 17, 2023 - 12:27 pm

Interesting that complaint would come from a “Karen.”

Reply
Paul Johnson February 17, 2023 - 4:36 pm

I think that a business should do what they think is best for their business. If you approve go, if not don’t go.

Reply
Jane February 26, 2023 - 1:48 pm

This restaurant won’t last. The simple solution would’ve been to ban the customers with the rowdy kids. This reminds me of when we were all kids and one kid would misbehave in class and as a result the teacher gave every single student detention despite only one of them being guilty. They’re using that same kind of logic in this decision. I mean they could’ve even banned kids under 10 at certain hours so they only had to deal with families during certain times. There were so many better solutions then just outright banning all children under the age of 10. It is absolutely a pretentious decision and I feel like Gordon Ramsey would say if you can’t handle serving children then you can’t handle serving anyone. I just don’t understand why they didn’t just ban the negligent parents and rowdy kids. It is beyond bizarre to me that they’d ban all kids. They REALLY must hate children. And the guy who said a place called Netties House of Spaghetti sounds like the name of a child’s restaurant made me laugh because it’s so true. Oh the irony!

Reply

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