Get out to eat with your kids; it’s fun! Try these family-welcoming eateries across New England:
American Flatbread, 115 St. Paul Street, Burlington, VT — American Flatbread restaurants serve really, really, really good pizza and a meal there is great fun for kids, too, because the earthen oven is right out where everyone can see it, along with the cooks moving the pizzas in and out. American Flatbread restaurants are serious about running a farm-to-plate network; you can be sure the ingredients are fresh and wholesome. People watching their waistline can dive into big salads with seasonal greens. Homemade desserts are delicious. Your kids will remember meals here as a special event. Hours: Weekdays, lunch 11:30 a.m.- 3 p.m.; dinner, 5-11:30 p.m.; weekends, 11:30 a.m.-11:30 p.m. Menu. 802-861-2999. .
TC’s Family Restaurant, 178 Route 100 North, West Dover, VT — This restaurant in the Mount Snow Valley has been run for four decades by the family of snowboarder and Olympian medalist Kelly Clark. The menu is called American bistro and there’s lots to love: many flatbread pizzas, lobster mac ‘n’ cheese, intriguing black bean burger, all the hip apps, like fried dill pickles and Brussels sprouts. Kids’ menu for age 12 and younger is called the Bunny Slope. Entire whole menu is available for take-out. There’s a full bar and lounge with TVs, beer, wine selection, and cocktails. Monday: Trivia Night; Tuesday: ‘Ritas & Fajitas; Wednesday: Sushi Night; Thursday: Tiki Night. Hours: Open daily at 4 p.m.; open Saturday and Sunday at noon. Menu. 802-464-5900. Map.
Quarterdeck Restaurant, 164 Main Street, Falmouth, MA — Setting aside, for the moment, the fresh, top-notch seafood dishes, you can captivate ytour kids by the interior of the restaurant, which was designed to create the illusion of being below decks on an ancient sailing vessel. Much of the interior was saved from MacDougall’s Boatyard, nearby, and some of the wood dates to the 1600s. Now, to the plates: expect to enjoy the whole tableau: swordfish with anchovy butter, lobster salad sandwich on Portuguese bread, baked or boiled lobsters, steaks and pasta. Appetizers include steamers, mussels, calamari and more. Hours: Daily, 8:30 a.m.-9 p.m. Menu. 508-548-9900. Map.
Rosalina’s Kitchen, 83 Hamilton Street, Worcester MA — Little kitchen; lots of heart. Chefs and co-owners Rose-Ellen & Angela Padavano turn out some of the best homemade ravioli in Worcester. The dining room bursts with warmth and Italian-style hospitality. The Phantom Gourmet voted Rosalina’s Kitchen’s Four-Parm Avalanche as a dish worth driving to find. The un-fancy-looking restaurant is tucked away among the triple-decker homes of the Grafton Hill neighborhood of Worcester. BYOB; glasses, corkscrews, and ice are provided. Maximum seating time is one and a half to two hours. Hours: Wednesday – Saturday, 5-9 p.m. Menu. 508-926-8887.
The Sun and Surf Restaurant, 264 Long Beach Avenue, York Beach ME — This family-run and family-welcoming restaurant, the only eatery located right on Long Sands Beach, has been a local institution since 1963. This is the Maine coast, so it is a given that you will find Maine lobster and plenty more fresh seafood on the menu. The restaurant has three outdoor patios and an indoor dining room, seating over 250 together. In summer months, a takeout window serves fried clams, lobster rolls, and ice cream and frappes directly to beach goers. For families, it has everything! Hours: Weekends from February to May and daily in the summer; noon to 8 p.m. Menu. 207-363-2961. Map.
Anthony’s Seafood Restaurant, 963 Aquidneck Avenue, Middletown, RI — This popular seafood eatery just up the road from Newport is great for kids because it is so informal. Also great for adults because prices are reasonable, food is excellent, service is quick, and the vibe is friendly. Diners walk in, order at the counter, get a number, seat themselves at picnic-style tables, and the food is served. Big portions of classic lobster rolls, clam chowders, Rhode Island stuffies (stuffed clams). There is a kids menu called Minnow Menu. Crowded at peak dining hours, but the orders move out of the kitchen fast. No reservations. Hours: Daily, 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Menu. 401-846-9620. Map.
Wright’s Farm Restaurant, 84 Inman Road, Harrisville, RI — This restaurant, with entrees limited to roasted chicken or sirloin steak, is an old, old Rhode Island staple; it would be hard to find many Rhode Islanders who have not dined here. Chicken or steak entrees include marinara sauce, house-made rolls, French fries and salad. Dinner is served on platters for the whole table, and there’s no additional fee for second helpings. The atmosphere of the restaurant is absolutely one of home, and kids are right in place among all other ages. Hours: Thursday and Friday, 4-8 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday, noon-8 p.m. Menu. 401-769-2856. Map.
Young’s Restaurant, 48 Main Street, Durham, NH — This basic, friendly, anything-you-need-or-want restaurant is located smack in the heart of downtown Durham, so you are surrounded on all sides by students and activities of the neighboring flagship campus of the University of New Hampshire. Open for breakfast and lunch, Young’s serves all the basics you could ever want … and… a monstrous smoothie that will solve all your worries and cares. Ingredients are locally sourced, including from the owners’ gardens. recommended by the University of New Hampshire Parents Association. Take-out. Hours: Daily, 7 a.m.-2 p.m. Menus. 603-868-2688. Map.
Chip’s Family Restaurant, 525 Tunxis Hill Cut Off, Fairfield CT — Founded by a Greek immigrant and now with six locations (in Fairfield, Trumbull, Orange, Southbury, Southington, Wethersfield), with the slogan “Famous for Breakfast / Loved for Lunch and Dinner.” By itself, the information in the previous sentence tells you that the Chip’s restaurant chain will be a place of value and hospitality. A restaurant with the feeling of generous abundance of a diner, Chip’s menu opens with breakfast and pancake – get a load of the pancake add-ons: pecans, almonds, walnuts, macadamia nuts, chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, toasted coconut, banana slices, pineapple chunks, apple slices, blueberry compote, strawberry compote… and more. Lunch and dinner and kids’ menus are similarly lavish, offering all the basic American comfort foods. All made from scratch. Menu. 203-332-3370. Map.
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