A popular Italian restaurant in US’ New Jersey will no longer accept children under the age of 10.
About the restaurant
Nettie’s House of Spaghetti in Tinton Falls made headlines after it announced on social media it will no longer serve children under 10 years of age from March 8.
It is a renowned retro-themed restaurant in Monmouth County in New Jersey which opened in the year 2018.
The restaurant was ranked 28th in NJ.com’s best 50 Italian restaurant in New Jersey in 2022.
The outlet announced its decision on Facebook.
Explaining the decision
It wrote, “We love kids. We really, truly, do. But lately, it’s been extremely challenging to accommodate children at Nettie’s.
Between noise levels, lack of space for high chairs, cleaning up crazy messes, and the liability of kids running around the restaurant, we have decided that it’s time to take control of the situation.
This wasn’t a decision that was made lightly, but some recent events have pushed us to implement this new policy.”
Addressing the controversy
“As of March 8, the day we return from our winter break, we will no longer allow children under 10 to dine in the restaurant”, the outlet in its post added.
The restaurant acknowledged that the decision is a controversial one, especially upsetting to those with “very well-behaved kids, but we believe this is the right decision for our business moving forward”.
It concluded the post by saying, “Thank you for understanding.”
Kids a liability
In response to a user comment it admitted that children have “become a liability to us.”
“Children run around the eatery in circles while carrying the food trays and serving the diners, making our jobs extremely difficult”, the restaurant said.
Users responded with varied opinions.
Criticism
Some criticized the decision.
“That is really sad to hear .. I was looking forward to trying out your place but with a well behaved 9 year old I’m not welcome .. sad”, wrote one parent.
But others felt it was justified, claiming it would make dining easier.
Agreement
A user wrote, “Fantastic idea… having worked in the industry since I was 14, I’ve never seen anything like I have in the recent past. Kids are out of control and most parents are oblivious.”
The post has garnered over 16,000 likes and has been shared over 4,500 times.
