Breakfast-ing with kids

by Vicky Mmm breakfast. I love going out for breakfast. Bacon, eggs, hashbrowns, coffee... it's all so satisfying, especially when someone else makes it for you. Eating out for breakfast is something we used to do often, before we had kids. Now our breakfast outings are few and far between.

When we do head out, we often love to go to Gabriel's Restaurant on St. Joseph Blvd in Orleans. Did you know that this popular pizza place also serves breakfast? I love that it's cheap and fast, which means we're in and out in a half hour, (and also less chance of a meltdown!) Breakfast out is only fun if it doesn't last too long!

The menu is substantial with lots of variety - we always go for the Gabe's Original, two eggs, bacon, ham or sausage, toast, hashbrowns and coffee for around $6. You can also substitute fresh fruit for the potatoes for a couple of extra bucks. I've also tried the french toast, and it's delicious! The portions are generous, so we find we don't need to order a separate plate for our 3 year old.

Most of the time when we go, we get seated right away. The odd time we've had to wait a while, if we go after 10:00 am. If we do have to wait a bit, usually I ask the waitress to bring a side order of toast as soon as possible, which keeps the kids busy while we wait for our food. Another tip - ask for the bill as soon as your food comes, which means you won't be waiting around at the end of the meal.

Gabriel's is a great family restaurant. You know them for pizza, but if you haven't yet experienced their breakfast, why not give it a try - and bring the kids!

Vicky is the mom to 3.5 year old son named Joel and 1 year old daughter named Mieka. You can read her blog at blog Some Kind of Wondermom.

Summer of Awesome -- Cosmic Adventures

by Lynn

We kicked off our Summer of Awesome this year with a trip to Cosmic Adventures. It's an indoor climbing/slides/ball pit kind of place in Gloucester.

And needless to say, it was awesome.

It's three stories of climbers, giant slides, and places to run and hide. There's an almost endless nest of tubes and giant balls and dangling ropes and who knows what in there. Within two minutes of arriving, my older two kids -- ages 5 and 7 -- were gone. I was also there with my 4 1/2 year old nephew, and he had no trouble making himself scarce. Occasionally we'd catch a glimpse of them, sweaty and smiling and screaming with joy, as they ran past on one level or another. But overall we didn't see them until it was time to track them down for lunch.

I was nervous at first, because who the hell knows what goes on in there, but I have to say that the staff works hard to put you at ease. There were plenty of employees there, for a weekday, and they were attentive and caring. While we were there, one girl cleaned out each of the three ball pits twice, looking for anything sharp in the bottom of the pit; meanwhile, another guy hung from a harness so he could dust off the top of each and every tube slide. Meanwhile, no kid gets out of the locked play area without the parent they came with, verified with paperwork. So you can relax and let your kid really work off some steam.

I'd say any child from age 5 through 10 would have a ball here, but your older children can even go -- there were several teenagers who were running day camps who were just as excited to climb right up to the top as their charges. I even made a few trips to the second level with the Little Miss, who wanted to check it out but couldn't do it alone, and I fit in there with minimal discomfort and surprisingly minimal annoyance from other kids, all of whom seemed to be busy doing their own thing yet respectful of others and the need to take turns. I KNOW. Unbelieveable!

Plus, there are two separate toddler areas, both with small slides and ball pits. Your toddler can play in a small section under the main climber, so you can keep tabs on both age groups; or you can take your toddler upstairs to a larger and much quieter play area that's gentle on little ears. I like the fact that the owners really thought about what parents would need in a place like this, and tried to make it friendly to all age groups.

The one real drawback of this place is the cost. Oh my heavens, it puts a dent in the wallet. It cost us $47 to get in for my 2, 5, and 7 year old kids. On top of that, there's no outside food allowed due to nut-free restrictions (we did bring in our own bottle of water and no one busted us), so you're forced to shop at their canteen, and WHOA. I spent $27 for lunch, JUST FOR THE KIDS. I mean, I appreciate the fact that we could get sides like grapes, veggies, or applesauce instead of fries. And providing whole-wheat bread and buns is a nice touch. But with admission, and lunch, and a few bucks to play the games in their little arcade, and suddenly we're looking at a $100 outing. OUCH.

Still, my kids can't stop talking about it. We did a LOT of great stuff this week, and still they all say that Cosmic was their favourite day. They're already asking to go back, and the Captain says he'd like to have his birthday party there. I even had fun, as I really felt like I didn't have to worry about the big kids, and even my littlest one entertained herself quite well in their toddler area. I could actually sit and chat with my sister while our kids played, which trust me, is an absolute novelty.

So I must give Cosmic Adventures a Summer Of Awesome Must Do, despite the cost. Obviously, it's a once-a-summer event... but a worthy one.

Lynn is mom to three tombliboos and blogs over at Turtlehead.

Images courtesy of the Cosmic Adventures website - my kids were way too much of a blur breezing past to catch on camera.

Kid-Friendly Restaurant Review: A Very "Sometimes" Treat

by Liisa This week our family attended the opening of Smoke's Poutinerie at 407 Dalhousie in the Byward Market. 

Up front, I must express my biases:

1)  Smoke's Poutinerie's founder, Ryan Smolkin, is a friend.

2)  I am a vegetarian and I haven't eaten poutine in about 15 years (since 4 a.m. on Saturday nights in the McGill Ghetto).

3) I try to feed my children healthful meals.

We pulled up to Smoke's Poutinerie on Sunday evening and easily found street parking out front.  We could readily identify the place by its red and black checked sign - think lumber jacket.  Right away the tone was set for a slightly kitchy Canadiana experience. 

Music was blaring and tables were filled with hungry eaters (I couldn't say "diners" because I don't think you "dine" on poutine - or maybe you do). 

We lined up and ordered a blue rasberry Calypso Lemonade to accompany a traditional veggie poutine (in the small size) and a plain order of fries for my finicky children.   We found a small table to squeeze into and the boys quickly polished off the delicious lightly seasoned handcut fries.  There was no processed potato mush here. 

Derek and I tasted the poutine.  The vegetarian poutine is made with a mushroom-based gravy.  You could really taste the mushroom flavour and I am definitely a fan.  The cheese curds tasted fresh and were melted just enough. 

The tiny 100 pound woman beside me polished off a small Nacho Veggie Poutine and proclaimed it "the best".  

The portion sizes are really generous and I imagine that a small could be shared between two children.  We will be back, and we will look forward to trying some of the more exotic varieties.   Unfortunately, for us, poutine is a very "sometimes" food, but the next time we have a craving for hand-cut fries, or those plump cheese curds we will definitely know where to go.

The Stats: (out of 5)

Food (Quality, taste, freshness): Grown-ups – 5 thumbs up; Kids – 5 thumbs up

Service (Attentiveness and kid-friendliness): 5 thumbs up from grown-ups and kids (stickers of all sizes were a huge hit with the kids)

Ambience (General appeal and energy, any interesting kid-friendly features): 3 thumbs up from grown-ups and kids; loud music and cramped quarters make this perfect for a quick snack

Cost (family of 4 with 2 children under 5): under $30 including tax

Speed (Every parents-of-small-children’s concern!):  Time from order to delivery of food 4 minutes; total time in restaurant 20 minutes.

Smoke's Poutinerie, 407 Dalhousie Street (613) 789-CURD

Liisa is mom to two boys, 4.5 year old Lil D and 2.5 year old Lil C.  You can also find her at Fit for a Kid.

Strike! Bowling with kids.

by Brenda When my kids were younger, I would often long for the day when we would be able to do "older" activities. Now that they are 7 and 4, we are starting to explore some big kid outings and recently tried bowling. The kids liked it so much that it seems to have become somewhat of a monthly occurrence. I’m not sure what it is, but the whole concept of bowling is so much fun for kids. The funky shoes, the huge scale of everything, the mechanics, it’s all so different.

If the bowling alley also does the black lights and dance music thing, that brings the fun to a whole other level. Is there anything cooler than black lights?

One thing we’ve learned the hard way is to be there early. Bowling is a very popular destination for Birthday Parties, which often brings crowds and chaos.

We generally go to the Merivale Bowling Centre and the trick for us is to get there when it first opens on a Saturday or Sunday. In fact we went this past weekend and we were practically the only ones there. Less distraction for the kids and less wrangling for us, means more fun for all.

A great addition (which I don’t recall having when we were kids!) are the bumpers used on the lanes when kids are playing. This eliminates discouraging gutter balls virtually guaranteeing some pins are always knocked down. The bumpers are also helpful for parents who may be a bit rusty.

The computerized scoring on the big screens is another source of fun. Our seven-year old loves to take control and setup the matches. Typing our names into the scoring system is the educational part of the event, made even more fun when we use the names of our Star Wars alter egos. This always causes fits of giggles for our kids and blank stares from anyone else looking at our scoreboard.

The other nice thing about bowling, is that it is a relatively inexpensive outing.  For example, for the four of us to play one game, including shoe rental, the total was $28. Not cheap but not expensive so long as you can avoid the lure of the arcade afterwards! 

So my tips for going bowling for the first time are:

1. Go when the bowling centre first opens - fewer crowds, more fun 2. Make sure the bumpers are up for your lane. 3. Quite while you are ahead, most young kids will only have the attention span for one game 4. Don't forget to bring socks for everyone!

Most importantly have fun!!

Brenda is a stay-at-home mom to a 7 yr old Jedi wannabe and 4 yr old little miss.  You can occasionally find her blogging at ottawamom.com

Kid-Friendly Restaurant Review: John's Quick Lunch

by Liisa I have been going to John's Quick Lunch with family for 7 years now. We used to go as a couple with my parents before the kids were born, and now we as a family of 4 or with grandparents in tow (free meal that way!).  We keep going back because the owners and staff make everyone feel welcome, and the food is consistent, good, fresh, and reasonably-priced.

John's is a small family owned restaurant, mainly for breakfast and lunch, though they are open for Friday night dinner (which we usually hit once a month or so). Except on Friday's, they close around 2 or 3pm and are closed all day Sunday.

You will recognize John's as you go east on Wellington, by the huge mural of John painted on the west side of the building.  Inside you will usually find either John or his son Tony behind the counter.

The breakfast food is classic, think pancakes, french toast, eggs, bacon, sausage. The lunch menu holds no surprises either with salads, sandwiches and a few Lebanese dishes, but you must try the Club Sandwich as it is almost annually voted the best in Ottawa.

On a recent Saturday brunch visit, 5 of us piled into a booth for 4, the 2 boys wanting to sit on either side of their grandmother.

The place was busy but we were quickly visited by our smiling server and drink and kids orders were taken right away.  A minute later, drinks in hand, the server returned to take the rest of our orders. John's has kids' options for breakfast with slightly smaller orders, but they are still big enough that we usually split one of these between our boys.

On this day, they enjoyed a kid's order of pancakes with a side of bacon (no need to ask for the extra plate as it arrived with the meal), and a bottle of apple juice split between two glasses.

With several refills of nice hot coffee, I ordered an egg white spinach and mushroom omelette (egg whites, "no problem"). It comes with toast, home fries and beans. While those sides aren't really my thing, and substitutions are welcome, I didn't change them as I knew my boys would like the toast and some of the potatoes.

My MIL ordered a fried egg sandwich with her coffee, and my tea-drinking husband ordered the famous Club with salad instead of fries.

Though most of our plates still had food on them as they were cleared, it was due to portion size rather than enjoyment.

John's takes cash only. Even regulars forget this, and luckily there is an ATM downstairs. You pay your bill at the counter, where on Saturdays, John himself finds your check and rings you up. After a quiet request for permission from the parents, John offers your little people lollipops.

Once again on this visit, John's didn't disappoint; it's not gourmet but hey, it is a family restaurant. It definitely succeeds in making you feel at home while getting a good hot meal on a lazy weekend morning. 

Reviews from the kids:

Lil D: "I like John's because I get to give John the money and he gives me a lollipop. They have good restaurant toast and bacon."

Lil C: "It's yummy. I like pancakes with syrup for dipping".

The Stats: (out of 5)

Food (Quality, taste, freshness): Grown-ups - 4 thumbs up; Kids - 5 thumbs up

Service (Attentiveness and kid-friendliness): 5 thumbs up from grown-ups and kids

Ambience (General appeal and energy, any interesting kid-friendly features): 5 thumbs up from grown-ups and kids

Cost (family of 4 with 2 children under 5) $42 including tax (CASH ONLY)

Speed (Every parents-of-small-children's concern!) Time from seating to order - 3 minutes; time from order to delivery of food 9 minutes; total time in restaurant 45 minutes (with lots of chatting and coffee refills).

John's Quick Lunch (613) 761-1010 1365 Wellington St West Ottawa, ON K1Y3C2

Liisa is mom to two boys, 4.5 year old Lil D and 2.5 year old Lil C.  You can also find her at Fit for a Kid.