Surin of Thailand

I was kind of nervous about this one for some reason. Maybe it’s because I remember going here several times when Beardy and I were dating and just married, so I kind of associated it with going out without kids. Once we ordered fancy martinis and didn’t realize they were $10 each so we were surprised when the check came. This became a running joke between us.

Lime Fresh Mexican Grill

Smalls, my mom, and I had a fun day out last Saturday. We started the morning standing in line for an hour to drop off our items for the Kid’s Market consignment sale (it’s my first consignment sale). And no, I’m not being sarcastic about it being a fun day—Smalls was really good in line, the weather was cold but sunny, and the day got better from there. We went to Bridge Street next, mostly because Grandma promised Smalls strawberry “up con” (ice cream) if she was good. She was, so we went to Orange Tree for strawberry frozen yogurt… a little healthier than ice cream, right? By the way, advertising works on two year olds. Every time we pass that giant McDonald’s billboard with the green St. Patrick’s Day milkshake on it, Smalls goes nuts. “UP CON! UP CON!” We have not had one, though, so it's not completely effective.

Carrabba’s Italian Grill

Beardy, Smalls, and I went to Carrabba’s Italian Grill in the Parkway Place Mall last Sunday to celebrate Beardy’s sister’s birthday. We were expecting a group of about 15 people, including three toddlers and someone in a mobility scooter, so I called ahead in the middle of the week to make sure they were ready for us. Even though they don’t officially take reservations, they wrote down the specifics of our group and what time we wanted to arrive. I think they called this “call-ahead seating,” which is different from reservations, but it still helped us out. Beardy, Smalls, and I got there a little early to make sure they expecting us, and they were. They had a table ready for us by noon, and were very nice and accommodating.

We received three crayons and a multi-page activity book/kids' menu when we sat down. Smalls can’t do mazes and find-a-word yet, but she’s happy with any paper and any writing implement. We were also fortunate to have our 12-year-old niece as part of the party. She can keep Smalls busy, quiet, and happy for an infinite amount of time; I’ve never seen the limit of her patience with Smalls. I think she even managed to divide her time among two other cousins—3-year-old twin boys—and keep everyone happy.

The kids menu consists of grilled chicken with a vegetable, spaghetti and meatball (singular meatball, but it’s big), pizza, cheese ravioli, and chicken fingers. The prices on the kids menu were about $5-$6 and that includes the drink. Smalls went for the spaghetti; we’d eaten udon noodles at home for lunch twice the week before, and Smalls loved them, so I thought she’d like some “long noodles.” She did like them, one at a time. I think she could have stayed there all afternoon, eating one. Noodle. At. A. Time… But, still, quiet and happy is the goal. We ended up taking some of her spaghetti home with us. The bread that they put on the table near the beginning of the meal is good, too. The 3-year-olds in our group got the pizza, and seemed happy with their choice. Here’s the link to the bambini menu—or I guess you can call it the kids' menu if you don’t speak Italian. http://www.carrabbas.com/our-menu/#Bambini

The grown-up menu is good, too. I got the mezzaluna ravioli and Beardy got the lasagna. We both thought our food could have been hotter, but it’s probably hard to get 15 entrees out at exactly the same time and keep them hot. Both dishes tasted good. The prices range from about $9-$17, so it’s not super-cheap. The atmosphere of the restaurant is casual, but dark enough to feel grown-up; you could have an almost-fancy grown-up feeling dinner here, but still keep the kids happy. Beardy’s cousin mentioned that they get take-out from the Carrabba’s near them (I noticed you can order online and then pick it up, too), and that sounds like a good idea.

Toddler friendliness ratings:

Atmosphere: 3.5 out of 5 booster seats. Everybody's really nice, but you might have to wait for a table, and it seems a little crowded in the dining room.

Food: 4.5 out of 5 booster seats.

Note on hours: The Huntsville location is NOT open for lunch during the week, and the restaurants’ opening hours vary by location. Check their website (http://www.carrabbas.com/index.aspx) to make sure they’re open when you want to go.

Carrabba’s Italian Grill

(256) 288-1333
2801 S. Memorial Parkway
Huntsville, AL 35801

Hours (for the Huntsville location):
Mon: 4:00 PM-10:00 PM
Tue: 4:00 PM-10:00 PM
Wed: 4:00 PM-10:00 PM
Thu: 4:00 PM-10:00 PM
Fri: 4:00 PM-11:00 PM
Sat: 3:00 PM-11:00 PM
Sun: 11:00 AM- 9:00 PM

Steak N Shake

I like Steak N Shake. There was a Steak N Shake somewhere between Alabama and Wisconsin (that narrows it down, right?) that my family would stop at sometimes when we’d make the 18 hour drive to visit my mom’s side of the family. It was one place that my dad would actually enjoy stopping at. I think it was a magic combination of inexpensive, slightly old-fashioned, and obscure (obscure to us, at least, because we didn’t have one near us at home). We even have souvenir Steak N Shake glasses in the top of the cupboard that were tacitly considered “too nice to use.” So I’m glad that we have one in Huntsville, even if I don’t go very often. Maybe I secretly think that if I went there all the time, it would be less special.

Cheddar's Casual Cafe

Cheddar’s is such a bad name. I’ve always thought, in spite of their rather nice-looking building, that all they would have would be cheese sticks, cheeseburgers, and cheese fries, or they might make me hang out with a clown named Cheddars or something. My mom thought it sounded like a place she went to in Illinois where they put cheese on everything, including the desserts (actually, apple pie. Apparently some people think this is ok). Well, they do have cheese sticks, cheese burgers, and cheese sticks, but they have lots of other choices, too, including some interesting choices for kids.

Honey's Restaurant, Fayetteville, TN

My mom, Smalls, and I needed some post-holiday entertainment last week, so I suggested a mini road trip to Fayetteville. Mostly, I wanted to go to Sir's Fabrics because I’m going to try to sew a top for Smalls, out of a pattern book I got for Christmas. I’ve only driven through Fayetteville on the way to the Jack Daniel’s Distillery in Lynchburg, so I didn’t know how neat of a place Fayetteville is.

Famous Joe's Pizzeria

It was the week between Christmas and New Year’s and we were getting tired of holiday food—turkey, turkey curry, turkey and ham fried rice. So… pizza!
Beardy, Smalls, and I decided on Famous Joe’s Pizzeria on County Line Road in Madison. Apparently, Joe is famous. The restaurant’s Web site lists Joe’s awards and accolades, including being the Guinness world record holder for the highest pizza toss.