Happ(-ier) Meals During Your Family Vacation

Taking your children to a restaurant can be stressful. Sometimes, just finding restaurants with kids menus can be a chore. But there’s no reason you shouldn’t be able to enjoy eating out just because you have little ones in tow. Here are five of our favorite, kid friendly restaurants that cater to young eaters and offer fun diversions—beyond the typical crayons and coloring pages.

Set them free

Lowry Beer Garden in Denver, Colorado, features just over 4,500 square feet of outdoor seating and communal tables Oktoberfest style. While the biergarten offers an extensive collection of handcrafted brews, it also serves a great casual menu with locally made gourmet brats and sausages, freshly baked pretzels, house-ground burgers, hand-cut fries, chef-created salads and a kids’ menu. Best of all, while you’re waiting on your food, your children can run wild in an adjacent playground.

Drive the bus

At the Bo Beau Kitchen + Garden in La Mesa, California (a 15-minute drive east of San Diego), your kids will love to play inside the retrofitted school bus located in the play area on the outdoor patio. There’s also a chalkboard where your kids can write what they’d like to be when they grow up. The French-inspired restaurant not only features a kids menu, but a “Not for Kid’s Menu” for kids over 12 who can get smaller size entrees similar to the adults such as seared salmon or mini steak frites.

Put ’em in, Coach!

At Miami, Florida’s Bru’s Room, owned by former college and NFL defensive star Bob “Bru” Brudzinski, kids truly are part of the team. Every Tuesday, kids eat free (one kids meal per adult entree) from 5 to 9 p.m., and on Thursdays, the children’s menu is half off. Entertainers such as a magician or balloon artist keep kids glued to their seats—unless, of course, they’re hanging out in the game room. Besides a kids menu, Bru’s offers healthy entrees such as grilled chicken and pasta marinara.

Blast to the past

The zany cast of characters at the Magic Time Machine in Dallas, Texas, will keep you and your kids entertained from the moment you take your seats. All the servers dress in costumes representing various pop culture icons—look for Captain Jack Sparrow, Cinderella, Wonder Woman and Spider-Man. Each booth has a different theme. You can sit in a school bus, tiki hut or a giant pumpkin. A trip to the soup and salad bar, served from a shiny, red 1952 MG-TD Roadster, is included in every meal.

See where your food originated

The Loft at Traderspoint Creamery in Zionsville, Indiana (a 30-minute drive north of Indianapolis), is a farm-to-table dining experience your entire family will enjoy. Tour the farm’s antique milking parlor and “big Red Barn” before you venture inside the restored 1860s Loft Restaurant. All the food is made from organic and local ingredients, many straight from the farm itself. Some favorite menu items include mac and cheese, grilled cheese, cottage cheese and chocolate milk. End your meal with artisanal organic ice cream or homemade pie.

Ready to travel? Find hotels near these restaurants!