Ask EADith: Where’s good for baby-friendly dining?
Got a food dilemma? Need a killer rec to seal the deal? Or just want the inside track on Glasgow and Edinburgh’s eating and drinking scene? Then why not ask EADith, our Eat & Drink team’s helpful agony aunt. This month, she’s managing the thorny topic of eating out with weans in tow
.jpg)
Dear EADith,
I recently had a baby. While I may travel with a pramful of infant paraphernalia every time I step out the house, I haven’t lost my taste buds. Where can I enjoy dining in Edinburgh with my squawking bundle of joy?
MumNeedsFood
Dear MumNeedsFood,
Back when I was raising sprogs, a gungy highchair hidden by the toilets of a TGI Friday’s was the height of baby-friendly dining. Even today, intimate spots pose problems for buggy storage, not to mention candlelight is a burn hazard for little hands, while shrieks of delight from grandbaby EADith in all her dribbling glory don’t exactly blend in with a romantic bistro atmosphere. While nearly every restaurant will provide a state-of-the-art highchair and won’t actively turn you away with a babe in arms (pubs are a very different story), there are places where dining en famille is more welcome than others.
My top tip is Ka Pao at the St James Quarter. It has wide alleys between tables, plenty of highchairs and enough convivial chatter to cover general baby noise. There’s also a lift from ground level so no need to negotiate the slippery basement steps or surprise raised entrances of Edinburgh’s older buildings. The menu is designed for sharing, so the small one can sample new south-east Asian flavours while you feel smug about adventurous weaning.
While the child munches happily away on a piece of bread or hispi cabbage, parents can sip sophisticated cocktails, like refreshingly fizzy Lemongrass Spritz, to celebrate another month of keeping them alive. Pleasingly, choices such as finger-licking fried chicken with banana chillis or corn ribs with salted coconut mean that the whole table will need a baby wipe or two: everyone’s a winner and my burgundy remains unscathed.
And do not fear: fingers smeared with Petits Filous and bulging nappy bags don’t mean your fine dining era is over. But just wait until baby is old enough to realise Coro Chocolate Cafe exists.
Ka Pao Edinburgh, St James Quarter (also at 26 Vinicombe Street, Glasgow); average price £35 for sharing menu.