# If your kid won't eat, take him out to a restaurant. Mm hmm. **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [March 10, 2010, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-your-kid-wont-eat-take-him-out-to-a-restaurant-mm-hmm/531941 "2010-03-10T03:03:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-your-kid-wont-eat-take-him-out-to-a-restaurant-mm-hmm/531941/1 "2010-03-10T03:03:34Z")
There’s a Boston Pizza commercial on right now that pisses me right off - we start off with the husband and wife acting like they’re cops dealing with a recalcitrant prisoner. We see that the recalcitrant prisoner is their son who won’t eat the dinner made for him. The solution to your children refusing to eat their dinner? Take them out to a restaurant! I thought I was misunderstanding the commercial at first, because the idea of rewarding a child for being a pain in the ass is a little foreign to me. Maybe there will be a whole series of commercials - when your kid beats up his sister, you can buy him a bike. When he flunks out of grade five, you can buy him a pony. When he knocks up his girlfriend in grade 9, you can buy him a house. When he flunks out of college, I don’t know what else you can give him that he won’t already have - I suppose he’ll let you know with what he expects you to reward his latest bad behaviour. Bah. ---
**Author:** ![SteveG1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bb73d2/32.png) [@SteveG1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SteveG1)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-your-kid-wont-eat-take-him-out-to-a-restaurant-mm-hmm/531941/2 "2010-03-10T03:05:50Z")
I used to get the “EAT YOUR FOOD! PEOPLE ARE STARVING!” routine. So, I’d sit there until I ate it all. People are still starving. Go figure. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![KarlGauss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/karlgauss/32/3713_2.png) [@KarlGauss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGauss)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 3:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-your-kid-wont-eat-take-him-out-to-a-restaurant-mm-hmm/531941/3 "2010-03-10T03:10:20Z")
> [@SteveG1](#): > > I used to get the “EAT YOUR FOOD! PEOPLE ARE STARVING!” routine. So, I’d sit there until I ate it all. People are still starving. Go figure. :rolleyes: Well, obviously you left some over (or surreptitiously shoveled it to the dog - like I used to). ---
**Author:** ![ivn1188](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e480ec/32.png) [@ivn1188](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivn1188)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 3:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-your-kid-wont-eat-take-him-out-to-a-restaurant-mm-hmm/531941/4 "2010-03-10T03:16:29Z")
I detect disproportionate outrage. ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-your-kid-wont-eat-take-him-out-to-a-restaurant-mm-hmm/531941/5 "2010-03-10T03:26:57Z")
> [@ivn1188](#): > > I detect disproportionate outrage. I think your outrage meter may be malfunctioning, because I detected zero outrage. The max reading that I detected was “pissed off” and “Bah.” IOW: one of those lighter, milder Pittings, for a refreshing change of pace. By the way, OP, I agree that the parents described are acting like stupetards, but I’m sure that having people tut-tut about the ad and thus generate buzz about Boston Pizza is exactly what Boston Pizza had in mind when they made an ad with stupetard characters. ---
**Author:** ![SteveG1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bb73d2/32.png) [@SteveG1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SteveG1)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-your-kid-wont-eat-take-him-out-to-a-restaurant-mm-hmm/531941/6 "2010-03-10T03:29:48Z")
> [@KarlGauss](#): > > Well, obviously you left some over (or surreptitiously shoveled it to the dog - like I used to). You’ll never prove it, copper 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Fight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/90ced4/32.png) [@Cat\_Fight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Fight)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-your-kid-wont-eat-take-him-out-to-a-restaurant-mm-hmm/531941/7 "2010-03-10T03:39:05Z")
> [@SteveG1](#): > > I used to get the “EAT YOUR FOOD! PEOPLE ARE STARVING!” routine. So, I’d sit there until I ate it all. People are still starving. Go figure. :rolleyes: That never worked on me. I offered to send my meal to them. (Thanks _Dirty Dancing_ writers!) ---
**Author:** ![Pyper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Pyper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pyper)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-your-kid-wont-eat-take-him-out-to-a-restaurant-mm-hmm/531941/8 "2010-03-10T04:01:31Z")
I think it’s a children’s Motrin commercial where instead of acting sick, the kids are acting like little assholes. (Pouting, throwing toys at the camera, etc.) It seems to imply that the cure for brattiness is drugs. ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-your-kid-wont-eat-take-him-out-to-a-restaurant-mm-hmm/531941/9 "2010-03-10T04:15:24Z")
On the older end of the scale, there was [the ad for the home “communication system”](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nQLd8lLpvnI) which was a touch screen that had Internet and phone services. A woman looks up a paella recipe on it, then texts the whole family at once that tonight is paella night. Her teenage son sends back a video message, saying, “I don’t know what pie-ella is, but I’m not eating it, ever.” Mom pouts a little, then uses the screen to place an order for pizza. Screw that. I’d feed the brat his phone first. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Plastic\_Ninja](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f07891/32.png) [@Little\_Plastic\_Ninja](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Plastic_Ninja)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-your-kid-wont-eat-take-him-out-to-a-restaurant-mm-hmm/531941/10 "2010-03-10T04:17:08Z")
I recall a radio commercial for those in-car DVD players. See, BEFORE Mom got one, the little brats were always talking to her and asking questions! About everything! But now they’re perfectly silent on any drive, no matter how long. That’s right. Don’t interact with your kids, for goodness sake. Stun them into silence with Finding Nemo. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_the\_Immortal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6de8d8/32.png) [@Max\_the\_Immortal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_the_Immortal)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-your-kid-wont-eat-take-him-out-to-a-restaurant-mm-hmm/531941/11 "2010-03-10T04:34:52Z")
“Boston Pizza: the restaurant full of bratty, shrieking kids and terrible parents.” Yeah, that’s exactly the atmosphere I like when I go out for dinner. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-your-kid-wont-eat-take-him-out-to-a-restaurant-mm-hmm/531941/12 "2010-03-10T04:49:24Z")
If they ever start opening for breakfast I bet they serve _Life_ cereal. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Sodalite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/34f0e0/32.png) [@Sodalite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sodalite)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-your-kid-wont-eat-take-him-out-to-a-restaurant-mm-hmm/531941/13 "2010-03-10T05:00:32Z")
> [@Kimstu](#): > > I think your outrage meter may be malfunctioning, because I detected zero outrage. The max reading that I detected was “pissed off” and “Bah.” > > IOW: one of those lighter, milder Pittings, for a refreshing change of pace. By the way, OP, I agree that the parents described are acting like \*\* stupetards \*\*, but I’m sure that having people tut-tut about the ad and thus generate buzz about Boston Pizza is exactly what Boston Pizza had in mind when they made an ad with \*\* stupetard \*\* characters. Oh boy! I just found my new favorite word. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![The\_Second\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbe5ce/32.png) [@The\_Second\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Second_Stone)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 6:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-your-kid-wont-eat-take-him-out-to-a-restaurant-mm-hmm/531941/14 "2010-03-10T06:33:48Z")
> [@Cat\_Fight](#): > > That never worked on me. I offered to send my meal to them. (Thanks _Dirty Dancing_ writers!) We used to offer to send it to them long before anybody put “Baby in a corner”. It wasn’t an original sass in the 60s, although every kid who thought it up knew they were a genius. ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-your-kid-wont-eat-take-him-out-to-a-restaurant-mm-hmm/531941/15 "2010-03-10T13:45:49Z")
> [@Cat\_Fight](#): > > That never worked on me. I offered to send my meal to them. (Thanks _Dirty Dancing_ writers!) I offered to do this too, years before _Dirty Dancing_ came out. ETA: Now I’m overweight and trying to train myself to not keep eating if I’m not hungry, even if there’s food left on my plate. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-your-kid-wont-eat-take-him-out-to-a-restaurant-mm-hmm/531941/16 "2010-03-10T14:08:58Z")
Slight hijack: Boston Pizza? Where’s that? (A quick gander at their website makes me believe that their pizza is even worse than Pizzaria Regina, but that’s simply not possible.) ---
**Author:** ![otternell](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecc23a/32.png) [@otternell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/otternell)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-your-kid-wont-eat-take-him-out-to-a-restaurant-mm-hmm/531941/17 "2010-03-10T14:26:35Z")
I was all excited that this thread was going to be another bitch session about parents and screaming kids in restaurants. That one was fun! I was a bit disappointed that this was just a commercial. Come on **Cat Whisperer** could you not have made up a good “screaming kid in restaurant” story just to amuse us?! ---
**Author:** ![Hal\_Briston](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a9a28c/32.png) [@Hal\_Briston](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hal_Briston)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-your-kid-wont-eat-take-him-out-to-a-restaurant-mm-hmm/531941/18 "2010-03-10T14:35:00Z")
> [@Pyper](#): > > I think it’s a children’s Motrin commercial where instead of acting sick, the kids are acting like little assholes. (Pouting, throwing toys at the camera, etc.) It seems to imply that the cure for brattiness is drugs. That’s just wrong. The cure for brattiness is Benadryl, not Motrin. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-your-kid-wont-eat-take-him-out-to-a-restaurant-mm-hmm/531941/19 "2010-03-10T14:49:22Z")
> [@Anne\_Neville](#): > > ETA: Now I’m overweight and trying to train myself to not keep eating if I’m not hungry, even if there’s food left on my plate. Seriously. My mother always told me to eat everything on my plate, and now that I’m 27 and my metabolism has gone from a raging wildfire to a smoldering ember, this is no longer a practical method for determining how much to eat. ---
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-your-kid-wont-eat-take-him-out-to-a-restaurant-mm-hmm/531941/20 "2010-03-10T14:55:55Z")
> [@The\_Second\_Stone](#): > > We used to offer to send it to them long before anybody put “Baby in a corner”. It wasn’t an original sass in the 60s, although every kid who thought it up knew they were a genius. My version of it was basically “Let them come over here and eat it, then”. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-your-kid-wont-eat-take-him-out-to-a-restaurant-mm-hmm/531941.md?page=2)