Kids-friendly restaurants in New York City

I wish I could, but I can’t talk about = absolutely everything about New York just by myself. There are issues / things that do not interest me very much and I do not fit into some profiles either – I do not have children, for example, so there are things that only those who are mothers will know how to talk about it. A few days ago, a reader asked for restaurant tips to go with kids. Not all places are suitable for children, and I thought the subject very pertinent, to at least give an initial help, with options for those who travel with their children. For that, I counted on the help of three Brazilian moms who live here in New York. I hope you enjoy their tips!

Patricia Toussie, known as Nyorquina, a mother of three, has living in New York for 15 years. Paty makes personalized travel itineraries and gives remote advisory. To get in touch, write to nyorquina@gmail.com / Instagram: @nyorquina

Ninja – Ninja is a very cool Japanese restaurant. It’s like “speakseasy,” a secret sort. When you arrive at the place, it really looks like a Japanese village. On the menu, you will see items with an asterisk – highly recommend ordering these items with this little sign, as it means that you will get surprised by the waiter when bringing the dish. Children (and adults) will be amazed. Opens only for dinner. Check out the menu.

Address: 25 Hudson Street. 

Big Daddy’s – Big Daddys has all the foods kids love – burgers, shakes, hot dogs, cheese, fries …. Also, their stores are super-colored and have those coin-operated machines to get toys and candy. It is so popular among New York children that some even have parties there. Open all day. Check out the menu.

Address: 2454 Broadway. 

American Girl Cafe – American Girl, located on Fifth Avenue near the Rockerfeller Center, is the girls’ mecca! The dolls, which are not cheap (start at $ 100) are a real fever for being customized. The doll ‘s outfits are super modern, and the shop has a beauty salon (for dolls, of course) and hospital. Even if you do not have children, you have to check out to understand … The store has a cafe, and if you take a girl there, be sure to carry her doll, because at each table there is a high chair where the “Daughter” of your daughter sits to join the meal, of course. CAUTION – If you do not take your doll, surely you will end up having to buy one at the time hahahaha Check out the menu

Address: 609 5th Ave.

Carla Paredes, from blog Futi – Um papo sobre auto-estima, Arthur’s mother, 1 year old.  “I am the type of mother who takes the child everywhere and in these almost 8 months living in New York I count on the fingers of a hand the amount of restaurants that have no structure to receive small children. When I say structure I say highchair, because very few have a changer if we need to solve an emergency.”  Instagram: @futilidades

Nice Matin – It’s great for that Sunday brunch. The food is delicious, the ambience is cozy, the dishes cost between $18 and $25 (the steak frites is very tasty). Important: there is an changer! Check out the menu. Open for lunch and dinner.

Address: The Lucerne Hotel, 201 W 79th St.

Jack’s Wife Freda -I love this restaurant, despite being a bit small and having giant queues over the weekend – the brunch is famous. The food is amazing and what I find cute is that they give out crayons and paper for the children to get distracted, as well as having plastic cup with straw for water. It may sound like bullshit, but that was one detail that surprised me, even though Arthur still does not know how to draw. Check out the menu. Open for lunch and dinner.

Address: 50 Carmine St.

Carmine’s – what I like in this restaurant is that the environment is very nice to take children at any time of day – not to mention the giant dishes, which serve 4 people, makes it very cheap (usually $20 per person, depending on drinks). It’s super tourist, it’s in the middle of Times Square, but I love it. It has baby chair, changing table and attentive staff. Check out the menu. Open for lunch and dinner.

Address: 200W 44th St / 2450 Broadway.

Café Mogador – this Moroccan restaurant is one of my favorites! Spacious and charming environment, wonderful food, has a baby chair and although there is no changing table, there is a stool at the entrance to the bathrooms which made my life easier at the time I needed to change my son (but it is small, I believe children over 2 years old do not Fit there). Arthur loves the warm toast pita bread. Dishes averaging $ 18 to $ 20, great for lunch – but there are queues during the weekend.  Open for lunch and dinner. Check out the menu

Address: 133 Wythe Ave (Williamsburg) / 101 Saint Marks Pl # 1.

Van Leuween –  It is not a restaurant, it is an ice cream shop. But I figured it was worth it because it’s simply the best ice cream in New York, in my opinion. They have locations in Brooklyn and Manhattan, but I think the one in Williamsburg (Wythe Ave) is the best for kids. Large, roomy, with stools from the outside, plenty of tables inside and out – and a changer table! Hahaha

Address: 48.5 East 7th St /52 West 10th St / 620 Manhattan Ave (Brooklyn) / 81 Bergen St (Brooklyn) / 204 Wythe Ave (Brooklyn).

Fernanda Seelos, Dylan’s mother, 2 years old. Fê writes about New York – and about her mon’s life in the Big Apple – on his blog Me and the City. There are lots of tips out there and she shares her experiences with her baby boy! Instagram: @meandthecity

BareBurger –  (We always go to the location in Greenwich Village). Super tasty place, all organic, wonderful food and they are super kid friendly. Always full of children there, they give crayons for kids to color and have a children’s menu. We usually order the mini cheeseburger for Dylan and it comes with fries, apple and chocolate milk. Check out the menu.Open for lunch and dinner.

Address: 535 LaGuardia Pl – a rede tem mais de 10 endereços na cidade – clique aqui para conferir todos.

Dos Caminos – This restaurant is not super friendly at dinner time, but at lunchtime / brunch it is okay. We basically go there every Sunday since Dylan was born and he LOVES the food there. The staff loves children, they also give out crayons, paper and a few other little things for kids to be distracted. One thing that a lot of people do not know, when you get there just ask the veggies for kids that they bring pieces of vegetables and guacamole to the kids, for free. Meanwhile, Mom and Dad go with frozen margarita, hehe. We usually go to the SoHo location and we have nothing to complain about  – we go every week! Dylan eats a lot! I think the price of there is well taken into account if you go for the weekend brunch, because the meal includes the margarita or another drink for the adults. Check out the menu.

Address: 675 Hudson Street / 373 Park Avenue South / 475 West Broadway / 825 Third Avenue / 1567 Broadway.

Otto – It is a delicious Italian restaurant. Same as Dos Caminos, it’s not very friendly for dinner, but it’s for lunches with kids. And that’s what I like in New York, the restaurants turn into different places from lunchtime to dinner, hehe. The menu there is wonderful and the pasta and individual pizzas are not expensive. They do not have a children’s specific menu there, but they bring bread as we sit at the table and they have a selection of wonderful ice creams for dessert! It is well worth it. Check out the menu.

Address: 1 5th Ave. 

Did you like this post? I hope you have enjoyed the tips from Paty, Carla and Fê! Thank you girls for collaborating with this post!