Families are among the most popular customer segments that regularly visit restaurants, especially those with children. And yet, many restaurants aren’t equipped to welcome children. Many lack dedicated kids’ menus or safe places to play or entertainment areas.
Having a family-friendly restaurant can be the decisive factor for a customer choosing your concept over a competitor. That’s why it’s crucial to understand this segment’s needs and offer them an exceptional experience, prompting them to choose you each time.
A positive experience translates into long-term loyalty, an increase in family and group reservations, and a higher average spend. From dedicated play areas and kid-friendly menu ideas to a friendly staff attitude, every small detail makes a huge difference to families.
Here are the top strategies to attract families to your dining concept and boost their loyalty.
Creating a Family-Friendly Restaurant Environment
When parents feel like your restaurant offers a comfortable and safe experience for their children, they’ll keep coming back and bring their friends and relatives with them.
Design your restaurant to suit families
Your restaurant’s design and floor plan play a big role in making a first impression. So, start with a layout that works for families with children.
Use warm colors and choose safe furniture with rounded edges. Designate a family area with appropriate seating for kids, like high chairs and small tables for drawing and coloring.
Train your staff to interact with children
Train your team to be friendly with kids. Teach them to communicate in a simple and fun way, and offer coloring books or kids’ menus to the little ones. Your team should be patient and be ready for some noise or mess.
Take care of the little details and menu language
Pay attention to the details that make parents’ lives easier, like providing clear signs for diaper-changing stations.
For great kids’ menus, use simple and appealing language on the menu itself, and give dishes playful names to grab their attention.
Offer a creative kids’ menu
Besides your restaurant’s main menu, your children’s menu is the key to getting families to keep coming back. After all, if their children are happy and enjoy their time, so will the whole family.
Children can sometimes be the decision makers when it comes to outings, so make sure your restaurant is memorable for them too.
Add nutritious kids’ meal choices
Parents look for nutritious meals for their children, while kids are drawn to fun, playful, and new food experiences.
The key is to combine both in your kids’ menu. You can offer balanced meals with lean proteins, vegetables, and healthy carbs, and add a touch of fun with a playful presentation that appeals to kids.
Consider allergens in kids’ menus
Make your kids’ menu flexible and customizable. Give families the ability to modify meals based on their children’s preferences, whether by choosing vegetarian dishes or excluding certain ingredients like gluten or nuts due to allergies.
Clearly indicate allergens on the menu and train your team to handle special requests confidently to ensure children’s safety and put parents at ease.
This flexibility creates a safe and personalized dining experience.
Create fun food presentation to attract kids
Capture kids’ attention with creative food presentation to turn the meal into an unforgettable, fun experience. This can include using attractive photos of kids’ dishes on their menu.
Use appealing colors and shapes to decorate dishes in a playful way, such as forming food into animals or smiling faces, and serve them on kid-friendly dishware with popular cartoon characters (if applicable).
Add a simple surprise with every meal, like a small toy or coloring sheet, to motivate children and make them look forward to the dining experience as a fun adventure, not just a regular meal.
Set Up Children’s Entertainment Activities
To turn your restaurant into the go-to destination for families, start by providing on-table entertainment to keep kids busy. You can offer paper placemats for drawing with safe crayons, or small boxes with puzzles and miniature games.
You can also create a safe, clean play corner with blocks and books, or set up an interactive indoor play area if you have the space. This gives kids a fun environment to interact and burn off some energy.
To make their visit truly unforgettable, organize seasonal events like magic shows or puppet shows, or simple workshops such as cooking classes or cake decoration. This creates a fun atmosphere and adds a new dimension to a family’s visit.
Safety and Cleanliness Are Top Priorities for Families
When parents see your commitment to the safety and cleanliness of your restaurant, their trust increases and they’ll keep coming back.
Provide a safe environment for children
Start by providing sturdy, clean high chairs for children, equipped with safety harnesses. Perform regular checks to ensure they are secure. Add corner protectors to tables and furniture to protect kids from injuries caused by sharp edges.
Choose non-slip flooring especially in kids’ areas to ensure safety. Train staff to quickly deal with any spills or messes to reduce the risk of slips.
Ensure restaurant and play area cleanliness
Ensure strict hygiene protocols by sanitizing all dining tools and cleaning play areas daily. Provide hand sanitizers in strategic locations to reflect your commitment to health and cleanliness.
Have family-friendly restrooms
Equip your restrooms to be family-friendly. For example, provide diaper-changing stations and a nursing area. Make sure restrooms are accessible for strollers. Always keep them clean and well-stocked with essential supplies.
Collect Customer Feedback to Continuously Improve Your Restaurant
Show families your commitment to your constantly improving your restaurant by asking for their feedback and suggestions.
You can train staff to interact with families and groups with kids and ask questions about their comfort and the quality of their experience
Provide a suggestion box with feedback cards or use a brief digital survey accessible via a QR code on the table. You can also offer rewards, like loyalty points, to those who leave a comment or suggestion through your restaurant’s loyalty program.
Monitoring reviews and ratings on online platforms also gives you direct insight into families’ impressions and expectations.
Don’t just focus on the food quality. Interact with these reviews professionally: thank customers for their positive comments, respond to negative feedback, and invite everyone to return and experience the improvements.
Don’t just collect data through your POS system. Instead, turn it into informed decisions that improve the family and customer experience.
For example, if analysis shows a specific item on the kids’ menu is popular, consider expanding similar options through menu engineering.
If the play area consistently attracts a large number of children, consider expanding or updating it.
The most important thing is to be flexible and smartly responsive to customer feedback. From creating family meals, changing event times, or trying new ideas, to ensure your restaurant remains a family favorite.
Wrapping It Up
Making your restaurant a kid and family-friendly space isn’t just a seasonal marketing strategy. It’s a long-term investment in building a strong, loyal customer base.
Families that find your restaurant a comfortable, fun, and safe space for their children will return again and again. They’ll even recommend you to family and friends and consider you for group outings.
In other words, it’ll be a continuous flow of customers and revenue.
Always remember that a child’s happiness is the key to a family’s happiness. When a child is calm and entertained, their parents can relax and enjoy their meal in peace, transforming a simple meal into an unforgettable, positive family experience.
It’s these positive experiences that will drive them to return.
Invest in the small details that make a big difference, and you’ll find that your restaurant has become more than just a place to eat. It’ll be a preferred destination and a comfortable haven for families, ensuring your success and prosperity for years to come.
Discover Foodics’ solutions for restaurants and how we can help you transform your restaurant into a unique experience for families and children.
