I am powerless to resist a good cupcake. The ladies behind Georgetown Cupcakes certainly know what they’re doing. Their cupcakes are almost perfect and my current favorites. What makes them so good? The combination of fluffy, moist base and buttercream swirl, in the perfect ratio. I also love their inventive flavours, like cookies and cream cheesecake.
Cupcakes!Sugar rush just walking into the store.Small eating area.
It was a pleasant surprise to see that the Georgetown Cupcakes in SoHo is great place for an afternoon tea stop with kids. They have a few tables to sit at so you’ll have to strike it lucky to get a spot. The line for cupcakes moves very quickly thanks to their organisation and efficiency, which is another thing I love. You give your order and pay, then move down to the next counter where someone else has already boxed your order for you. Super fast, in and out – perfect when you’ve got a fussy kiddo.
Highchairs: No. Stroller storage: No. You can wheel your stroller in and park it by your table, or fold it and keep it with you if it’s small. Easy access: Yes. Change tables: No. Kids’ menu: No. Baby-friendly rating: ♥—-
I had a massive craving for mac & cheese, so off we went on a freezing cold day to Sarita’s Macaroni & Cheese – AKA S’MAC. There are so many things I love about S’MAC – the number one thing being they share my philosophy that mac & cheese is more than just a side dish – it’s a genre of meal to be celebrated.
Orange exterior – can’t miss it.
The restaurant is pretty tiny, with tables squished together. Come on a weekend at peak lunch time and be prepared to stalk other diners to score a table.
Major Munch Garden Lite – not pretty but sooooo good.
There are several size options for your mac & cheese. I like the Major Munch because it means I have leftovers to take home.
You will also be overwhelmed with options for your mac dish – do you want it classic, with veggies, garlic or meat mixed in? If you have special dietary needs you’re taken care of. S’MAC offers gluten-free and multi-grain pasta, as well as lactose-reduced and vegan cheese.
When your dish arrives (they’re pretty quick!), it comes piping hot in a little pan. It’s not the prettiest dish in the world, but damn, it sure is tasty!
Cheese loves mac & cheese.
While the restaurant isn’t the most baby-friendly place around, it’s very welcoming to kids with its chaotic, colourful environment, and fun food that most kids will love.
Highchairs: No. Stroller storage: No. This place is super tiny. Bring a carrier or folding stroller and prepare to squeeze in. Easy access: Yes. One step to get in the entrance. Change tables: No. Kids’ menu: No. But did I mention pretty much all they serve is mac & cheese? Baby-friendly rating: ♥—-
With Restaurant Week hitting New York, I was excited to try out Norma’s for their all-day breakfast. The Restaurant Week deal was pretty sweet ($25pp for continental bread basket, entree and smoothie), and made the over-the-top prices seem more reasonable. We booked a table for 9am on a Thursday since I thought it would be a good time with Cheese’s naps. Sadly, when we arrived, we found out that the Restaurant Week promotion was only in effect from midday, despite this not being written anywhere on the Restaurant Week promotional material. Since we’d come so far and we already being led to our table, we felt like we had to sit down and order a ridiculously expensive breakfast. So disappointing.
Note to those visiting Norma’s for the first time. The dishes are all stupidly expensive. They average at about $21 an entree. They are huge however and will definitely fill you up for a while. Where you have to watch out is the extras that they they push on you. When we sat down, a waiter approached and gave us free samples of a smoothie (which we were supposed to receive as part of the Restaurant Week deal), and offered us glasses of juice from a pitcher instead of water. An unsuspecting diner might think this was either a) complimentary or b) reasonably priced. Just so you know, it’s neither. The orange juice is $9. Apparently you get unlimited refills, but still. $9. Be warned!
I was hoping that Norma’s would be really kid-friendly after I read their website. The whimsical, fun description of the restaurant is below:
“Breakfast for lunch? Always.
Will I still be hungry? You gotta be kidding.
Do we like kids? More than whipped cream.”
Sadly the reality was very different. While they did have a highchair, that was the extent of the baby-friendliness. The menu is so exorbitantly-priced that it’s way too pricey to order a kid their own meal, and there is no separate kid’s menu. Our waiter was aloof and made us feel unwelcome. The food took forever to come out. We had to break out the Cheddar Bunnies to keep Cheese amused while we were waiting.
Reading and snacking while waiting for food.Sweet Suzy
Alec ordered the Sweet Suzy. He said it was amazing and was really happy with his dish.
Nutella Packed Jacks
I ordered Nutella Packed Jacks and while the fruit was really fresh and sweet, the pancakes were undercooked and doughy. Usually I’d send them back, but it had taken so long for us to get them that there wasn’t time before we had to leave and take Cheese home for a nap.
Ready for home.
I have to make a note here to say that we came on a weekday – the restaurant may be more kid-friendly on weekends. If you’re keen to give it a try, book a table to minimise your wait. They have long queues every day of the week as they have a restaurant that seats 100 and service the hotel they’re housed in, which has 700 rooms.
Highchairs: Yes. Stroller storage: Minimal. Bring a folding stroller or carrier. Easy access: Yes. They have elevator access. Change tables: I didn’t get the chance to check out the restrooms, but there is ample space to change a baby on the benches in the foyer. Kids’ menu: No, but lots of food kids can share with you. At an average of $21 per entree, you probably won’t want to buy them their own dish. Baby-friendly rating: ♥—-
Norma’s
At Le Parker Meridien
119 W 56th St,
New York, NY 10019
We were walking through Chelsea Markets when I spied this …
Pastaaaaaaaa!
I am completely unable to pass by pasta. I’m a carboholic and would eat pasta every day if I could. It was midafternoon and prime brunch-time, so we thought we’d peep in and see if they had tables available. The hostess gave us a very warm welcome, especially Cheese, and said they could seat us right away. She helpfully whisked away our stroller to a cute stroller parking area, and we were sat at a table ready for us with a highchair, all while the hostess smiled and chatted with us and the Cheese. So far, total score.
While we waited for our server, we looked around us at the many other families tucking into delicious-looking pasta dishes. Lots of toddlers and small kids shovelling spaghetti bolognese into their mouths, as well as older kids and teenagers, all sharing and enjoying beautiful pasta. Heaven!
Huge dining space.Give me food!
We did wait a while for service, but when the server arrived he apologised and explained that it was shift changeover time and he was sorry that we were overlooked as the previous server for our section had just left. After our orders were taken, we thankfully didn’t have to wait very long before our dishes arrived. We ordered a pasta dish each, thinking we would share them with the Cheese. We didn’t count on the pasta dishes being on the small side – Cheese quickly inhaled about half of one dish on her own. She is clearly a carboholic too. She particularly loved the spinach and ricotta girasole dish, and enjoyed crunching down on the parmigiano reggiano basket after the pasta was gone.
Spinach and ricotta girasole, crispy parmigiano reggianoWine = happy husband.Put more pasta in that baby, stat.
After lunch we went for a walk on the waterfront nearby to a small playground. There are options for kids to blow off steam in all weather – the nearby Chelsea Piers has indoor play space, as well as the outdoor playground we discovered and the Chelsea water park on 23rd st for the warmer months.
Having a ball despite the cold.
Highchairs: Yes. Stroller storage: Yes – plenty of storage space for full-sized strollers. Easy access: Yes. Change tables: No. There is one disabled restroom on the upper level for both men and women, and one restroom down two flights of stairs – not enough restrooms for such a large restaurant. No change table, but plenty of space on the floor if you’re desperate to change a baby. Kids’ menu: No, but what kid doesn’t love pasta? Baby-friendly rating: ♥♥♥♥-
We decided to fly to Hawaii for Christmas and meet my family there instead of flying back to Australia. I booked us a three-bedroom suite at a resort in Ko Olina, right on the waterfront.
The flight was brutal – 10 hours straight. Eloise napped just once and then was awake for 12 hours straight.
It’s a miracle, she’s asleep!
The resort and beach were so beautiful. Ko Olina was a little piece of paradise. We spent most days walking around the beaches, swimming in the ocean and pools.
Checking out the beach for the first time since she was four months old in Sydney.Pure joy.Ocean!Walking by the beach with Daddy.Beach with my Cheese.Decided she loves the beach.Hey beach baby!
We also did the toddler dolphin experience at Dolphin Quest. It was wonderful to meet dolphins with Eloise. It totally blew her mind. She was fascinated by them, and has been saying “dolph!” and pointing to pictures of them since.
Dolphins!View from the balcony.Sunset.
One thing I really wanted to do was the Disney character breakfast at Aulani. It was so much fun! A decent buffet breakfast with a great omelet station, Minnie Mouse and Goofy wandering around to the tables for meet and greets and photo ops. Every so often, “Auntie” would strike up music and sing cute Hawaiian-y songs, handing out instruments and leading the kids in a parade around the restaurant. Eloise was in absolute heaven.
Disney breakfast at Aulani resort.
Alec and I had a few hours to ourselves one day so went for a drive to Mokule’ia Beach, where Lost was filmed. It was stunning – a pure white sand beach with almost no one in site for miles.
Mokule’ia Beach, Oahu
We also went on an easy hike one day with Tim and Michele up to Diamond Head. It had an amazing view of Honolulu.
View from Diamond Head.
I also got up super early one morning to see Pearl Harbour with Michele. It was a sobering experience to be there and see the sunken Arizona ship.
Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbour.
Even though I get really sea sick pretty much just by looking at boats, I thought it would be a fun idea to get on a boat and go snorkelling and whale watching. True to form, I felt ill the entire time, but we did see about 10 Humpback whales.
Humpback whales spotting.
We went for a stroll through Waimea Valley. It was really beautiful – a little too manicured, but some amazing plants.
Crazy antics.Waimea Valley.
We also went on the Ranch and Movie tour at Kualoa Ranch, where a lot of movies and TV shows have been filmed. I loved the tour – especially seeing where Jurassic Park was filmed for the famous scene with the log below.
Jurassic Park filming location, Kualoa Ranch.
It was really strange being somewhere other than in Warwick Farm for Christmas morning. It was really lovely, but also really strange! My first Christmas not in Warwick Farm in my life so far. We had breakfast at the neighbouring Marriott resort, followed by present opening and relaxing.
Christmas morning with my baby.Christmas palm tree.Family shot, Christmas Day.
What a wonderful trip! It was so great to see my family all together. Hawaii is paradise – can’t wait to go back again.
This little neighbourhood joint is a hot spot for brunch on weekends. We turned up one chilly morning before Christmas with a group of 6 adults and the Cheese and were told it would be a 15 minute wait. So we waited. And waited. And waited some more. 45 minutes later, it turned out that there was a table who had finished up over half an hour ago but wouldn’t leave (don’t you HATE that?! Especially at peak eating times?!).
So by the time we sad down we were all hungry, freezing cold, and not in the best mood. And that was just the adults. Cheese had already run through her tolerance for boring adult outings and was ready to run around like a crazy turkey.
Festive exterior.Cosy inside – lots of families.
Rucola has a great little menu, and a really lovely, cosy ambiance. Lots of families were crowded inside, with plenty of other kids also loosing their brains at the dining tables. After our long wait for a table, we were left waiting for service too – it maded me want to grab a waiter and say, “Hello, sir, see this angry baby? It’s in both of our best interests to get us eating and out of here as quickly as possible”.
Waiting for food. Thank God for the iPhone.
Just before the food arrived I noticed that had high chairs tucked behind the bar and requested one. I’m not sure why they weren’t offered on arrival.
The food when it arrived was really delicious. I had the Nutella French toast and it was divine. We ordered Cheese her own “small side of scrambled eggs”. It came out with enough egg to feet two adults. I was amazed to see Cheese hoeing into it with gusto – until I noticed that over 50% of it had ended up on the floor…
The food. Really good!“Baby-sized” serving of scrambled eggs.
Highchairs: Yes – remember to request it. Stroller storage: Yes but minimal. Bring an umbrella stroller. Easy access: Yes. Change tables: No. Kids’ menu: No, but there are kid-friendly options and they’ll make special items on request.
Rucola
190 Dean Street,
Brooklyn, NY 11217
Phone: (718) 576 3209
Prices: $$
Hours: Mon-Fri 8am–12am Sat-Sun 10am–12am Get directions.
We had a quick trip to Canada so we could renew visas after Alec quit his job. It was so cold that it was hard to enjoy the trip. Also, we went to Ottawa – the Canberra of Canada. We did do one cool thing – visited the Museum of Civilisation and the Children’s Museum inside it. It was absolutely amazing – Eloise was loving it.
This was our first trip since our big Australian one the previous December, and Eloise was really great. Slept in the treavel crib pretty well – but still woke a lot more than we would have liked. It was still great though and boosted our confidence to travel again.
Wow, what a year. It started out much as 2011 ended – with a hard, fussy, non-sleeping baby dominating our lives. Thankfully, by the time summer rolled around, everything improved by about 100%. We had a baby who slept! We slept! We had a wonderful summer and really enjoyed ourselves and getting to know a new, happier Eloise. I felt like a new person, not just hanging in there for dear life every day, but finally enjoying life again. It was wonderful to finally be able to really enjoy our baby and our lives together. We went out a lot, had playdates, went to galleries. What an an amazing life!
2012 was definitely the year for working out how we and Eloise could co-exist successfully as a family. I’m excited about 2013 – hopefully the year where Alec and I can start to focus again on what we want to achieve career-wise. For Alec, this involves quitting his job at Twitter to start his own business. For me, this means hoping to launch a freelance writing career to make some extra money as well as focusing on getting my own site/blog Brunch With My Baby off the ground.
As Eloise leaves her babyhood behind and turns into a toddler, we are loving getting to see her adorable personality developing. The little girl who is a daredevil, climbing and tumbling and throwing herself off stairs. The tiny person who adores music and dancing, and who loves to play jokes with us and laugh at everything.
2013 is looking to be quite an adventure again – I can’t wait to see what happens.
