Dining out with Baby at Merit Brewing
I'll admit, before I was a parent, taking a baby to a brewery would have be just the kind of fodder I needed for a good old snarkfest. Turns out, I didn't (still don't!) know anything.
One overcast day, Fin and I grabbed our lunch buddies and headed over to the new Merit Brewing on James Street. Thankfully we arrived before the lunch rush, so we were able to maneuver our giant child chariots to our choice of table. We chose a table away from the bar (because we are sensible mothers now!). This had the combined benefit of discrete chariot parking and keeping the food shrapnel to within a confined area.
On a whim, we asked for some high chairs and were pleasantly surprised when two shiny chairs showed up at our table! Another perk of visiting a newly-opened restaurant - the high chairs aren't covered in layers of crud! Also, bonus points to Merit Brewing for knowing their client base and even having highchairs!
After a quick peek at the menu and we both chose the Cheddar Smokie sausage (Fun Fact- this was a major craving for me when I was pregnant!), the seasonal pickles and a Growler of the SVP, their low alcohol 'lunchtime' beer, which is also perfect for us moms who are still breastfeeding! As moms do, we offered the babies some food immediately to avoid any tiny hangry people. The sausages. As Jesse Vallins writes on the Merit Brewing website, Beer and Sausage get along so well because they grew up together. Clearly the same can be said for tiny babes who enjoy sausage together.
Since the babies were both in outstandingly great moods, they entertained each other and munched on some of our sausages and pickles, us moms were able to catch up on the latest in breast pumps and town gossip, the usual mom stuff.
Pre-mom Snarkfesting aside, Merit Brewing is an amazing place to take a babe. The atmosphere is full of visual distractions, the staff are super baby friendly, and being a brewery, the attitude isn't too precious, so if some sausage end up on the floor, only the moms will be sad.
