Should Children Be Allowed In Bars?

It’s a question that has been asked time and again: Should children be allowed in bars?

The answers, inevitably, vary, from posts about drinking establishments that welcome families (though at least one of these places no longer allows children) to much-heated discussion over whether sippy cups and beers belong side by side. In May, Hot Bird in Clinton Hill banned children, becoming one of a series of watering holes that have done so – including Park Slope’s Union Hall and South Slope’s Greenwood Park (after certain hours).

Hot Bird’s owner Frank Moe explained his decision, saying, in part, “We are a fairly busy place, and my staff is there to serve drinks, not watch over children and deal with unreasonable demands from the parents. It’s sometimes difficult to turn away responsible parents that we wished were welcome as customers, but it’s easier just to ask everyone not to come in with their kids and avoid the headache of selecting who is well-behaved and who is not.”

After neighbor David sent us a photo (pictured at the top of this post – which we blurred) last night of children pretending to pour beers from the spigot at Sycamore on Cortelyou Road, an image which was posted on social media and generated quite a bit of conversation, we wanted to see what your thoughts are on the little ones in bars.

“I love this bar, but unsupervised parenting tonight lead to kids pouring beers, siting on the bar, jumping off the bar and running around throwing rocks,” David wrote to us.

He also tweeted to Sycamore, saying, “I love you, but allowing kids to jump on to outdoor bar and play bartender pouring beers while parents chat isn’t cool.”

Sycamore responded, tweeting, “Thanks 4 the heads up. Good thing the taps R dry & not pouring beer! We’re a public house & tolerance is appreciated.”

We’ve reached out to Sycamore and are waiting to hear back. We’ll update as soon as we do.

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So, what do you think? How do we address the question of children in bars?