How do you deal with broken highchairs?

by Jennifer Jordan (Subscribe to Jennifer Jordan's posts) May 11th 2008 8:25PM

Categories: Babies, Toddlers, Places To Go, Safety, Baby Essentials, Mealtime

Ever get tired of eating at home or suffering through take out? Ever fantasize about going out to a nice meal that someone else cooks, someone else serves you and someone else cleans up? Ever figure out how to turn that fantasy into a reality and actually get you, your spouse and your kids out the door at a reasonable hour before things get too crowded and miraculously find yourselves seated at a table at--oh!--a restaurant?

You've finally managed to sit down and rest your aching feet, your aching back, your aching everything. You've got the kid's food and his toys and his diaper changer and your spouse has managed to put down the stroller and find a safe place for it out of the way. The server has brought the high chair. And, as you're sliding the baby down into it, you realize it's broken. The latches don't work or don't exist or whatever. You kindly ask for another one, explaining this one is broken.

The server obliges and brings you another one, which is, alas, also broken. Not only is it not safe, but it simply won't hold your son, who is more excited than ever to be in a new place with new faces and smells and ever so much excitement. He can't sit still. In fact, he won't sit at all and you have to hold him down to keep him from standing in the high chair.

All you wanted was dinner. Perhaps an appetizer too. What you want now, though, as the restaurant fills with cacophony and servers too busy to help you anymore and other diners annoyed that you had the audacity to bring a child into an eating establishment, is a hard drink and to blink your eyes and magically be back home waiting for takeout.

This happens to me at least once a week. It's not that eat out all the time. Lately, though, with holidays, etc., we've been trying to get out more. Also, we have another baby on the way and once that on arrives are unsure how we'll ever be able to leave the house again. Also, in my quest to prove that, yes, we can all eat dinner out as a family and have a nice, (safe) if not quiet time, I keep eating out trying to live out that fantasy.

Surely I am not the only one with such bad luck. I would say of all the times we've eaten out at least half of them we've had to deal with broken high chairs. The staff don't seem to understand or care about this. They should, as it would make my dining experience and that of the surrounding patrons a lot better. My son is a ball of energy and he is not going to simply sit on my lap while we eat. He needs to be seated in a high chair with working straps and latches.

Thoughts? Comments? Suggestions? Oh, sages of the Internet, I turn to you again as I always do when I am thus perplexed. Please advise me what is to be done! And--thank you!

Comments (18)

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

caitlin 5-11-2008 @ 8:38PM

If your son is at the awkward stage between high chair and restaurant booster seat, you might want to look at carrying a foldable booster that ties to the chair. Something like this, since it has a tray:

http://www.strollers.com/edushape-848601-EDS1023.html

I haven't actually used one, but if you know the restaurant you're going to has a history of broken high chairs, it might worth looking into a folding booster chair. And if they're chain restaurants, I would call corporate and complain. When I worked at the golden arches in my teens, that was about what it took to get the latches on the changing table and high chairs fixed. And if that doesn't seem to work, you could call the consumer reporter for one of your local stations/newspaper to embarrass the restaurants into fixing their high chairs.

kim 5-11-2008 @ 9:02PM

This has happened to me. That time I was unprepared and my daughter was very young. I stuffed the chair with blankets and coats (including my own) until it was to the point where she couldn't move. I kept a hand on her as much as possible.

Now I bring my own if I don't know the restaurant's high chair situation. This one is portable and attaches to most regular chairs:

http://www.onestepahead.com/catalog/product.jsp?productId=426761

We also like the Me Too chair from Phil & Ted. Amazon has it, among other places.

claire 5-11-2008 @ 9:24PM

I have to agree with the previous posters about taking a portable chair, especially if this is something you plan on doing often until you have your second child. Also, there exists (I think I saw it at Target) a cloth thing like the ones you put in grocery carts, but just for high chairs. The one I looked at had straps attached to it, so it wouldn't matter if the high chair's worked or not. Good luck.

Sabrina 5-11-2008 @ 9:24PM

I agree that you should point it out to management or call the corporate office and let them know about the situation. I've not had the problem at restaurants, but I did have it at the local big box store in our town. I was mad because every time we went all the carts I could find had missing/broken buckles. I wrote a strongly worded letter to their manager and their corporate office telling them that not only were they going to lose my busineess if things didn't change, they were setting themselves up for injuries and lawsuits as well. I even made sure to make suggestions like just replacing the straps/buckles rather than buying all new carts. They did fix it within a few months, and I was very happy with the results.

girdtmom 5-11-2008 @ 10:57PM

When my daughter was that size, I used to carry an extra strap in my bag. About a yard of nylon webbing, with half of a plastic latch sewn onto one end and the other half attached adjustably to the strap's other end (I think it was a spare safety tether from my stroller, used to strap the bucket car seat onto the stroller). It could usually be looped around the back support of a highchair, or under the seat and across the lap. I needed it on numerous occasions, and it didn't take up much room at all in my bag. Not as good as a working highchair, obviously, but a fast fix that lets the meal proceed with less fuss. Oh, and I also used it when the straps in shopping carts were broken. Just thread it through where the cart straps should be and you're good to go.

Christy 5-11-2008 @ 11:05PM

I am plagued with this almost everytime I venture out to a restaurant. I have attempted the, "oh, can I get another one, this one seems to be broken." Not only have I gotten a few evil glares because it seems hard work to bring me another one but I also get another one that is broken. Not good for any age child. It does seem stupid that most restaurants make a big deal about fire escape safety and tell you when the plates are really hot or placing drinks and hot plates right in front of your child, but they don't take in much concern about child safety. Most of the time now, my husband will sit and I will go and pick out the high chair so that it's a one time deal and there is no excuse about the chair once I pick it.

Jen Henry 5-11-2008 @ 11:17PM

I've had this happen SO MANY TIMES!!!

ARGH!!!!

I've never called corporate headquarters before. Once my kids hit age 2 I stopped using the highchair for them and started using booster seats. I agree with what a previous commenter said about carrying a booster seat in the car. It's good to have there anyway for trips to friends and grandparents houses.

The true lifesaver for us when our kids were infants was this: http://www.target.com/Nojo-Plaid-Secure-Me-Travel-Liner/dp/B000HVA50W/sr=1-1/qid=1210561184/ref=sr_1_1/602-1821957-2651027?ie=UTF8&index=target&field-browse=1038590&rh=k%3Anojo%2Cn%3A13035421&page=1
Ours was solid blue denim. It can be used in high chairs or in shopping carts to secure children. It's just fabric so it easily folds and can be tucked in a bag. The velcro is heavy duty and very, very secure. We found it was great to leave in the car for cases when the straps were broken in highchairs or carts AND we also found that it actually seemed to hold them more securely because it came up higher on them than the simple lap belt did.

Here's a photo of my DD wearing it at a bridal shower: http://farm1.static.flickr.com/58/189189178_47de910ca0.jpg There were no highchairs available for her to sit in, so we were able to have her sit in a regular chair at 8 months old. It also helps to keep them sitting upright. I would TOTALLY recommend this product to anyone expecting a little one. I gave mine away to a friend, but if I have another baby I'm going to buy another one. It was WELL worth it.

Jen
http://parents2parents.org

hope 5-12-2008 @ 2:28AM

What a great invention! Wish I'd known about it when my daughter was an infant. I'm going to keep it in mind for baby shower gifts. Thanks for sharing!

Jenni 5-12-2008 @ 11:42PM

We got one of those chairs that attatches to the side of the table. They make them portable so that they can travel. We just kept it in the trunk of the car. It works perfectly at resteraunts or if we were having a family picnic at the park.

Here's a sample of what I'm talking about:
http://www.babyage.com/products/69488_57_chicco_chicco_travel_seat.htm

The one we had was easy to wipe clean. This also keeps them from pushing away from the table as well and seems to keep them in a bit better.

I remember my mom actually using one with me (don't know how I remember it, but I do) while she was at the counter cooking and I could sit and watch her without being in the way and I was in a safe place that she could still keep me engaged with her.

bremarie03 5-12-2008 @ 1:08AM

http://www.littlebeetle.com.au/products/babyChair.html

hope 5-12-2008 @ 2:32AM

Like everyone else, I've dealt with the broken high chair situation. But what really drives be insane is how FILTHY high chairs are everywhere you go. It doesn't matter what quality of restaurant, high chairs are always disgusting. I like how grocery stores offer anti-bacterial wipes for the handles of shopping carts, because there's just no way they could keep them all clean. But restaurants can--and SHOULD!--make the health and safety of their littlest customers a priority!

sara 5-12-2008 @ 5:01PM

We live in Europe where you don't tip in restaurants so there is not even the pretense of good service unless you are in the fanciest of restaurants. Sure, it pays to carry a booster seat but when that has failed,my husbands belt works pretty well as a strap around the whole chair back and child. And, as a bonus hubby get to eat more so his pants don't fall down.

Amy 5-12-2008 @ 8:30AM

I've used several of the methods mentioned above. The portable booster seat takes up a lot of space, but is the most secure (IMHO). Mine also had a tray, which was nice, because the kids were eating off of a tray I had cleaned, instead of a table that someone else had cleaned with a dirty rag (local vs. foreign germs). The Floppy Seat/Shopping Cart thingie also takes up a lot of space, but is more versatile than the portable chair (I've used it to cover up a lot of nasty carts). The trouble is that people look at you like you're one of those paranoid types when you use the shopping cart cover. You also have to be sure to do it just right. The checker at Walmart told me that a small child's parent had secured it incorrectly and she somehow fell out of the cart and hit the hard concrete floor the day before I was there with my kid in her floppy seat. Yikes. I double checked the straps to make sure they wove through the bars on the cart's seat after that.

When I used the Maya Wrap, I could use it to secure my kids into/onto various chairs. That was convenient, but the Maya Wrap wasn't my favorite sling, otherwise. I prefer the Kangaroo Korner Adjustable Pouch, and it's harder (though not impossible) to use that to secure a kid to a seat. I have done it, but I wouldn't do it with a very squirrelly kid.

In the winter, stuffing the high chair with coats and blankets is always an option, although it probably gets fairly hot for the kid.

I don't worry about getting dirty looks from the hostess. If she doesn't like bringing 10,000 chairs to concerned parents, then she can complain about the broken high chairs to the management and get them fixed. I love the idea of carrying a strap in the diaper bag. I may have to make one of those and give it a try.

Amy @ http://prettybabies.blogspot.com

Uly 5-12-2008 @ 9:30AM

Gee, I never used high chairs at all, inside or outside the house.

If the kid can't sit on a lap, they can stand up or sit on their knees on a grown-up chair.

Judy 5-12-2008 @ 1:58PM

Maybe it's because we don't go out to eat very often, but we've never been able to get our boys to sit still in any seat long enough to actually have a meal. Usually the 2 yo starts in a highchair and ends up on a lap, so not something we deal with often.

The big problem we have is at our favorite grocery store they have the carts that look like big race cars. Great fun for the little ones, but even though our 4 yo doesn't really need the strap in it anymore, he won't sit in one without it. Half of them don't have the belts anymore, or only have it on one side, so it takes us forever to find a cart we can ride in. The worst part is that these things are really pretty new to the store.

How, exactly, do these straps get broken and torn out anyway?

Sherry 5-12-2008 @ 11:47PM

I agree with Hope. Having a chair that wobbles or one with a broken strap or something like that was irritating, but I was sitting right there next to them so it was unlikely one of my kids would climb out and bust their head open. What was the biggest concern, and shock, to me, was how filthy those chairs often are. A couple of times I even made them call the manager and told him/her to bring me something to clean the chair with. Of course, the manager always cleaned it or made someone else do it, but why should I have had to ask in the first place? Would they expect an adult to sit at a table and on a chair that dirty?

Heather 5-14-2008 @ 8:02AM

On our second child, I think I can still count the number of times we've used a restaurant highchair on one hand.
We keep a folding booster seat in the trunk of our car. We bought ours when our older son was a toddler and it's still going strong through our second son. It straps to a chair or just sits on a booth and has its own tray. We LOVE it. Sure, it can be a bit of a pain to have to lug it in, but it's worth it not to deal with those nasty, sticky restaurant highchairs, broken or no.

lesli 5-30-2008 @ 4:17PM

We are always finding broken highchairs in restaurants, and even the ones in good shape are filthy. We used to clean them but it was a hassle and really disgusting, so we got a portable seat, the Phil & Ted's Me Too chair. It's been great so far, and has worked everywhere we've gone except one restaurant. It didn't fit properly on their tables, so we had to try to clean off one of their dirty highchairs. I don't know why they don't clean highchairs, but ugh. Get a portable chair!