Carluccio’s, Leicester

Kid’s Menu (including soft drink, grissini, main meal and gelato plus colouring crayons, puzzle book and jigsaw) £6.25

Ted: ‘Mmmmmmmmm nice ice cream!’
Lillie: ‘I like the taste of mushrooms but not that mushrooms.’

Mummy and Daddy like eating out a lot but sometimes struggle to find somewhere where they get nice food and the kids don’t moan that they’re bored. So this Bank Holiday Monday - yes the one that came straight after Christmas, in the first flush of post-Crimble sale excitement, at the new Highcross shopping centre in Leicester - we weren’t especially hopeful of a fabulous dining experience but it was almost 2pm and we’d forgotten to feed our poor children. Needs must.

Things didn’t look good to begin with as we joined a queue which snaked around the deli area of Carluccio’s, Daddy salivating at the sight of those tempting huge chocolate meringues and Ted’s chubby little destructor-paws drawn towards a display of fancy bottled oils. However we were given a menu to browse - the little things which entertain kids) as we waited and were quickly seated. Although the dining room was very busy we found just about enough room for the paraphernalia which comes with small kids and were speedily given a packet of crayons, menu/activity book and little cup of grissini. This little detail is a good sign - too many restaurants leave families with young children waiting far too long without food. As far as kids are concerned they are in a restaurant to eat and sitting at a table with nothing in front of them makes no sense, just a breadstick or two or bringing kiddo’s main with the grown up starter can make or break a restaurant’s reputation with parents.

The kid’s menu, like the adult’s, is short and sweet. This is not in the least a bad thing, too many options causes conflict for toddlers (and indecisive Mummies). Lillie chose lasagna like daddy while Ted opted for ‘paspa’ - spinach and ricotta ravioli in a butter sauce - Mummy chose Pasta con Funghi aka Mushrooms On Pasta. Orders were taken quickly by a friendly, not in the least flustered waiter, drinks were delivered and soon after meals arrived together, toddlers’ first. The waitress who delivered the food treated both Lillie and Ted as ‘proper’ customers, offering them a spoonful of parmesan for their dishes just as she had for the parents. It’s these little touches which make dining out enjoyable for children and easier for Mummy and Daddy.

Unusually both children’s meals were dug straight in to with enthusiasm although not even half finished. The portions were large enough for much, much older kids and of equal quality to the adult dishes (both in fact were simply smaller portions of main menu offerings, not a deep fried nugget in sight). Afterwards coffees and desserts were quickly despatched to us - proper ice cream in which real vanilla was evident in abundance served in cardboard tubs to avoid the over excited clanking of spoon on bowl.

It’s really no surprise to find a queue waiting to dine at Carluccio’s Highcross. The likes of Pizza Express and Zizzi (especially Zizzi, we have many an issue with our local branch) don’t come close in either service or food. The little things which the staff, who could have been surly and sullen considering the date and their workload, did to make our visit more pleasant - speedily bringing a straw on noticing that an order of tap water was for Ted, smiling when the kids said thank you, another server taking an order for an extra drink to pass on to our waiter, and him not smirking at Mummy’s mispronunciation of Italian words - plus the extremely high quality of the food made it worth every penny of the actually quite reasonable bill. Other Italian chains really could take note.

*RATINGS COMING SOON*

Mummy x