‘Going forward, any children in our taproom or beer garden must be SEATED.' Norton brewery takes stand against unruly kids.

Boston Globe

5 hours ago

The brewery said 'we put off implementing this as long as we could but posting the previous policy did almost nothing as we very often still had children simply running through the space, climbing on furniture, and almost every Monday morning, the landscaping rocks in our beer garden are thrown all over the place.'
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The previous policy had asked parents to keep children 'within reach at all times.'
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Bog Iron Brewing is
over their children, according to Boston.com.
'Look, we love your kids, but sometimes they can be, well … kids. This is your gentle reminder that when you bring yours to the taproom, our staff and our games are not meant to be their babysitters,' the brewery wrote. 'We ask that you supervise and be near your kids at all times and do not allow them to run around the taproom or yell loudly. Our staff shouldn't need to search the entire taproom to figure out where someone's parent is.'
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The Rhode Island brewery also asked families to treat their arcade games and shuffleboard table 'kindly and with respect.'
'While it can be tempting, we ask that you or your kids don't slam arcade and pinball buttons or aggressively hurl shuffleboard pucks across the table,' the post said. 'These games are meant for all patrons, NOT just your children. Please be sure they share and allow others to get a turn (without bothering them.)'
Notch Brewing, a Massachusetts-based brewery with
'Our Salem & Brighton tap room policy of 21+ after 6PM on the weekends will now be extended to seven days a week, and this policy includes toddlers and babies,' the brewery wrote on
The issue of children running rampant isn't just limited to breweries, of course. In March, Charlie Redd, the owner of Dragon Pizza in Somerville, sparked a social media furor by recounting how he
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'To all our guests with children: Anyone who has visited our restaurant knows we are a pizza shop that loves kids,'
Redd said it was the only time a family had been asked to leave his restaurant.
'It makes us very sad, but we refuse to allow entitled lazy parents to damage our reputation and the overall dining experience for all our guests,' he wrote. 'Respect restaurants. Bring your family to them. Raise your family in them. We are your community too.'
Brian Shurtleff, the owner of Bog Iron Brewing, views his establishment, which has a full kitchen, no differently than a restaurant that serves alcohol, and noted that the 'large majority' of families who visit don't pose any problems.
'This is a policy that we shouldn't have to tell people. This should be common knowledge,' Shurtleff said in a phone interview. 'The fact that it's not ... is frustrating.'
The new policy was put in place because of a small number of families letting their kids run around, he said.
'We're certainly not unique in any way,' he said. 'This isn't a playground.'
The brewery's Facebook post received more than 790 reactions and 180 comments, generally supporting the decision.
'Parents should be parenting or spring for babysitter,' one person wrote.
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'Children should not be in a taproom,' another declared.
'Adults can still run screaming through the beer garden, though, right?' another quipped.
Emily Sweeney can be reached at