Pizza express around 4-4.30pm

[azurh]

Today while visiting pizza express in Dulwich village (which may I add we visit atleast once a week) I was faced with an old aged couple who asked me to tell my 1 year old son who was just loudly sharing his delight at the stickers he was given ( nothing too loud but just abit excited). The old age couple asked me to quieten him , I realised at that point I may need to leave as well my 1 year old is a talkative babbling boy and he won't go quiet. I also realised the old aged couple may have had a horrid day or simply just didn't like us.

My husband then arrived hobbling on his crutches as he has a broken leg sat down and just as I was going to suggest we leave my son in his delight of seeing his dad excitedly said dad. The elderly man asked my husband to tell that thing ( my son) to shut up and to leave.

So after a few exchange of words with the elderly couple telling us in their day children didn't do that ( so they didn't get excited and speak by no means was my child being crazy he is a babbling pleasant 1 year old!) we left.

I just wanted to apologise to the poor little girl who was crying as she probably didn't like raised voices as my own daughter was really upset by the whole thing. And also a thank you to the ladies who spoke in our support :-) your kind words of support meant a lot it's good to know that people support what's right. ( if they are on the forum))

[IlonaM]

Elderly people can be rude sometimes. Didn't the staff/manager at Pizza Express get involved?

[azurh]

Rude wouldn't be the word I'd use to describe what they were saying! No the staff including manager weren't to concerned to be fair their concern was the elderly couple may leave without paying as we had just sat down.

[IlonaM]

I'd be tempted to complain to the restaurant. Afterall, you were patrons as well. The restaurant should be in control of what happens inside its doors, including bullying behaviour.

[Saffron]

F---ing HAD IT with strangers in public offering unsolicited advice and telling me and daughter how to behave, what to wear, what to eat, how to look. I used to be polite, but now I am straight up telling people to PISS OFF.

Glad to hear others supported you. I hope all involved are not too traumatized (except the offending OAPS... they can piss off.) xx

[Pugwash]

I would have asked the management if you could have another table away from the old folk.

I can understand if your son was having a real strop ( having an 18 month old grandson it can be very embarrassing

in public) But why should these old fogeys dictate . I suppose if you have young teenagers who like to laugh and chat - they would have also been in the firing line!

Its people like those who give a bad name to all us retired people.

[hpsaucey]

Ditto! Recent experience of woman telling me my kids shouldnt sit in front 'priority'bus seats in case soneone else needed them despite other priority sests being free and WHILST i was helping an elderly woman onto the bus to one of those seats. She did nothing to help the lady. I cant tell u how pissed off i was. I always ask them to move if seats needed. Just plain rude and frankly none of her bloody business.

I am sorry you had that experience. Hopefully you can go for a less stressful meal soon!

[azurh]

Saffron unfortunately some people offer their advice. The best to date I had was at the GP surgery waiting room my boy was tired so I was rocking him to sleep he was making babbling noises and a lady told me he isn't tired and he won't sleep like that! ... my son fell alseep within 30 seconds so errrr yeh!

Pugwash no way most elderly are wonderful. It has made me a little worried though I wouldn't want to experience that again i felt very vulnerable and scared incase the elderly man lost it and tried to attack us.

Hpsaucey priority seats are for infants, expectant mothers , elderly and disabled so the lady got it completely wrong!

I don't think I'll be going pizza express in Dulwich again to be honest!

[alice]

So if you saw a woman hitting a child round the head with a phone you'd do nothing.

Because it would be interfering / giving unwanted advice?

[Ellie78]

How is that in any way equivalent to the examples offered?

No - I wouldn't offer my advice on that situation. I'd call the police.

[Growlybear]

Regardless of the rights or wrongs of the way in which the couple spoke to you in Pizza Express, I do think it is quite offensive to refer to them as an 'old aged' couple!

Not having been present at the time, I'm not qualified to comment on how unreasonable they were being, but the acoustics in that branch of Pizza Express are dreadful, and sounds can get magnified greatly. You didn't say in your opening sentence exactly what the 'old aged' couple asked you to tell your son, but you said that he was 'loudly sharing his delight' at his stickers - perhaps this really was loud enough to disturb other customers who wanted to enjoy their meal in peace and that was why they then asked you to quieten your son?

Having said that, if the couple later referred to your son as 'that thing', then I agree that is totally offensive and unacceptable. I also think most people who know that branch of Pizza Express would be aware that there tend to be relatively large numbers of young children in the restaurant, and may be better off eating elsewhere if they find noisy children disturbing - this is one of the reasons why I avoid the Dulwich branch of Pizza Express!

[IlonaM]

azurh Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

>

> Hpsaucey priority seats are for infants, expectant

> mothers , elderly and disabled so the lady got it

> completely wrong!

>

>

... infants sitting on parent/carer's knee. The number of times I have had to ask for a priority seat because Mum is busy looking at her phone with small child sitting on next seat...

[Monkey]

I'm sorry this happened to you, OP. And I hope your daughter is okay. You should have stayed put! Like Saffron, I don't take any bullshit any more.

But I've had similar moments... with my parents in law! They keep telling me how well behaved THEIR children were, mainly when we're at the restaurant. But my husband clearly remembers his sister's antics in public spaces. Same sibling called her mother a bitch in front of me the first time I met the family. Well behaved... not! People forget what it's like to have children. There's nothing wrong with challenging them.

[alieh]

Pizza Express at 4:30 pm, they should have known there would be loads of kids! Not like it's a Michelin-starred establishment. Incredibly rude of them.

It's hard not to feel embarrassed, but in future I would try to ignore. I've had somewhat similar experiences with older people and I just smile in a sickly sweet way and say "Yes, funny how much times have changed since you were young!"

[louloulabelle]

sorry but this really gets my goat up. It's a family friendly pizza chain and at 4.30pm in the afternoon it's entirely reasonable to expect to go in there and there be children present. Yes I totally agree that us parents have a responsibility to teach our children manners etc and how to behave in public places but they only learn how to behave by being exposed to these experiences. Children - in my experience - are not always quiet and complacent and particularly not when we want/need them to be but they have a right to be out in public as do you as do the 'couple' in question.

I completely appreciate that not everyone wants to be next to a table with kids on it but thats the chance you take eating at a family friendly restaurant during the hours its reasonably expected kids may be in there. I also totally agree that not everyone wants to 'hear' others kids and again, our parental responsibility is to encourage them to reign it in whilst in this kind of environment but they are little humans and they have no volume control and being a little loud is sometimes part and parcel and its the 'couples' intolerance that needs addressing not your decision to eat at a restaurant you regularly go to! (in my opinion).

I have 3 kids and have and do regularly come across plenty of this kind of thing. the 'helpful' comments from strangers, the tuts and stares when someone does not feel my children are acting appropriately and the downright rude, intolerant comments such as the ones you were subjected to. That was blatant bullying in my book and I am afraid i would not have left for love nor money. I may have asked to move to a table as far away from the rude couple - for my sake not theirs - but I would not have left. People seem to have very rosy views of how things were 'in their day'. They also have no idea how they acted and what their parents had to put up with when they were young and they also forget the behaviours of their own children (if they are parents of course)

Dining in an informal, family friendly restaurant comes with the side order of some noise and if that's not their bag then they have the choice of finding a restaurant that is not as welcoming to the younger members of society. Those of us with kids have to go where we are welcome and accommodated for so stick with the Pizza's and don't let rude people make you feel you shouldn't be there.

sorry. rant over.