Brunch is my favorite meal, though it sometimes overwhelms me. Right off, it's a crisis choosing between breakfast food and lunch food. I tend to go with breakfast and then get jealous (and cranky) at the sight of another diner's BLT. Next point of debate: griddle or eggs. I heart blueberry pancakes. They are so warm and fluffy and I consider them a daily dose of fruit thereby warping them into a healthy choice. Yet, I'm frequently drawn to the make-your-own-omelet, which stirs up a whole new batch of confusing options. The bacon versus sausage selection is another doozy. Is it going to be a puny, greasy sausage or something substantial? Overcooked and brittle bacon or thick and crispy? I never can tell and I never can choose.
I recently shared a brunch with my husband, two of our best friends and their seven month old daughter. We chose a restaurant known for its brunch specialities and its baby friendliness. Check, check. Within moments of paging through the menu, I realized I was facing my classic dilemma of what to order
and a new dilemma of being more overwhelmed by the number of babies in the room then my classic dilemma. The restaurant was FULL of babies. Children too. Toddlers? Yes. Mini, bald heads and glowing parents were everywhere.
I was amazed and a little bewildered. Being a non-parent, I don't often find myself in baby friendly environments. I simply don't factor it in because it's not on my radar. But for this event, I had thought it important for our friends' baby to be accommodated without hassle (a place for her stroller, a highchair, etc.). What I hadn't realized is that it was also important for my friends because the sheer abundance of babies put them at ease - a fussy baby was not a problem, spilled food was totally fine and the bulkier the diaper bag the better.
While I may have been overwhelmed by the menu options and baby count, it was clear that this brunch was probably one of the least overwhelming restaurant experiences our friends had enjoyed since the arrival of their daughter. These were their people. Yes, my husband and I will always be their people, but these were their baby people. And they were pretty great people - they didn't seem to stress over the choice between sausage and bacon, there were other (adorable) distractions.
