Pint-Sized Portions: Update

With something on offer to amuse all children from tiny babies to difficult teenagers, the Eyre Arms in Calver in Derbyshire's Hope Valley, was a worthy winner of the title Family Pub of the Year at The Publican Awards 2004​.

"Children are very important to our business," explains manageress Toni Arnell, who runs the pub alongside tenants Stephen and Rita Petty. "We have lots of things here to entertain them."

The pub has a family room which includes a ball pool for the under-fives, video machines, air hockey and table football and even has a special bar which stocks soft drinks and confectionary. There is also an enormous outside play area which is very popular when the sun shines.

"A lot of pubs don't make families feel welcome but it has always been a priority for us," says Toni. "We want everyone to relax and enjoy themselves in our pub."

The pub has what it calls a "classic children's menu" offering kids' favourites including chicken nuggets, pork sausages and burgers. Kids are offered a choice of chips or boiled potatoes and beans or peas.

Unusually for a pub, the Eyre Arms also has a thriving children's parties business catering for up to 30 kids at a time and even sending them home with a goodie bag.

"They're always great fun although clearing up afterwards is a big job," says Toni.

Although families are important to the Eyre Arms the pub has balanced the needs of its younger customers with those who are a bit older.

"There are no children under 12 allowed in the main bar or restaurant," Toni points out. "So customers without kids don't feel sidelined."

And the Eyre Arms is obviously doing it right. Customers come from Sheffield and Manchester just to take advantage of its facilities. "They come from all over the place," says Toni. "And they keep coming back, which is what we want to see."

Brewsters children's board approves menus​

Whitbread's family-led brand Brewsters won Best Children's Food at The Publican Pub Food Awards 2003​.

According to the judges, it was awarded the title because of its success in creating a "great experience for children as well as a relaxing time for parents".

Brewsters was originally a spin-off from Whitbread's successful Brewers Fayre concept but split from the parent brand four years ago. Since then the pubs have become well-known in their own right, thanks in part to their friendly mascot Brewster the bear who appears regularly in many outlets.

The brand's success also owes a lot to its innovative menus. Brewsters brand managers realised that children's tastes vary enormously depending on how old they are and divided the pubs' menus accordingly.

Each pub now sells Organix baby food for its youngest customers. The under-sevens can choose dishes including macaroni cheese, mini fish and chips and pork sausages in Yorkshire pudding served with mash.

Older children's meals include chilli con carne and rice, a chicken dinner or sirloin steak and chips.

The menus are put together by Whitbread's team of development chefs and changed twice every year - with a little help from the Brewsters Board of Directors.

Unlike other boards of directors, however, the Brewsters board is made up of 20 children, aged between five and 10, all from Chantry Primary School in Luton. They work alongside Brewsters development chefs and marketing team and help choose what goes on the menu and how the menus look.

Every Brewsters outlet has supervised play areas and parents can relax while they eat and watch their children on CCTV.

Smaller portions answer kids' needs​

Wales is still ahead in our search for the best children's menus in UK pubs.

Licensees Steve and Ness Marquis from the Blue Bell Inn in Halkyn, Flintshire, started selling food a few weeks ago and decided not to create a special kids' menu. Instead they provide smaller portions of their home-made meals and have discovered they are very popular with children and adults who don't have big appetites.

"We have found we sell about 35 per cent of our meals as smaller helpings," Steve said. "Smaller helpings aren't just for kids."

Meals available for little appetites include Spanish chicken, chilli con carne, wholetail scampi and chips, slow-braised steak and bangers and mash.

Meanwhile school meals fish manufacturer Seafish UK wrote in to tell us that their healthy fish products are available for pubcos and independent pubs.

Examples of their products, which are designed to be oven baked, include breaded salmon fillet or goujons, breaded cod portions and fish cakes.

They can be contacted on 01482 223648.

We still want to hear from pubs that are catering for smaller customers imaginatively. We know there are pubs out there offering children some fabulous food - and we want to know who you are.

We also want to print some great children's recipes to inspire other publicans - so if you've got a dish that's a hit with the kids in your pub, tell us about that too.

Send your best children's recipes and/or your children's menu to Kerry Rogan, Pint-sized Portions, The Publican, 19 Scarbrook Road, Croydon. CR9 1LX. Or email kerryr@thepublican.com