Dragon Pizza’s owner, Charlie Redd, sparked online debate after a social media post addressing the behavior of guests with children at the Somerville pizza parlor. The post, shared on Instagram and Facebook on Sunday, followed an incident on Friday when the restaurant staff asked a group of families to leave due to what Redd described as “negligent parents” and “unsupervised children” causing disruption.
“We are a pizza shop that LOVES KIDS,” the post read, but it went on to clarify that the restaurant cannot condone unsupervised children who disrupt the dining experience for other guests and the staff. “Sadly, we had to demand a group of negligent parents Friday to take their families home because they were disrespecting our dining room, other guests, and our team. Our restaurant, or any restaurant, is not a place for unsupervised children to play. It is here to share dining experiences.”
The post outlined six thoughts from Dragon Pizza regarding families dining in their restaurant:
Welcome for Children: “We welcome all children dining in our restaurant with open arms.”
Expectation for Parental Involvement: “We DO NOT welcome parents who do not want to share a dining experience with the children.”
Sharing Games with Kids: “We love sharing our games with children. Who wouldn’t?!”
Misuse of Games: “We loathe parents who use our games as babysitters while they ignore their children and let them damage and abuse our games.”
Respect for Pizza: “We think our pizza is the best, worthy of respect, and cherish children who agree.”
Value of Dining: “We do not appreciate parents who treat our pizza as a cheap, simple option to feed their children until they can have their own dinner.”
The post came after Redd learned that the families involved in the incident had shared their version of the encounter in a Facebook parenting group. While Redd declined to share more specific details about the incident, he emphasized that his frustration was directed at the parents, not the children. “This [post] is always in reference to the parents,” Redd said.
Redd, who has children of his own, built Dragon Pizza with families in mind. He also owns Dragon’s Lair, an adjacent space with games like shuffleboard and pinball, designed to provide a family-friendly environment. “Since the opening of my first restaurant, Redd’s in Rozzie, I’ve wanted to make guests with children comfortable,” he explained. “It’s part of my hospitality philosophy for restaurants to engage everyone. We’ve been very successful here at Dragon accommodating groups with kids.”
Despite this being the first time in over six years of operation that Redd has asked a family to leave, the issue of guests with unruly children has become a common topic of discussion, particularly in breweries and family-oriented restaurants. Last year, Rhode Island’s Proclamation Ale Company addressed similar concerns, reminding guests that staff and their board games were not “babysitters.”
Reactions to Redd’s post have been mixed. Some users supported Redd for standing up for his business and shared their own experiences with disruptive children at restaurants. One Facebook user wrote, “Anyone who’s waited tables knows this is a huge problem… It’s his restaurant; sounds like the kids were bothering other customers.” Another Reddit user said, “I work at a brewery, and kids running wild is BY FAR the biggest complaint we get.”
Others, however, disagreed with Redd’s stance, particularly his sixth point about treating pizza as a “cheap, simple option” for children. One Instagram user commented, “Why can’t parents give their kids pizza as a cheap, easy option?” Another Reddit user found the language in the post “bizarre” and criticized it as “really weird.”
The online debate also reignited conversations surrounding a previous viral incident involving Redd and Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy. In 2023, Portnoy visited Dragon Pizza to film a One Bite review, but the encounter quickly turned into a heated confrontation, which led to a viral fallout. The incident resulted in review-bombing and death threats for Redd but also garnered support from customers who lined up to show their loyalty to Dragon Pizza.
As the debate over families dining out continues to evolve, Dragon Pizza’s post highlights the ongoing struggle for restaurants to balance family-friendly environments with maintaining a respectful and enjoyable experience for all guests.
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