PA
Eating out with children leads to embarrassing, red-faced moments for parents, a new study has found.
A poll of 2,000 parents revealed that almost half of mums and dads are embarrassed by their offspring's table manners, and a staggering ONE IN FIVE has abandoned a restaurant meal halfway through because of their youngsters' awful behaviour.
The researchers discovered that a third of parents worry about how their children will behave if they take them out to eat.
And the things about their kids' table manners that really get parents of children aged five to 10 foaming at the mouth in public?
Over a third (35 per cent) said eating with their mouths closed is the hardest table manner for their children to grasp, whilst kids' sitting still at the table was a problem for 34 per cent of mums and dads. And those pesky elbows on the table spelled dining-out despair for 22 per cent of parents!
The study also found that parents consider saying please and thank you to be the most important table manners for kids to take on board (40 per cent), followed by eating with their mouths closed (36 per cent)
Etiquette and manners expert Jean Broke-Smith said of the findings: 'They say that 'manners maketh the man' but I'm a great believer in the same being true for children as well. If you take time to teach your children table manners while at home, you'll find dining out a much more pleasurable experience and can hopefully avoid those stressful confrontations! Whether you are enjoying a decadent afternoon tea or a three course dinner, these tips will stand you in good stead and help your children to grow into polite adults.'
Do you despair of your kids' table manners?
Does it put you off taking them out to eat? Or do you have them well trained?