A Slow Food Enthusiast at McDonald's

They say that having kids changes everything, and it's true. Before becoming a parent, I never ventured into fast-food places. Actually, as a natural foods enthusiast who purchases local, organic food as much as possible, I avoided them altogether.

But a shift occurred when my mother suggested we stop at Wendy's because it had a place for my 3-year-old son to play. She ordered a coffee, I drank an orange juice, and my son immediately became absorbed in swinging on a set of soft monkey bars, making friends with several other toddler monkeys in the process.

A few days later, we stopped at a McDonald's with an indoor play area. My son soon settled into a seemingly endless loop of climbing up to the top of a big, blue spiraling tube and then sliding down. Every few minutes he would run over and take a drink of my water, and then disappear until I saw him beaming at me from behind one of those Plexiglas portals. Soon he was at the bottom again, sweaty and wanting more water.

When he needed to use the restroom, I was surprised to find child-size fixtures alongside the adult ones. This might not seem like a big deal, but in all my years of going to vegetarian restaurants and natural foods markets, I never remember seeing a kid-friendly bathroom. Surely, the people who work at such places are more likely to know about Maria Montessori and her belief that children need exactly these kinds of accommodations in order to feel comfortable in the world. Yet, it appears to have been McDonald's that introduced this innovation, as well as the PlayPlaces, into the world of commercial eateries.

And so I have had to revise my opinion of companies I formerly viewed in an entirely negative light. And I expect I'll keep taking my son to Wendy's, McDonald's, and Burger King. Not that they'll make much money off us: We've yet to consume anything other than bottled water, juice, and milk. But if they're so - dare I say it? - enlightened about things like kid-friendly bathrooms, they might eventually catch on and see that organic, whole foods are the way to go. Hey, if Ford and GM are finally going to offer hybrids and electric cars, then anything is possible.

Meanwhile, my wife is concerned that our toddler might get indoctrinated into unhealthy eating or "branded," just by spending time in fast-food places. Of course, that's a danger, but for the time being I'm not worried: my son has never expressed an interest in eating at any of them, and, in fact, he doesn't even seem to be able to tell them apart.

The other day, referring to the aforementioned McDonald's, he said, "You know that Wendy's near my school that serves a lot of junk? Can you take me there to play?"

Comments

[Mauimom]

As the parent of a 21 year old and a 23 year old: trust me, there are far more important things you should be worrying about than whether your kid(s) develop a love for Happy Meals.

[alieninvader]

When someone creates an organic, veggie friendly fast food franchise, maybe, but until then, it's still too much of a niche market for the restaurants (mostly mom and pop) to invest that sort of space or money.

[Mark Klempner - Huffpost Blogger]

As I made clear in the piece, we do not eat at McDonald's, Wendy's, or Burger King. You suggest I go out of my way to find a child-friendly natural foods restaurant but I have never seen one. I'm curious as to why you do not seem concerned that the restaurants you advocate for do not provide places for children to play or child-friendly bathrooms, and do not even provide little boxes of crayons and paper place mats for children to color, as a large percentage of mainstream restaurants do.

[mattwg440]

of course these places cater much more to children, the most profitable thing mcdonald's has ever done was to burn itself into children's minds. "Mommy, i want a happy meal, a happy meal , mommy, no,no, a real HAPPY MEAL! "

if I thought that these franchises were doing it for the benefit of children, i would agree, but they do it to make it easier for parents to poison their kids there. Picture kid friendly cigarettes and lighters, " well little jimmy has a pack a day habit, but the packaging is child friendly, and the lighter is a safety lighter, so i do not have to unwrap his packs, or light the cigarettes for the little tyke."

harsh, i guess, and the analogy does not hold up all the way, but that should give you a good idea of my opinion.

[girlsgotta]

So what if they cater to children. You/we/Mark are still the parent. And ultimately it's the parents care and attention to their kids that shapes much stronger viewpoints about themselves and their environments than occasional exposure to marketing. Let's not give corporations and marketing more credit than is due - if it's working it's because we're letting it.

If you don't like fast food restaurants don't go to them. But also don't demonize the people who choose to go to them. Some people might like the taste. Some people might have nothing else in their neighborhood. And some people might just need a place to stop the car and stretch their legs. If for the price of a bottle of water, you can let your kid blow off some steam - why not? At least they're being active.

If you are truly concerned about the nutritional value of the food and how it impacts the people who do eat it, then you need to engage these companies and make sure that they know that you would be a customer if they had better options.

[Justin Williams]

I congratulate you for raising a child intelligent and aware enough to call it what it is, a "wendy's near my school that serves a lot of junk," that, in it's own right, shows a lot more enlightenment than most young children have.

[geetha701]

Careful, it's only a matter of time before your son is telling you that he would prefer a Double Cheeseburger to a Big- Mac. Fast food restaurants incorporate playgrounds to attract parents and children with the hopes of nurturing "lifelong customers.­"

While it may be more difficult to find restaurants that are healthy and child-friendly, the extra time is worth it.

There is a lot of corporate abuse associated with the fast-food industry and will take a great deal of time and dedication on our part as customers to hold accountable.

If you are interested in learning more check out http://valuethemeal.blogspot.com