For over 13 years, an Orlando eatery has been the hangout place for young school kids attending the Bishop Moore Catholic High School, but beginning May 2022, the restaurant Tornatore announced its ban on teenagers, citing their disrespectful behavior.
Restaurant owner Denny Tornatore posted on his establishment's social media page that they will no longer welcome kids under 18 years old without adults in their company. They made the decision after considering a lot of issues that have affected their staff, their business operations, and their customers.
From Tornatore’s new dining guidelines. I get it. pic.twitter.com/A9rYCDNA3C
— Orlando Food Blogger (@orlfoodie) May 1, 2022
Co-ower Maria Mancia told Fox 35 Orlando that Tornatore had become a daycare center for high school students, who are loud and rowdy. The owners also point out that they barely tip the staff. They said they would not tolerate people who come to their place of business for anything other than eating.
Tornatore acknowledged that they would likely lose some profit by turning down the kids whose main food choice is pizza, their restaurant's specialty. However, the decision comes at the right time since Tornatore is changing its format and changing to a fine-dining restaurant.
"Ultimately we had to pick between catering to high schoolers or catering to adults," Mancia said.
Parents Also the Problem
The owners, however, also said that the kids' parents are part of the problem as they have been using the business site's parking lot for their school pick-up. There are six other businesses on the shopping site that have to contend with the crowd of children and teens.
Speaking with Click Orlando, Tornatore said that he had raised the issues with the school, but they said they could not do anything to the students outside of school property.
"I get that it's not on their property," Tornatore said. "So it's the parents that are the issue," he added, implying that the responsibility for the kids lies with the parents.
Other U.S. Restaurants That Banned Children
Tornatore is not the first to impose a ban on teenagers and kids on their premises. In 2017, Hampton Station, a Tampa Bay pizzeria and beer joint, disallows kids due to liability and safety issues. The decision was met with some backlash, especially from patrons who saw this as an attack on families, per Food and Wine.
Mooresville in North Carolina also bans kids under five years old because their establishment is an upscale fine dining restaurant. La Fisheria in Houston bans kids under eight years old after 7:00 p.m.
Some diners think it's the restaurant's choice to have the ban if they believe it will improve the dining experience, especially as there are customers who wish not to be bothered by unruly kids while they are eating.
