Bites: All kidding firmly aside

Any parent who has tried to dine with a child hanging from their neck will know that eating and offspring don't mix. However, a number of eateries have cottoned on to the fact that a happy sprog makes for a happy parent and are looking for ways to occupy the inner foodie in children.

The Cookbook Café at London's InterContinental has just launched a brunch with kid's cookery school Cookie Crumbles. So while the parents tuck into the champagne, the kids are whisked away to the kitchen.

At London's Tate galleries, children eat for free when an adult orders two courses during the Easter break, while there are new kids' menus at Kensington's Park Terrace and Chelsea's Bluebird Restaurant, where the delights include vine-tomato bruschetta and fruit kebabs.

If all that still sounds too much of a hassle you could always cart them off to Lucy Cooks cookery school in Cumbria, which runs classes for children from the age of six ( www.lucycooks.co.uk). It's never too soon to get 'em started.