7 Family-Friendly Restaurants We’d Love to See Make a Comeback

Taking a family out to a sit-down restaurant can feel anxiety-inducing. This is especially true if you have young children. While you don't necessarily want to take small kids to a fancy restaurant meant only for adults, some perks come with taking your kids out to eat. They can learn plenty of valuable skills through these moments. These practical skills include proper table etiquette, communication with restaurant staff, and appropriate behavior in public spaces. Of course, the best way to teach your children these skills and more is by taking them to a family-friendly restaurant. These are the restaurants that other kids and families would most likely be at. This means you're less likely to get glared at here if your child is still learning. But sometimes these places can be hard to find. Here are seven family-friendly restaurants we'd love to see make a comeback.

The restaurants on this list may evoke nostalgia and dreams of being able to take your children to a beloved place from when you were a child. You never know what the future may hold; maybe one day, we will see one of these family-friendly restaurants make an epic comeback.

Technically, Pizza Hut is still in business; however, many people long for the day when it ruled the pizza world. In the '90s, Pizza Hut was a popular restaurant with plenty of kid-eat-free days.

Additionally, Pizza Hut had both a sit-down section and a buffet. The atmosphere was comforting to families. Whether they were planning a birthday party or taking their kids out for a weekday treat. Pizza Hut in the '90s was where it was at.

Chi-Chi's was a Mexican restaurant that was very popular during the 1980s and 1990s. They quickly became known for their fried ice cream and salsa.

Chi-Chi's was an introduction to the whole concept of Tex-Mex cuisine. The immense popularity soon fizzled out when bigger competitors began to grow. Now, there is talk that a new Chi-Chi's may be up and coming. While it may not be exactly what the old restaurant was, seeing its similarities to the '80s favorite Chi-Chi's will be interesting.

Bennigan's was another '90s restaurant that quickly became popular during this era. Customer favorites included Monte Cristo sandwiches, which were described as a 'food-coma-inducing deliciousness" by a Reddit commenter.

Bennigan's was first founded in 1972 and had the catchphrase 'bringing families together." It was a laid-back restaurant where families could enjoy delicious appetizers and deep-fried everything (have you ever had deep-fried broccoli?) They quickly became popular for their two for one happy hour drinks.

Don Pablo's was another Tex-Mex restaurant that focused on making meals from scratch, providing fresh ingredients, and creating a relaxing atmosphere in which families felt comfortable.

Today, the nostalgia for the feeling of Don Pablos is strong. Whether it was going to the restaurant and watching fresh tortillas being made in front of you or hanging out as a family enjoying the relaxing atmosphere, there was always a reason to go to Don Pablos.

In the 1970s, Sizzler was a hopping restaurant that changed the way of typical restaurants with their ingenious salad bar. Families could come and order a full meal at a reasonable price and chill out in a family-friendly space.

Other than the salad bar, Sizzler was known for its down-home menu items, such as steak, ribs, and burgers. Family-friendly food was another reason kids and adults felt comfortable here.

Ponderosa was a family-friendly buffet restaurant that offered amazing deals. These included family days, where families ate for a very low price. They also had kid-eat-free days. These deals made it easier for families with smaller kids to dine out when they didn't feel like cooking.

The main reason Ponderosa was so family-friendly was because of the price range. In the '90s, buffet-style restaurants were extremely popular. This concept allowed customers to pick and choose from a wide range of choices for a reasonable price. Though buffets aren't nearly as popular anymore, you can still find a Ponderosa lingering around the United States here or there.

The Old Country Buffet was another popular family buffet in the 1990s. It was a top choice for those who wanted a relaxing night out but didn't want to choose just one specific type of meal. Buffets are handy like that.

Many Redditors in this post share how they used to go there for 'fancy' dinners with their family. It was their definition of a 'nice restaurant." If a restaurant can evoke nostalgia such as that, it must have done something right.

Finding a family-friendly restaurant isn't always easy. So many checks need to be marked off to be considered a top restaurant for families. Things like a calm atmosphere, reasonably priced, and kid-friendly meals. However, the family-friendly restaurants on this list are ones we would love to see make a comeback.