A London-based pub has sparked debate over its latest rule: no children allowed.
A client, named Kyle, led to, formerly known as Twitter, on Sunday to share a snapshot of the sign outside the restaurant. As noted in responses to the tweet, the sign appeared to be at The Lower Red Lion in St Albans, north London.
As Kyle leaned in, he posed next to a chalkboard that listed a rule for the establishment: “Dogs allowed, no children allowed.” In the caption, Kyle added: “Found my new place.”
The tweet quickly went viral on X, with over 25.8 million views, as of April 15. However, there have been mixed responses to the sign in the comments, with several people criticizing the restaurant for not letting children in. Others claimed that the restaurant discriminated against women, specifically those who are with their children.
“Forbidding children is prohibiting parents. “This disproportionately affects women,” one wrote. “If you are more comfortable eating next to an animal than a human baby and your family, you are an ugly person, idc.”
“I may not have a sense of humor and be overthinking this, but banning young children from public spaces is misogynistic because it also limits their mothers,” another added. “What if a new mom wants to meet her friend for a drink or coffee?”
“'It takes a village to raise a child,' but instead we have single mothers locked in their apartments to satisfy the selfishness of dudebros and childless boss ladies,” wrote a third.
Several people also criticized the fact that animals were allowed into the restaurant over children.
“We need to ban pets where food is sold and I don't care who disagrees with me,” one wrote.
Another added: “As a person with five dogs and no kids this sucks. Children are true human beings and should be treated as such and not as inhuman little homunculi as many “childless” people treat them.
However, other people found the sign amusing and responded to the outrage, with some claiming that parents could go to different restaurants with their families.
“Anyway, a lot of people don't want to acknowledge that The Pub is not a kid-friendly space. If you're a kid, The Pub is a boring place with rules you don't understand and nothing to do,” said one. wrote.
“It's really not that deep – if your son is that keen for a pint, surely you can take him to one of the many family-friendly pubs.” another wrote.
“I don't see any problem with this?” a third wrote. “That's exactly why I stay in adults-only hotels, so I don't have to listen to some damn annoying iPad game.”
The independent has contacted The Lower Red Lion for comment.
