Mother ignites debate after criticising parents who brought children with iPads to restaurant

‘People need to teach their kids how to act in public,’ mother of five says

An Oklahoma mother complained about parents who brought their children with them to an upscale restaurant while she was trying to enjoy a night out with her husband.

In a viral TikTok video, Kelsey Davis (@kd81322) filmed herself trying to enjoy her date night at Nola’s Creole & Cocktails in Tulsa but found that her experience was dampened by loud children arguing and playing on iPads.

“Can you hear that? It’s a table of children across from us arguing,” Davis complained as she ate her meal, exasperated. “And one of them has their tablet on volume 97.”

By the time she got her $140 check, Davis was angry and fuming. “People, leave your kids at home or get a babysitter,” Davis said. “Don’t take them… because I want a good night with my husband. And I just feel exhausted from that date night. So thanks for that.”

A mother of five, Davis said she was excited to spend some quality time with her husband, only to have that precious time interrupted by a group of unruly children. After years of wanting to try the menu at Nola, she explained to Today that she was “excited” to finally have gotten a table.

“The food was amazing, but it was such a stressful experience because of that one awful family,” Davis explained. “They were loud and obnoxious, and had absolutely no regard for other diners. The kids, they weren’t toddlers by the way, were yelling and whooping and hollering and the parents were completely ignoring them.”

She told the outlet that all four of the children - who she estimated were between the ages of 9 to 12 - had their iPads “blaring”.

“Why weren’t they wearing headphones?” Davis asked rhetorically. “This wasn’t McDonald’s. It was a nice Cajun restaurant. People need to teach their kids how to act in public.”

Since the video was posted on 30 December, it has garnered over 60,000 views on the platform, with some agreeing with Davis that parents shouldn’t bring their children along to a fancy restaurant if they’re going to be nuisances.

“I agree!!!” one person wrote. “Love kids, but if they can’t be quiet, please don’t take them to fine dining! And please don’t take them on four-plus hour flights!”

“Girl. I get it,” another person added. “In fact, when me and the hubs go to dinner and are seated next to kids… we ask to be sat somewhere else.”

“If parents would discipline their children and teach them how to be civil little humans and prepare them for the real world, instead of letting an iPad raise them we wouldn’t be having this problem,” someone commented.

Meanwhile, others were more empathetic towards the parents who brought their children, saying that parenting can be difficult and they should be cut some slack and compassion.

“Not everyone has childcare,” one person commented. “Kids have a right to be anywhere you do. Some may say you’re annoying for recording yourself at dinner. BE KIND.”

“Honestly this is one I don’t agree with,” another wrote. “Some people don’t trust babysitters or have family close by to watch them. Children exist and deserve to go.”

Davis’ video isn’t the first to address the issue of iPad children on TikTok, with the divisive topic causing a heated debate across the platform. Many have criticised millennial parents for allowing their children to have more screentime and many of their criticisms aren’t unfounded. According to a 2023 Japanese study, researchers found that toddlers who were exposed to more screentime at one year old were more likely to indicate developmental delays in communication and problem-solving as they grew older.