IKEA

I dithered a bit about blogging my lunch experience at IKEA because, well, it's just IKEA, right? Will I next blog about my lunch experience at a mall food court? Well, maybe I would, I haven't put that one to the test yet.  But here I go. To the vast majority of the population who frequent IKEA with children, what I'm about to discuss is probably old news.

Anywho. Poor Mr. B caught whatever horrible ailment struck me in the early part of this week - I mean, it was seriously so bad I had to miss a Moms' Night Out with some rocking mamas at Chazz! Ugh! - so he stayed home and slept while I picked up L from school and brought her with me to IKEA to pick up some frames and have some lunch. If you don't already know it, they offer family parking right near the entrance, which is such a welcome convenience. Even when people in big fancy Lexuses (Lexi?) and no physical impairment I could see choose to use it themselves. Jerk.
This was our first jaunt there since my girl decided to no longer be potty trained. For those in the know, this was a very sticky wicket. You see, IKEA has this fantastic too good to be true place called Smaland (sorry, I don't know how to do accents) where you can drop off your potty trained child for one hour while you shop. For free. And someone else watches them while you browse, struggle with oversized Swedish boxes, or even just sit in the cafe and enjoy a cinnamon roll. As soon as we pulled up to the store, L asked if she could go to Small World (as she calls it) and I had to explain to her, without shaming her, that the rule is that everyone has to be potty trained. She told me that she decided she was ready to wear underwear now. Nice try, kid. But as luck would have it, she accepted the explanation and we made it past the entrance of this mystical place without incident. I think it was because she was really hungry.

Up to the Cafe we go, we each pick up our own sized tray, and enter the cafeteria line to order lunch. And not only do they have a kids' sized tray, they have little rolling carts so your not fumbling your way through the tables balancing two trays, a diaper bag, and trying to keep your eye on your child. I actually was that fumbling adult today because even though I walked right past the carts, noted how awesomely convenient that feature was (in my head), and picked up our trays, I never bothered to grab one. I is smrt.

I, of course, ordered the Swedish Meatball Combo ($5.99) which comes with 15 of the aforementioned meatballs, mashed potatoes, lingonberries (yuck), and a side salad. If you don't like swedish meatballs, this is not for you. If you like high quality very expensive swedish meatballs, this is not for you. These are cheap little balls of processed goodness that really hit the spot when you're craving some comfort food. The salad was enh - you serve yourself from a salad bar full of an iceberg lettuce mix, some cucumbers, tomatoes, and croutons. It was what you'd expect, but the poppyseed dressing was actually very tasty.

L got chicken tenders, fries, and an apple juice box. She also could have chosen white milk, chocolate milk, lingonberry juice, and (I think) elderflower juice. I meant to go back up to check, but forgot.You could have also chosen a different side but I didn't think that would fly when she knew french fries were an option. She likes them so much, she even took one off of another girl's plate during this jaunt. Real nice.

 The entire dining room was a great place to take a kid to lunch. As already mentioned, they had kid sized trays, an incredibly cheap kids meal - $2.49, except on Tuesdays, when kids eat free - and, as you can see, toys for them to play with. There are also some kid sized tables set up, outdoor dining, and a bottle warming station. The bathrooms, which are located in the store, are also equipped with emergency diaper kits in case you were out.

While we finished our lunches, L chased around the little girl for awhile (seriously, other kid, if you're going to sit at the same table as my child when there is another child's table right next to it, you can't get all shy or ignore mine when she keeps asking your name. And in L's defense, this was long before she stole her french fry). Finally, we headed out and into the store itself. Another thing I love about this place is that even though we couldn't go into Smaland, they have the kids toy section set up for kids to play as well, so we spent some time there before heading downstairs to get the few things we came for and L enjoyed following the arrows around the Marketplace section.

I've got to say, I don't often take advantage of IKEA just for kicks, but I think I need to frequent it a bit more in the future. Especially when someone decides they're going to be potty trained again!

Kid Friendliness:  5/5

Service: 3/5 (self-serve and I do a decent job)

Prices: 5/5

Taste: 3/5