Like chocolate and champagne, well-behaved children are welcome almost everywhere. Most Boston-area restaurants can accommodate families, and many youngsters can be stunned into tranquillity if a place is fancy enough. If your kids can't or won't sign a good-conduct pledge, here are some suggestions.
The nonstop activity and smart-mouthed service at Durgin-Park will entrance any child, and parents of picky eaters appreciate the straightforward New England fare. Other good non-chain choices are Redbones, the Barking Crab, La Groceria Ristorante Italiano, and Jasper White's Summer Shack -- especially the Cambridge location.
The Bertucci's chain of pizzerias (www.bertuccis.com) appeals to children and adults equally, with wood-fired brick ovens that are visible from many tables, great rolls made from pizza dough, and pizzas and pastas that range from basic to sophisticated. There are convenient branches at Faneuil Hall Marketplace (tel. 617/227-7889), on Merchants Row off State Street; in the Back Bay at 43 Stanhope St. (tel. 617/247-6161); at 533 Commonwealth Avenue, Kenmore Square (tel. 617/236-1030); and in Cambridge at 21 Brattle St., Harvard Square (tel. 617/864-4748), and 799 Main St. (tel. 617/661-8356), a short walk from Central Square.
