Battery Park Juice Bar, Chorlton

A well-known institution amongst Chorlton-ites, we decided to give Battery Park a go with the kids in tow. Four of us went on a weekday for lunch - weekends do get very busy apparently. There is no children's menu so we decided on a cream cheese bagel and a couple of hot halloumi sandwiches to share.   We split a milkshake between the children (they're enormous, very thick and did I mention delicious?!) and we settled for juices - the bill came to £18.35. It's got a lovely atmosphere, a real community vibe - the cafˇ's split-level with wooden chairs and tables downstairs and a cou...

Cafe Seven, Bowdon

We've just discovered this cafe set in the leafy residential streets of Bowdon. There is plenty of parking on the road plus a little car park across the way. Don't be put off by its small appearance - when you get inside you'll discover there's another floor upstairs packed with leather sofas.   On each floor there's a little child's table with stools, a few crayons and a couple of toys. This is an extremely child-friendly environment and the staff seemed immune to the terrific amount of noise emitted by my eight-month-old. They're happy for you to park your buggies in the café's...

Café Revive at Marks and Spencer

When I’d just had my first baby and I was out shopping in the city centre, Café Revive became a regular haunt. I made sure I timed it early enough to get a seat before the lunchtime rush and I enjoyed sitting there with a coffee and sandwich looking out of the floor-to-ceiling glass windows towards St Ann’s Square. The staff were unerringly helpful – always offering to carry my tray to the table as I negotiated my pram. They’ll provide bottle warmers and there’s baby-changing in the toilets within the café....

Caffe Latte

Caffe Latte is unique on our list in that it is the only cafe we've come across that has an on-site creche facility. Aimed at children aged from two to 12 years old, the creche is open every day and you can just drop in without advance booking.   You can leave your child for up to two hours while you either go shopping or relax with a coffee. This children's area is in a sound-proofed room off the cafe and is kitted out with a large table and chairs for activities such as painting and making hama beads. There is a television with movie choices and also toys and books for the younger one...

Chocolate Cafe, The

Here you'll discover a ground-floor chocolate shop selling a gorgeous selection of handmade chocolates, and an upstairs cafe offering, amongst other things, 14 different flavours of hot chocolate that you make yourself by immersing a chocolate bar in hot milk!   If you don't want your child to eat chocolate, it is probably best to avoid this place! When we visited mid-week there were lots of mums and buggies - there is a buggy park within the shop that would fit about four pushchairs. The cafe is pleasantly decorated, although I found it a little sparse. However, I was soon distracted from ...

Courtyard Coffee House and Penny-farthing Museum, The

Stuck for somewhere to go for lunch one day whilst visiting Knutsford, a local suggested The Courtyard Coffee House. I don't think we'd have found it otherwise, as it's tucked away in an inconspicuous spot off the main street.   We were delighted to find a very cute, old-fashioned looking tearooms, which actually doubles up as a museum - it holds the world's largest collection of penny-farthings. These are all suspended from the ceiling so it's quite a spectacle! Not surprisingly on a Saturday afternoon, there was a large queue, but once we made it clear that we were happy to sit in the...

Design Museum Cafe, The

If you're heading over to the pool at Hathersage, or even just on a day trip to the Peak District, then call in at David Mellor's Cutlery Factory and Visitor Centre. The country shop is a delight for all you foodie parents and the factory itself (set in the architecturally award-winning Round Building) is fascinating. However, the main attraction for children lies within the Design Museum Cafe.   The cafˇ serves up wonderful wholesome food and I can vouch for the sandwiches; I had the bacon and brie with onion marmalade, which was gorgeous. For children there are smaller but still prett...

Fruitcake

I was intrigued when Fruitcake was recommended to me as a cafˇ designed absolutely with parents and children in mind. Situated next to Alderley Edge's main high street, Fruitcake is enormous, which on a Saturday lunchtime meant for us there was no problem getting a table, plenty of room for the children to spread out and no issue with getting our pram in. Great start.   In one area of the cafˇ there's a plasma screen (showing Sky Sports when we were there, but apparently it's often kids telly!) and in front of this is a really generous area given over to the children. There were loads o...

Glo Family, Cheadle

Set in a converted Victorian church with a beautiful garden, you've got to check out Glo Family! This unique centre in Cheadle has a café, sensory room, toddler play area, exercise studio and consulting rooms all under one roof. Classes on offer include Pyjama Drama, Twirling Ballerinas and Rhythm Time for the little ones whilst adults can take their pick from Zumba, Bikini Bootcamp and Yoga amongst others.    I headed there simply for lunch last Friday with a friend and our two babies. The first thing that struck me was the beautiful design inside – it’s a light...

Hullabaloo

We chanced upon this cute cafˇ on a shopping trip to Altrincham with our 18-month-old boys. It's fully organic serving great tasting food including sandwiches, salads, soups and platters. There's also a tempting range of homemade cakes and puddings - hard to resist. What made it stand out most was its child-friendly policy.   The staff were brilliant with the boys and the children's menu was excellent, with things like houmus and pitta dippers for £3 and beans and cheese toasties for £2.85. There was room for pushchairs and a box of goodies for the children to dip into with ...

Lavender Barn, The

Set in the village of Dunham, these cute little tearooms are a great find. Inside is a wonderful hotchpotch of tables, all painted in shades of lavender. Outside is a lovely courtyard surrounded by grass and lavender beds. A word to the wise though - cars can park directly in front on the grass, and a little way off, slightly hidden, is an unfenced pond.   The food is pretty basic: soup, sandwiches, salads and jackets, but everything is freshly made. The real appeal is the selection of cakes. The staff are friendly and the atmosphere relaxed, perfect for afternoon tea. Anything lavender...

Oddest

Chorlton has always led the way in great independent eateries - and Oddest is a new kid on the south Manchester block. The third in the portfolio of 'Odd' establishments (the other two are city centre based), we gave the child-friendly service at this ostensibly grown-up bar 10 out of 10.   The decor is quirky and eccentric, with a mix of sofas, tables and chairs, plus a screen showing pro- grammes on a loop (with the mute button on) - 'Lilo & Stitch' was playing when we were there. The staff couldn't have done more - they use portable Totseats, which they helped us fasten to the ch...

Oklahoma

A café with a difference, Oklahoma is a bit bonkers and all the better for it! On one side there is a shop with shelves crammed full of quirky retro stuff, jokey and wacky gifts, imported goods and a great selection of cards, and on the other there’s a mainly veggie café with an eclectic mix of comfy chairs and tables. It’s bustling at weekends and yes you’d struggle a little with a pram when it’s very busy but Oklahoma is something different. Staff absolutely welcome children and it’s really worth a trip if you’re after an alternative present co...

Quays, The

Found on the banks of the Bridgewater Canal in the heart of Worsley village, The Quays is a perfect stop-off if you've been walking in the area. It's a very cute coffee house run by extremely friendly owners.   Though quite small, and a bit of a tussle with prams, you'll manage if it's not too busy. There's also a little outside area at the back for a fine day. Menu wise, there was a lovely range of homemade food on offer, all extremely well priced.   For a two-course lunch of quiche and salad followed by lemon meringue pie for two adults, with drinks it came to under £10. ...

Queenie Mumbles

Probably one of my favourite cafes to go to with children. The fact that it's never been nominated for a family-friendly restaurant award is definitely an oversight. Managed by a mum of four, a lot of thought has gone into making this small but perfectly-formed cafe an enjoyable place to eat with children.   The food is mostly locally sourced and seasonal with everything being cooked to order. There is a very comprehensive menu but what's brilliant is that although there's an excellent platter and sandwich selection for the children, Queenie Mumbles will cook whatever they want: if we h...

Roma

This family-run deli, cafˇ and bakery has been in Whitefield for as long as I can remember. It was recently re-housed in a swanky new building, adjoined externally to a new Morrisons supermarket. Conveniently Roma now shares Morrisons' car park so there is bags of parking.   It is also within spitting distance of the metro station and bus stops. I visited on a Tuesday lunchtime with my two- year-old and a couple of friends. The staff were very friendly and immediately interacted with my son. The cafe and deli appeared very 'glossy' with marble floors, large windows, spotlights and shiny...

Simply Books

Simply Books is a lovely bookshop in the centre of Bramhall village, with a great child-friendly café. Downstairs is a small children's table with a selection of books, but upstairs is a big communal table that can seat about 10 children plus lots of comfy chairs with more books and activities.   There is a Charlie and Lola themed menu for kids, and everything is freshly made and can be altered depending on your child's likes and dislikes. In general the choice includes a soup or sandwich, mini hot chocolate or juice, some fruit and a homemade cookie, all for £3.50. They ar...

Slattery's Patissier and Chocolatier

The real appeal of a trip to Slattery's is not the dining room on the first floor of the three-storey Victorian building that houses the Slattery empire but walking through the 'Willie Wonka'-style shop on the ground floor.   Children cannot fail to be impressed by the rows and rows of superbly decorated cakes, gateaux, chocolates of every shape and size, sweets, and bottles of sarsaparilla. Unfortunately there are no oompah-loompahs but the 'chocolate factory' itself can be viewed through large picture windows at the rear of the shop. The elegant dining room on the first floor, which c...

St Ann's Saturday Café

At the geographic centre of Manchester, the café of St Ann’s Church is a peaceful retreat from frenetic shoppers – great if your kids are getting tetchy. If you go into the main church entrance, the small café, staffed by volunteers, is at the back of the church. It sells homemade sandwiches and slices of cake, all served with a smile and at a nice price. The tea and coffee is all accredited by Fair Trade. If you find the café’s full, the Reverend is happy for you to sit in the pews! There is a book stall selling some children’s books. There is a highc...

Thyme Out Deli

This is a great little spot to go with children on a summer's day as at the side of the building is a lovely fenced herb garden complete with pebbled paths, parasols and plants for sale. It can also be accessed via a side gate, which is useful if you have a pram.   We have visited several times with a large group of friends and their children. Taking along a few toy cars and a bucket, the children have enjoyed messing around in the pebbles whilst waiting for their lunch. A good drinks menu offers fresh smoothies (£2.95 each), with interesting names such as the 'Neneh Cherry', toge...

Time for Tea

Time for Tea owner Julie believes that tea can only be enjoyed out of a china cup, so on entry to these tearooms you'll soon notice the shelves heaving with old-fashioned and novelty china teapots; in fact there are over 50 of them and you can ask to choose one specifically to have your tea from too!   The cafe is quite small, with around 10 tables, but we got our prams in fine and were warmly welcomed. The menu is simple, serving home-cooked food at unbeatable prices; Welsh rarebit at £2.85, bagels with cream cheese for £2 and poached eggs on toast at £2.85, to name b...

Trifles Bakery

Situated on a pedestrian street in the centre of town, this award-winning family bakery and cafe tempts you in with its display of beautifully-decorated cakes. It is a little pokey with a pram but you could leave it on view outside or fold it away and tuck it behind the entrance door. We visited on a Saturday and it was packed so we had to wait a few minutes for a table.   The children kept themselves occupied drooling over the cakes and once we were sat down the service was pretty quick. The boys enjoyed a hot homemade pie between them with side salad, which at £2.90 was great va...

Zest

I was recommended Zest by my mother-in-law, a local to the area with very discerning tastes. While my husband walked the dog round the adjacent Doffcocker Lodge (a small local nature reserve) on a rainy afternoon, I took the children in for a snack.   The food is sourced locally and absolutely delicious, with a range of sandwiches and light meals, including Blackpudding Tower, Lancashire rarebit and both a meat and vegetarian tasting plate. We opted for a homemade scone and a hot chocolate. The hot chocolate is made with real chocolate and although expensive at £2.95, was quite ho...