Mum given out to by waitress after leaving five year old alone at the table

Ellen Fitzpatrick

A mum has questioned if she was in the wrong after revealing she was “told off” by a waitress for leaving her son alone at the table.

A mum, who is wishing to remain anonymous, has taken to the ‘Am I Being Unreasonable’ forum on the parenting site Mumsnet after claiming she was “told off” by a waitress for leaving her five-year-old on his own.

She explained that after the waitress took their order, the mum went to use the toilet and left her son at the table as he played with a colouring book.

She said: “Before I left I told the woman at the table next to us (who had young children) that I was nipping to the loo and could she please keep half an eye on my son.

“When I arrived back at the table literally 2 minutes later I was basically chastised by the waitress for leaving.”

She went on to say that she explained to the waitress what had happened and she was told that the staff member was “worried” about her son and was unsure if the mum was planning on returning.

“A bit far fetched considering I’d also left my phone, purse, keys and bag of shopping on the table,” the mum added.

She continued: “She huffed at me again and left, but I could see her taking to her colleagues across the room about it.

“That was the end of the whole thing but it left me feeling a bit weird, it never even occurred to me that I was doing something wrong but now I’m wondering if my behaviour was unreasonable?”

Naturally, the mum was faced with many different reactions from her fellow parents on the forum.

One person wrote: “I personally would have taken my child at that age with me to the loo but I don’t think it’s a massive deal if they’re sensible and were occupied with colouring.”

A second added: “I would have take my son with me and just told the waitress that we were nipping to the toilet and would be back.

“I would have left coats, colouring stuff on the table so other people knew someone was sitting there and just took my valuables with me.”

Another remarked: “I would have done the same and have been asked to do the same too. Don’t worry about it.”