Where to Dine on a Budget With Kids in London?

Where to dine on a budget with kids? These four London restaurants are as welcoming as they are wallet-friendly.

◆ Barbican Kitchen at the Barbican Centre

Europe’s largest multi-arts venue is home to cinemas, a theatre, a concert hall and galleries so there are plenty of ways for families to work up an appetite before refueling at the Barbican Kitchen. This ground floor restaurant serves a range of light bites, hot sandwiches and handmade pizzas and children under 12 eat free with every adult ordering a main meal.

◆ Sticky Fingers, Kensington

Sticky Fingers in Kensington is a rock n’roll restaurant that serves classic American dishes. The kid’s menu(for under 12s）is just £7.95 for a meal, a drink and a dessert and if you visit on a Monday you can take advantage of the “Monday Madness” promotion for up to 50% off all main courses for adults. Don’t leave without exploring the Rolling Stones souvenirs including gold discs, guitars and photos of the band.

◆ Jamie’s Italina, Various Locations

Top British chef, Jamie Oliver knows a thing or two about catering for children. There are often “kids cat free” promotions running during school holidays but the regular kids menu is only £6.50 for a main dish, a salad and a drink. Activity packs are available for kids and the 2-course lunch deal for grown-ups is a bargain at £11.95.

◆ Vauxhall City Farm Café

Combine a day with the animals and lunch with the family at Vauxhall City Farm, a community space home to horse, pigs, goats and camels, Enjoy lunch at the Old Dairy Café which serves affordable sandwiches, soups, salads, cakes and dishes from a weekly specials menu. Half portions of everything are available for kids for around £2.

People and animals often enjoy loving relationships with each other. When people adopt domesticated(家养的) animals into their families as pets, animals give humans the blessings of companionship and fun in return. In the wild, animals sometimes carry out dramatic rescues of people in dangerous situations, miraculously(奇迹般地) sensing human needs and jumping in without fear to help.

In 2000, a 6-year-old boy named Elian Conzalez left Cuba on a boat bound for Florida in the United States, but the boat sank and everyone aboard drowned except for Elian and two adults. Elian and the other two survivors held onto inner tuber for 48 hours to try to stay afloat in the sea. After a while, however, Elian began to lose strength, slipping under the water and then grabbing the tube again as he fought to stay alive.

A small group of dolphins noticed Elian struggling and swan over to him to help. The dolphins formed a circle around the inner tube and took turns using their noses to lift Elian until fishermen working in the area discovered and rescued Elian and the two adults who floated nearby. The fishermen reported that, when they discovered Elian, he was repeating a prayer that his mother had taught him before drowning, asking guardian angels to protect him.

Miraculously, the dolphins knew that a child would need more help than adults, so they focused on Elian —and they figured out exactly what needed to be done and cooperated carry out that plan successfully. They made it!

Decades before the first unaccompanied child was put on a plane to grandma’s in the care of a flight attendant, a few resourceful parents accomplished the same end by simply dropping their kids in the mail.

This was in the earliest days of the parcel post service, which launched in 1913. Before that, U.S. Postal Service packages were capped at four pounds, which limited the goofy things people tried to send by post.

But when the parcel service began, all kinds of cargo showed up in the mail stream, including coffins, eggs, dogs and, in a few cases, human young.

According to National Postal Museum historian Nancy Pope, the first known case of a mailed baby was in 1913 when Mr. and Mrs. Jesse Beauge of Glen Este, Ohio, shipped their 10-pound infant son to his grandmother’s home about a mile away, paying 15 cents in postage and springing for $50 in insurance (because they were worriers).

But some children were mailed much farther, Pope said. Edna Neff of Pensacola, Fla., was 6 when she was packed off — or packaged off — to her father’s home in Christiansburg, Va., 720 miles away.

The precious parcels weren’t truly parcels in the brown-paper. Instead they were more like companions in the arms of their carriers or walked along the route(路线). But the most famous mailed child, May Pierstorff, was indeed sent by an Idaho railway mail car in 1914 with the appropriate stamps stuck to her traveling coat. May’s picture survives, but no physical evidence of her trip. “We would sure love to have that coat,” Pope said.

In 1914, the postmaster general instituted a rule about the mail that stands to this day: no humans. But that didn’t stop an ambitious thief from crating himself up and shipping himself airmail. When William DeLucia, packed in a trunk labeled “Musical Instruments” along with food and an oxygen tank, was airborne, he climbed out, pilfered thousands of dollars’ worth of goods from the registered mail and sealed himself back up. He was arrested at the Atlanta airport in 1980 after his trunk popped open as it was being unloaded.

“We have his oxygen tank” at the Postal Museum, Pope noted with pride.

Teak is a large tree that grows in tropical(热带的) forests. It’s often used for outdoor furniture, since it’s more resistant to the elements than other types of wood. When untreated, it tends to fade to a grayish color, so it is often stained(着色). Before being able to stain teak furniture, you’ll need to sand and smooth the wood first.

Wipe dirt and dust off. You can use a dry paper towed or a cloth to brush any dirt off. If there are more tenacious spots to clean off, you can use a wet rag to rub them clean. Sand rough spots with 120 grit sandpaper. After that, use 220 grit sandpaper on the whole surface. Wipe any wood dust off with a dry rag before continuing.

Paint on a layer of sanding sealer(底漆). This will make the surface smoother and will get the wood stain better attached. Once the sealer has started to dry, use a clean cloth to wipe off any sealer that’s still pooled at the top of the wood. This will prevent spots from forming on the wood. Let the sealer dry completely. It should only take a few hours for the sealer to dry completely. You should sand the surface a few times before continuing to smooth out any spots where the sealer might not have dried evenly.

When painting on a layer of stain, a brush will do fine. Apply an even coat all over. Wipe off any stain not absorbed by the wood. Use a clean dry rag to wipe off extra stain. Let the wood stain dry. The amount of time it takes for the stain to completely dry will depend on how thick of a layer you used. Avoid touching the stain too much if it’s still wet. After the first coat has dried, take a moment to see if you’re satisfied with the color. If you want your furniture to be darker, you can add another coat of wood stain, right on top of the previous layer, following the same process.