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CBS News
5 days ago
- CBS News
Massachusetts brewery posts new rules for customers with children after bad behavior
The owner of a brewery in Norton, Massachusetts has posted new rules for customers with children after recent bad behavior. "We're trying to be kind of the neighborhood's living room here. We want people to be able to come in and relax and hang out and meet friends, families as well," said Brian Shurtleff of Bog Iron Brewing. But just like when you're a guest in someone else's living room, you can't be climbing on the coffee table. And so posted throughout the taproom, and printed in the menu, patrons of Bog Iron Brewing in Norton can't miss the memo: children must remain seated beside their parents. "The social media post we put out went kind of viral. It got picked up on Reddit and there were thousands of comments," Shurtleff said. Rocks thrown on road, jumping on tables The brewery has a full kitchen and wants families to feel welcome - spending time together and enjoying a meal. But recent safety concerns gave them no choice but to adjust their policy. Notice to parents inside the menu at Bog Iron Brewing in Norton, Massachusetts. CBS Boston "We literally more than once had kids throwing rocks into Route 123 right outside our beer garden. Throwing rocks around the beer garden. Climbing, jumping up and down on our picnic tables and stuff. It just got to be way too much," he added. Back in the fall, Notch Brewing with locations in Salem and Brighton, established a kid curfew: after 6 p.m. - only patrons 21 and older allowed. "Just be considerate" The Bog Iron owners say most people get it. "He's doing the right thing. He's trying to keep everyone happy, and I don't think he's trying to shut out families, just asking them to mind their kids," said one Bog Iron patron. "If you're doing it right then you have well-behaved kids, and it shouldn't be that hard to keep them at the table. I think having it as half the page on one of the pages of the menu might be a bit of overkill, but I completely understand his point," said another patron, who'd just attended the brewery's Father's Day event Sunday. "Just be considerate of other guests. It's really that simple," said Shurtleff.
Boston Globe
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Boston Globe
‘Going forward, any children in our taproom or beer garden must be SEATED.' Norton brewery takes stand against unruly kids.
The brewery said 'we put off implementing this as long as we could but posting the previous policy did almost nothing as we very often still had children simply running through the space, climbing on furniture, and almost every Monday morning, the landscaping rocks in our beer garden are thrown all over the place.' Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up The previous policy had asked parents to keep children 'within reach at all times.' Advertisement Bog Iron Brewing is over their children, according to 'Look, we love your kids, but sometimes they can be, well … kids. This is your gentle reminder that when you bring yours to the taproom, our staff and our games are not meant to be their babysitters,' the brewery wrote. 'We ask that you supervise and be near your kids at all times and do not allow them to run around the taproom or yell loudly. Our staff shouldn't need to search the entire taproom to figure out where someone's parent is.' Advertisement The Rhode Island brewery also asked families to treat their arcade games and shuffleboard table 'kindly and with respect.' 'While it can be tempting, we ask that you or your kids don't slam arcade and pinball buttons or aggressively hurl shuffleboard pucks across the table,' the post said. 'These games are meant for all patrons, NOT just your children. Please be sure they share and allow others to get a turn (without bothering them.)' Notch Brewing, a Massachusetts-based brewery with 'Our Salem & Brighton tap room policy of 21+ after 6PM on the weekends will now be extended to seven days a week, and this policy includes toddlers and babies,' the brewery wrote on The issue of children running rampant isn't just limited to breweries, of course. In March, Charlie Redd, the owner of Dragon Pizza in Somerville, sparked a social media furor by recounting how he Advertisement 'To all our guests with children: Anyone who has visited our restaurant knows we are a pizza shop that loves kids,' Redd said it was the only time a family had been asked to leave his restaurant. 'It makes us very sad, but we refuse to allow entitled lazy parents to damage our reputation and the overall dining experience for all our guests,' he wrote. 'Respect restaurants. Bring your family to them. Raise your family in them. We are your community too.' Brian Shurtleff, the owner of Bog Iron Brewing, views his establishment, which has a full kitchen, no differently than a restaurant that serves alcohol, and noted that the 'large majority' of families who visit don't pose any problems. 'This is a policy that we shouldn't have to tell people. This should be common knowledge,' Shurtleff said in a phone interview. 'The fact that it's not ... is frustrating.' The new policy was put in place because of a small number of families letting their kids run around, he said. 'We're certainly not unique in any way,' he said. 'This isn't a playground.' The brewery's Facebook post received more than 790 reactions and 180 comments, generally supporting the decision. 'Parents should be parenting or spring for babysitter,' one person wrote. Advertisement 'Children should not be in a taproom,' another declared. 'Adults can still run screaming through the beer garden, though, right?' another quipped. Emily Sweeney can be reached at
Boston Globe
13-06-2025
- Business
- Boston Globe
As Massachusetts' string of rainy weekends continues, businesses see unseasonal trends
This spring's Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up A typical spring could have five or six consecutive rainy weekends, but this unusual year has already produced 13 in a row, with a 14th very likely this week, said Globe lead meteorologist Ken Mahan. Advertisement 'You don't really make that business up,' said Chris Lohring, owner of Notch Brewing, a tap room and beer garden in Salem and Brighton that has seen its primarily outdoor business cut almost in half. 'People don't all of a sudden go out more, it's just lost.' But driving people inside can be a benefit to other businesses. Advertisement The recent rainy days have driven up traffic at Puttshack, an indoor miniature golf venue with locations in Boston's Seaport and Natick. Bookings during recent weekends have increased by almost 20 percent, with customers lining up outside the doors before they even open for the day, said regional director of operations Kerry Henderson. 'If it starts to rain mid-afternoon, we can get rushes of guests coming in from other outdoors spots in Seaport. For our Natick venue, it's a similar story,' said Henderson. People line up to play mini golf at Puttshack on a recent Wednesday afternoon. Suzanne Kreiter/Globe Staff This atypical rainy streak is unlikely to continue much longer, said Mahan. As the summer progresses, the temperature differences that cause storms balance out, bringing more sunny days. Signature indoor attractions such as the Museum of Fine Arts have also seen a jump in visitors on Boston's dreary weekends. When the weekend days are split between one rainy and one sunny day, like this past weekend, the museum sees a pattern of noticeably more visitors on the rainier day, a spokesperson said. Although customers have still been making their annual visits to Tony's Clam Shop on Quincy's Wollaston Beach, the weekend crowds to start off the season have been smaller with fewer families bringing young kids for seafood on the restaurant's outdoor patio and beer garden, said owner Gary Kandalaft. The clam shop has also had to cancel live music at its beer garden multiple weekends, not opening the bar they have in the back and closing earlier as soggy crowds disperse. 'It's not like it should be,' said Kandalaft. 'We've had some bad springs, but this has to be near the top.' At Advertisement But Funtleyder said she's hopeful that business will see a boost when the weather clears up, with people looking to get back outdoors. 'I am hoping that it does more than bounce back to normal,' she said. 'I'm hoping that people are excited to get outside and they come out and have fun.' Maren Halpin can be reached at
