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Restaurant Fines Badly Behaved Children

A restaurant in San Francisco will fine parents for when their children misbehave.

By Christine Rousselle

July 9, 2026

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Chez Xue, a white restaurant with a red sign
Chez Xue's owner began issuing fines after noticing a deterioration in customer behavior.

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Article Summary

  • A restaurant owner in California fines parents for unruly children, listing charges like $327 for a broken credit card machine and $5.47 for a shattered teacup.
  • The policy, which warns children must stay seated and not run or shout, has been in place for over a year but went viral after screenshots were shared on X.
  • Online reactions were mostly supportive, citing safety concerns with hot food, though some critics viewed the charge for a broken teacup as petty.

Article summary generated by AI

You You Xue, the owner of Chez Xue in Foster City, Calif. was exasperated with the seemingly deteriorating behavior of his customers. So he began issuing fines.

Last year, Xue noticed a customer was changing a child's diaper at one of the booths in the dining room, he recounted to the LA Times. Shortly after, Xue updated his menu: not with a new dish or seasonal special, but with a warning. Control your children, or you will be fined.

Chez Xue menu image
Chez Xue will fine parents with unruly children.

"Chez Xue is a family-friendly restaurant. However, we are not a playground," reads the message, which is viewable on the restaurant's website. Parents are asked to ensure their children remain seated and respect other patrons of the restaurant.

"Running around, shouting, making noise with utensils, etc. WILL NOT BE TOLERATED," reads the message. Anyone in violation of the policy will be asked to leave, and parents will be held liable for any damage caused by their children.

The menu also includes a list of recent charges issued to customers, ranging from $327.03 to replace a credit card machine a child dropped and shattered, to $5.47 to replace a shattered teacup.

Recent viral fame for policy

While the policy has been in place for well over a year, it garnered attention recently after a person shared screenshots of the menu on X.

Responses to the post were overwhelmingly positive.

"If your kids are smashing credit card machines and carving things into furniture, they don't belong in restaurants. End of conversation," said another user on X.

Another wrote that parents cannot permit children to "terrorize small businesses."

One pointed out that unruly children could actually be a safety issue, as well.

"A server once told me how dangerous it is for children to run around in restaurants where servers are carrying large platters of very hot food," said the user. "It's not just about noise and patron comfort and children's 'free expression' and tamping down children's 'joyous spirits.'"

The inclusion of the charge for the broken teacup was divisive, though. Some online said it made Xue look petty, or that he was being unreasonable.

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