When it comes to dining out, most people end up revisiting the same restaurants time and time again. For one set of friends, it has become an end-of-week tradition to book a table at their favourite pizza place because it has good food at reasonable prices.
However, their latest visit left a sour taste in their mouths after encountering a "loud and obnoxious" child and her oblivious parents. Taking to Reddit, the annoyed diner said: "My friend Jack and I after a long stressful week like to go to the local pizza place.
"It's not fine dining by any stretch of the imagination but there are booths and tables of people sitting down. I see a large table near us of like 10 people - a few couples and bunch of small kids between aged four and eight.
"The kids are running around the restaurant being loud while the adults are drinking wine and eating their pizza."
He went on to explain how he ignored the commotion for 20 minutes - but was forced to speak up when a child starting climbing all over his friend.
"I feel a hand on my leg and one of the little kids is crawling under Jack and my table, I wasn't thinking and snapped at the kid," he added.
"I said 'Get away from our table!' and the kid ran away and burst into tears.
"One of the parents at the other table came over and started tearing into me about 'How cranky and mean I was and how dare I yell at her kid, who was just playing'.
"Meanwhile, her and the other middle-aged parents are letting their kids run amok and be loud and obnoxious while my friend and I are trying to enjoy a night out.
"I ripped her a new one and said 'How entitled do you need to be to think it's OK to let your kids just crawl under other people's tables?'
"She called me an a***hole and walked away in a huff."
But after having time to reflect on his actions, he is now wondering whether he overreacted considering it was just a child.
In response, one user said: "People should not let their kids be crawling around on the floor under their own table, nonetheless someone else’s."
Another user added: "You are not a jungle gym, and your table is not a play place."
A third user said: "People who don't scold their kids shouldn't be surprised when their kids get scolded by strangers, especially if they are just letting their kids go around and invade people's personal space.
"You didn't do anything wrong and the mum and all the rest of those parents are all major a***holes."
Do you have a strange story to share? Email paige.freshwater@reachplc.com.
