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Home | Family Fare at Ghiringhelli's in Novato

Family Fare at Ghiringhelli's in Novato

Dancing at Family FareWe finally had a chance to check out the Family Fare series at Novato's Ghiringhelli Pizzeria Grill & Bar. Ghiringhelli's Novato restaurant is a relative newcomer on the Marin dining scene (they've had another location in Fairfax since 1985), and has created this series of Monday night events with families of young children in mind. Each Family Fare event features a local children's musician or performer, arts and crafts, and other activities, in addition to dining from Ghiringelli's menu.

On our visit we ate pizza while local kid music legend Miss Kitty performed. Family Fare takes place in the restaurant's event room, where, in addition to dining tables, a large padded "dance floor" and activity tables were set up. Activity table offerings included coloring and painting, and a Wii console was available on a nearby flat-screen TV for game playing. Tables were covered with butcher paper and cups of crayons encouraged us to draw on our tablecloths.

Ghiringhelli pizzaWe can't vouch for their other food, but pizza was good; not the best we've had, but a solid offering in the Novato pizzascape. We liked the crisp, well done crust. Service, while friendly, was a bit on the slow side, since it seemed that most of the time there was only one waitress was working the room.

The crowd itself skewed toward parents with really young kids. Most of the children there seemed to be under three, and with a five- and eight-year-old in tow we felt a little like the old fogeys in the audience. Later on a few families with older children came in, so it wasn't too awkward. Miss Kitty, consummate professional that she is, did a fantastic job in making all the children, regardless of age, feel welcome and involved. In fact, it ended up being sort of like kids' open mic night. Much singing and dancing ensued.

Overall, everyone had a good time. For parents, it's a great opportunity to go out to dine with the kids and let them run around and play without getting stink-eye from your fellow diners. I wish that this was around when my kids were really little.

Upcoming Family Fare events include:

  • October 17: Tim Cain
  • October 24: Miss Kitty
  • October 31: Special Halloween costume show with Tim Cain and lots of special treats.

Miss Kitty at Ghiringhelli's Family FareFamily Fare begins at 5:30 pm and shows generally start at 6:30 pm. There's a $3 per person cover charge ($5 for the Halloween show). Ghringhelli's offers a pretty extensive children's menu featuring favorites like mini burgers, pizza (of course), pasta and meatballs, mac and cheese, and more (all $3.99; for ages 12 and under). You can also order of their regular menu.

Ghiringelli Pizzeria Grill & Bar is located in the Nave Shopping Center at 1535 South Novato Boulevard, adjacent to the Novato post office. For more information and reservations, call (415) 878-4977. You can also visit Ghiringhelli's online at www.ghiringhellisnovato.com.