By April Heiselt

We’ve all been there. It’s Wednesday night, everyone’s hungry, your spouse walks in, the kids are crying and you don’t even want to think about cooking?What are you going to do?

The answer is obvious?Go out to eat! Wait a second, the money thing isn’t so obvious (most of us are poor college students, right?). So you scrounge around the house (the couch is always a good place to look) and scrape together enough cash to pay for Mom?s and Dad’s meal, but what about the kiddies?

Darn. I suppose it will be another night of yellow death (macaroni and cheese for those of you not in the know).

But what if you could go someplace where the kids eat for free? Then you wouldn’t have to be subjected to the known killer of taste buds everywhere.

Well, look no further, parents! Did you know that Salt Lake City has a lot of places where kids can eat for free? I’m not talking some $1.99 meal, I mean FREE (with a paying adult of course).

So where are these magical places? Places where I can actually take my children and leave the restaurant without dropping more than 30 bucks?

The answer is closer than you know. The only hard part for parents will be deciding on the type of food you would like to eat (or clean off your children in some cases).

If Mexican food is what your stomach craves, here are some ideas: Caf Pierpont located at 122 W. Pierpont Avenue is excellent! If your kids can walk under the cactus (employees tell me it is 4 feet tall), they can eat for free.

Oh, and if you eat between 4 p.m. and 7 p.m., they have great specials for adults too!

Another fun tex-mex place is Chevys Fresh Mex Restaurant on 358 S. 700 East. At Chevys, kids 11 and under eat free Tuesday nights. They also have crayons and a menu to color.

For the adults, they have excellent combos where you can mix old favorites with new items you may want to try.

If you yearn for Italian food, take your gondola (minivan?) and head over to The Old Spaghetti Factory at Trolley Square. Right now, The Old Spaghetti Factory has a reading incentive program.

If your child reads five books, or if you read your child five books (I don’t think textbooks count), all you have to do is fill out a form (a placemat at your table?How easy is that?), and your child receives a free kid’s meal.

So bring the names of those five books you read, or hey, bring the five books and read them in the restaurant?either way it’s free!

Or, perhaps you are looking for a home-cooked meal like Grandma used to make. Then I suggest heading over to Marie Callender’s Restaurant on 1313 S. Foothill Drive.

At Marie Callender’s, kids 12 and under can eat free (two kids per one paying adult) on both Tuesday and Wednesday nights.

Can you say bargain? Who doesn’t love fresh cornbread and honey butter?

Perhaps the parents want to try a restaurant with some South American flair. Then pack up your taste buds and head to the Rodizio Grill in Trolley Square. Kids seven and under eat free at the Rodizio Grill everyday. But be forewarned, your child’s true carnivorous nature will appear as he or she devours rattlesnake, alligator and chicken. The grilled pineapple isn’t bad either.

You might be thinking, ?We are in Utah right? Isn’t this the land of the buffet?? You bet! So here are some buffets for those “all-you-can-eat” folks.

For a delicious (and cheap, mind you) soup, salad and potato buffet, you can head to Souper Salads on 1140 E. Brickyard Road. Everyday, kids five and under eat for free.

Children will love getting to see what they eat before it comes to the table. Watch out, though, if your kids see the desserts first, you could be in trouble!

JB’s Restaurant, located on 122 W. South Temple, is also a family favorite. On Wednesdays, children 10 and under eat for free.

Parents will love the kid friendly menu, as well as the array of choices for adults.

Of course, the choice is yours if you head to Chuck-A Rama Buffet on 744 E. 400 South. Children three and under eat for free everyday, and they will have more choices than they could have ever imagined. Adults will like the variety too.

Last, but not least, steak lovers can head over to the Sizzler on 371 E. 400 South. Here, kids three and under eat for free everyday. Your kids will love the salad bar and other available choices.

So the next time you get the “can’t cook dinner blues,? or if the yellow death is staring you down, grab your family and run?don’t walk?to a restaurant where your kids can eat for free!

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