According to the
Consumerist, the restaurant does have a kids' menu that includes organic milk and tiny quesadillas. For that reason, Chad, the father in the incident, thought the establishment would be a place that would accommodate small children and welcome his family.
His wife found no changing table in the bathroom that could be used for their 16-month-old daughter, however. The article did not mention the location of the establishment, only that it was in the Midwest.
Chad sent a lengthy letter to the headquarters for the chain and gave a copy to Consumerist. Chad said the restaurant was fairly new, having been open only about a year. In the letter Chad said the decision by his wife to change their daughter on the table was “unsavory.” He also said he was sorry if any health code rules were violated and if there was any inconvenience for employees who had to sanitize the table.
Despite the apologies, he defended his wife's actions in the letter and to Chipotle employees as well. He explained that they must not have any children, because they were shocked at her actions. He also said their suggestions for other places to change the diaper were acceptable.
He noted they suggested the family use their car. In the letter, he said employees weren't willing to understand why the car was less convenient, even on a beautiful day like the day of the incident was, much less would it be on a subfreezing day as will happen during the winter.
Consumerist, however, consulted with parents of former toddlers and former toddlers themselves who said the couple could have changed the diaper while the baby was standing up or on a changing pad on the bathroom floor.
The manager told Chad if the family attempted another dining room change, it must leave. Chad said he would not come back until a changing table was available, noting Qdoba, a competitor, does offer a changing table.
A separate article in the
Consumerist pointed out last year a mother in Texas was asked to leave a local pizza restaurant because she used a dining table to change a diaper.
“I don’t want to lose all these other customers because they see a dirty diaper,” one employee explained.
