• Monk Bar & Pizzeria

  291 Kent Ave., at S. 2nd St., Williamsburg; 718-782-8810

  When your little darlings chuck their cutlery to the floor or launch into a wrestling match, wait staff often respond with thinly veiled contempt. Not so at Monk. That’s because the restaurant, run by father of eight Felipe Avalos, actually likes kids. (His own brood, ages 6 to 21, are always hanging out.) Children under 12 eat free from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday and all day Sunday, but there are other reasons this isn’t your average toddler-tolerant restaurant: Tables are dressed with crayons and paper, chalkboards inspire impromptu doodling, waiters turn a blind eye when kids hula-hoop mid-restaurant, and the kitchen happily whips up custom dishes for vegetable-hating or otherwise fussy eaters. For the adults, there are nuanced pastas, a well-rounded wine list, and the distinct feeling that—for once—your family isn’t a detested dining presence.

From the 2013 Best of New York issue of New York Magazine