At I Trulli, No ‘Dumbed Down’ Children’s Menu

Michael Ayoub may have caved in to customer demands for a children’s menu at Fornino, but don’t expect Nicola Marzovilla to follow suit: The owner of I Trulli considers kids’ menus “dumbed down.”

Marzovilla, a father of three, tells the Times that while he welcomes children at his restaurant, he won’t consider serving them food different from what their parents are eating:

“The table is very important. … It’s about nutrition, it’s about family; you go right down the line. And the children’s menu is about the opposite — it’s about making it quick, making it easy, and moving on.”

Marzovilla expanded his own children’s palates by more or less forcing them to try new things, a tactic he justifies by explaining, quite reasonably, “You know, I’m their parent, I’m not their best friend. … I have a duty to mold and teach.”

It’s hard to decide which is a more radical concept: a restaurateur saying he won’t alter his menu to accommodate unreasonable customer demands, or a parent acting like a parent. Either way, Marzovilla’s voice of reason is as refreshing as a glass of the Prosecco di Valdobbiadene Brut NV that appears on I Trulli’s menu.