For many parents of young children, dining out can feel less like a relaxing night out and more like a high-stakes endurance sport. There are the overflowing diaper bags stuffed with crayons and stickers, the constant reminders to stay seated, the inevitable moment when a toddler decides the restaurant aisle is now a running track. And, increasingly, there’s the pressure to hand over a tablet just to make it through the meal.
That’s exactly the dynamic that The PopUp Kids’ Table hopes to change.
The St. Louis-based concept, founded in late 2025 by educator and mom Kelly Licon, brings supervised crafts and hands-on play into restaurants, breweries, patios, country clubs, and hotels. While parents eat and relax, children can rotate through themed art projects, games, and creative activities led by vetted teachers and childcare professionals. “Basically, it’s supervised crafts at a restaurant,” Licon says.
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The Background
The idea was inspired during a family trip to Paris, where Licon and her husband noticed how naturally children were integrated into restaurants and public spaces. “A lot of places had playrooms for kids or offered things other than crayons and coloring books,” she says. “We started researching it, and it didn’t really exist here.”
Back home, she was struck with the realization of how much preparation it often took just to make a family dinner work.
“For years, Kelly came prepared to restaurants with a carefully curated kit of crafts, games, and creative activities,” the company’s website states. “Meals stretched into unhurried conversations, and dining out became something the whole family looked forward to.”
The Concept
Now, The PopUp Kids’ Table is quickly building momentum around St. Louis, with recurring events at Rockwell Beer Company and additional partnerships expanding across the region.
For Licon, who teaches second grade at MICDS and previously worked in Title 1 schools through Teach for America, the concept is about more than convenience; it’s also about rebuilding social and creative skills that she says many children are losing in an increasingly screen-centered world.
“We’re finding kids can’t really socialize anymore because they’re so used to being on devices,” Licon says. “They don’t look people in the eyes when they talk. They can’t sit without that constant stimulation.”
Instead of screens, children at The PopUp Kids’ Table might paint, build with recycled materials, decorate crafts, or participate in themed projects using glue, stickers, markers, and other tactile materials. “Sometimes I just bring boxes of toilet paper rolls and stickers, and kids go crazy over it,” Licon says.
Only vetted teachers and childcare professionals are hired as “craft tenders,” all of whom are background checked and CPR certified.
Licon describes the organization’s broader mission as helping families feel welcome in public spaces. “In our family, we have a simple social contract,” the website states. “‘We’ll make sure you eat well and have fun if you let us do the same.’ That mutual respect and understanding is really the heart of The PopUp Kids’ Table.”
The Setup
The approach is intentionally low-pressure. Parents can eat with their children first, then let them move to the supervised craft area while staying within sight. “The point is for parents to still enjoy being out with their kids while also enjoying some time as adults,” Licon says.
That flexibility has resonated with both families and restaurants. At such places as Rockwell, Licon says the setup keeps kids engaged and stationary, rather than running through patios or crowded dining areas.
Restaurants, breweries, and country clubs typically fund the service, which Licon says has been a win for both families and staff. Kids stay engaged in one area, rather than running through crowded patios or dining rooms, while parents are more likely to linger longer and enjoy the experience.
“We come in, set up, clean up, sweep, take the trash out—you don’t even know we were there when we leave,” she says.
The hope, she says, is simple: that dining out can feel enjoyable again for everyone at the table. “Kids deserve to exist in public spaces too,” Licon says. “They’ll never learn how to be in restaurants if we don’t let them practice.”
To find out where the company will be popping up next, follow social media.
