Sardinian restaurants ban families from using phones at the table

Fifteen establishments join trial scheme to encourage parents and children to talk while dining out

A group of restaurants in Sardinia are banning families from using smartphones and other devices at the table in a quest to encourage conversation.

The initiative, called A tavola senza schermi or At the table without screens, is being spearheaded by Anna Cau, the children’s ombudsman for the Italian island. It is part of a campaign to curtail excessive screen use among children and inspire interaction during meals.

Parents and their children will be required to put their phones away when dining at any of the 15 restaurants that have volunteered to participate in the scheme during a one-month pilot exercise beginning next week.

Cau, a former juvenile magistrate, said: “The idea is not to rely solely on prohibitions or to place the burden of responsibility entirely on parents, but to ensure our broader environment supports parents in their role and helps minors integrate with others.

“We need real-world settings that strengthen and accommodate the lives of both adults and children. This initiative is a small step within a broader philosophy that guides my approach to this highly complex issue.”

After families hand in their devices, restaurant staff will give them a “reunion kit” containing games and drawings. The kit, which has been designed by the Italian federation of paediatricians, is aimed at helping under-18s start conversations with their parents, such as sharing stories about their day.

The kit includes a brochure outlining the risks of digital overexposure and tips on managing social media use at home.

“The restaurants will offer an alternative activity in the form of a game which is intended to foster interaction,” said Cau. “Obviously, the games are structured with time limits within the context of a restaurant lunch or dinner.”

Cau worked on the scheme with the Sardinian wing of Fipe-Confcommercio, an association uniting the catering, tourism and entertainment sectors.

Emanuele Frongia, president of the federation on the island, said the 15 restaurants had readily agreed to participate. The plan is to expand the initiative on a voluntary basis.

“Restaurants play a vital role in fostering the intimacy that families rediscover when they dine out,” said Frongia. “Yet we increasingly observe that during these moments lively chatter is replaced with stretches of silence as people look at their devices. Often a child is handed one to keep them quiet.”