Child Seating Archives

Walk into any beautifully designed restaurant, and the adult seating is thoughtfully curated. Adding high chairs into the mix should not mean that the aesthetic has to take a hit.

Finding a high chair that complements your restaurant’s design is important, but so is choosing one that delivers a positive experience for families. Seven out of 10 parents are more likely to visit a business that provides high-quality child seating.

Modern, easy to clean high chairs made with durable materials are an investment in your business. They satisfy family customers, reduce liability, make life easier for your staff, and blend with the design and style of the rest of the building.

But a high-end steakhouse has different needs than a bustling fast-casual restaurant or coffeehouse. From the classic Diner and contemporary Designer to the premium, flat-folding Stowe, here is how to select the model that best fits into your overall design.

The Benefits of Koala Kare High Chairs

High chairs need to satisfy parents’ expectations, keep busy staff moving, and survive daily wear and tear. Koala Kare premium high chairs are engineered to solve these front-of-house challenges.

Every model delivers these core benefits designed to elevate your operations and protect your brand:

Modern style: Styled with a contemporary design element that blends seamlessly with upscale adult furniture.
ASTM safety compliance: Certified to fully comply with the latest ASTM safety standards.
Space-saving storage: Designed to stack or fold flat easily, keeping walkways clear and open.
Built-in misuse prevention: Engineered so they cannot be flipped upside down to hold infant carriers, eliminating a significant potential liability.
Rapid cleanability: Built with nonporous plastic surfaces that are impervious to crumbs and liquids, allowing staff to wipe them down completely in seconds.
Commercial durability: Built from rugged, heavy-duty components that stand up to high-traffic settings.

By checking every box for safety, hygiene, and style, Koala Kare Products makes it simple to upgrade your guest experience. Here is how each specific model stacks up.

Stowe High Chair: The Standard for Style

The high-end design and silhouette of the Stowe integrates seamlessly with the vibe of contemporary establishments. With its sleek, minimalist lines, this model elevates boutique, upscale, and modern restaurant interiors. Key advantages include:

A premium combination of warm, natural beechwood paired with high-grade plastic at the contact points.
A flat-fold innovation that ensures compact storage and space savings.
A lightweight frame for staff and customers to carry.

Designer High Chair: The Ultimate Blend of Style and Safety

Thanks to its durable construction and functional design, this high chair offers several distinct advantages, including:

A sleek design and color choices that match many modern restaurant designs and decor.
A textured surface that resists scuffing, chipping, and scratching.
A seamless, solid composition of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) plastic, which is more durable and sanitary in comparison to standard wood high chairs.

Diner High Chair: The Updated Restaurant Staple

The Diner is the ideal solution for high-traffic establishments seeking a durable, hygienic upgrade from traditional wood high chairs. Its benefits include:

A nonporous, smooth plastic surface that allows for quick and thorough cleaning.
An easy-to-carry, easy-to-maintain structure that is stackable when not in use.
A highly affordable classic that stands up to daily commercial wear and tear.

Matching the Right Chair to Your Concept

See how the models compare in this table to help you select the best model for you.

High Chair	The Stowe	The Designer	The Diner
Vibe	Sleek, contemporary, and high-end	Clean and modern	Functional and traditional
Footprint	Foldable to store flat	Stackable	Stackable
Composition	Beechwood and plastic	Solid HDPE plastic	HDPE plastic
Colors	Black	Grey, Black, Red, Brown	Grey, Black, Brown
Product dimensions (assembled)	18″ W x 27 1/2″ H x 21″ D	18″ W x 30″ H x 23″ D	22 1/4″ W x 30 1/4″ H x 23 1/2″ D
Carrying weight	14 lbs.	18 lbs.	10 lbs.
Best for	Upscale, boutique, and space-conscious	Contemporary dining rooms, outdoor patios, malls, and food courts	High-traffic zones or fast-casual concepts

Unsure which model fits your floor plan? Connect with a local Koala Kare Products representative who can help!

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: How many high chairs should my business provide?

A. While your needs will vary depending on your concept size, hours of operations, and other factors, a good rule of thumb is to provide one high chair for every 20-30 dining seats.

Q: Is it safe to flip a high chair upside down to hold an infant car seat?

A. Flipping a high chair upside down to balance an infant car seat may be a widespread practice, but it is not recommended. Doing so is dangerous as upside-down high chairs can be easily tipped. Koala Kare’s high chairs cannot be flipped, which eliminates this safety hazard. Instead, consider offering the KB115 Infant Seat Kradle to give families a safe spot to hold their infant carriers at table height.

Looking to Upgrade your Child Seating? We Can Help

Providing safe, high-quality seating shouldn’t mean compromising your restaurant’s aesthetic and efficiency. Whether you need the space-saving innovation of the Stowe, the modern durability of the Designer, or the high-traffic reliability of the Diner, Koala Kare Products has you covered.

Contact your local Koala Kare Products representative to see which model works best for you.

On a Friday night at a busy restaurant during dinner rush, a family with a baby in a car seat and a toddler walks in to eat. But there aren’t enough high chairs available, and the table is too tall for the toddler. The family rethinks coming back to this establishment due to this inconvenience.

Restaurants not offering the correct mix of child seating options can be a common scenario. Most mainstream restaurants understand the value of family dining and offer some child seating. However, a common oversight is treating child seating as a one-size-fits-all requirement. A toddler has vastly different needs than a newborn in an infant car carrier.

Providing a welcoming environment for families means catering to every stage of childhood development. Offering incompatible seating or expecting parents to improvise creates safety hazards, slows down service, and harms your business’s reputation.

Here are the three critical stages of child seating, the operational factors to consider for each, and how to select the right seating solutions for your dining room.

A baby in an infant car seat sits safely in an Infant Seat Kradle.

Stage 1: Infant Seating Solutions

The infant stage is one of the most frequently overlooked phases in commercial restaurant design. Parents arriving with newborns almost always carry them in heavy, bulky infant car seat carriers.

Unaware that it is a safety hazard, parents may want to flip traditional restaurant high chairs upside down and then balance the infant carrier between the legs. However, high chairs are not designed to support the weight or shape of an infant carrier in an inverted position. Doing so creates an unstable, top-heavy arrangement that can easily be knocked over by a passing server, a sudden bump, or the movement of the baby.

What to Look for in Infant Seating

Low maintenance materials: Look for removable, machine-washable, or easy-to-sanitize fabrics and materials that handle accidental spills with ease.

Infant-specific engineering: Choose seating specifically engineered to hold infant carriers securely off the floor.

Compact, foldable footprint: Select cradles that fold flat when not in use for easy storage so they don’t obstruct high-traffic server aisles.

A toddler grins while sitting in a red Designer High Chair.

Stage 2: Restaurant High Chairs for Toddlers

Once children can sit upright independently (around 6 months to 3 years old), they move into Stage 2 seating, which is in high chairs. Restaurant high chairs are heavily used, so durability and hygiene are critical.

What to Look for in Commercial High Chairs

Anti-inversion design: Modern high chairs should be intentionally designed with curved frames or specific geometry so they cannot be turned upside down, eliminating the possibility of improper use and liability.
Easy-to-clean surface: Wood high chairs often warp, splinter, or absorb liquids over time, with crevices that trap food particles. Modern plastic models that feature seamless, nonporous surfaces can be easily wiped down instantly between table turns.
Safety compliance: Ensure the high chair meets current ASTM standards and features secure three-point restraint systems to prevent slips and falls.
Table-height ergonomics: Opt for table-height seating that allows children to eat directly off the restaurant table alongside their family, eliminating the need for bulky, hard-to-clean trays.

A toddler with his hands raised high in the air sits securely in a KB328 Designer Booster Seat strapped to a chair.

Stage 3: Commercial Booster Seats for Young Children

The third stage serves children who have outgrown restaurant high chairs but are still too short to reach the table comfortably from standard dining chairs or booths (typically ages 3 to 5).

Without a proper booster, children end up kneeling on chairs or slouching, leading to uncomfortable meals and fidgety behavior that affects nearby guests.

What to Look for in Restaurant Booster Seats

Secure attachment: High-quality boosters feature integrated security straps to anchor the booster firmly to the adult chair, preventing shifts or slides while the child moves.
Surface protection: Boosters should feature nonskid, nonscratching feet that grip both hardwood and upholstered chairs without damaging the restaurant’s furniture.

Three Koala Stowe High Chairs folded for compact storage.

Elevate Your Family Dining Experience with Koala Kare

Providing a family-friendly environment requires having the right seating options for every age. In addition to safety and functionality, consider the visual harmony of your floor space. Mixing mismatched wooden high chairs, plastic boosters, and metal frames can make your dining room feel cluttered. Selecting seating lines designed to complement one another across all three stages creates a polished, professional look that aligns with your business’s interior design.

At Koala Kare Products, we offer a comprehensive lineup of commercial-grade child seating built for every developmental stage and aesthetic:

Provide the KB115 Infant Seat Kradle to offer a safe, compact folding solution for car carriers, eliminating hazardous improvisations.
Choose between the KB615 Koala Stowe™ flat-folding contemporary wood/plastic chair, our durable KB105 Designer High Chair, or the stackable KB950 Diner High Chair. (Not sure which is right for your business? Check out our blog on finding the right high chair.)
Complete your seating with the reversible KB854 Diner Booster with two height options or the KB328 Designer Booster Seat, featuring Microban product protection and surface-friendly grip feet.

By coordinating your seating choices across all three stages, you ensure safety compliance, streamline table turns for your staff, and present a cohesive, professional look throughout your dining space.

Explore all of Koala Kare’s seating options to find what works best for your business.

The Stowe, Designer, or Diner: Find the Right High Chair for Your Restaurant