So a few nights ago, I stopped by Chesnut Street's latest offering: The Tipsy Pig. The new "pub" from the boys of Mamacita, Umami and Blue Barn. (Alert! This is not a Vintage 415 project. It's the baby of restaurateurs Stryker Scales , Nate Valentine and chef Sam Josi of Sustainable Restaurants.) The scene, as you might imagine, was a mob of 20 to 30-somethings very happy with their beer, not paying too much attention to the antique books in the faux "library," and having no issue with yelling at each other over the din. I couldn't hear but I'm pretty sure they were all saying: "Yay! Our new favorite hangout!!"

Nate, who just got married and is on the path to nesting/parentdom, brought me out to their huge patio, where heatlamps will assist the booze in keeping people toasty at night, and said, with complete earnestness: "I really want this place to be family-friendly." I looked back at the rollicking, Marina scene inside, and back out to the soon-to-be packed patio that begs for a party, and felt for him. Is it possible to make a restaurant in the Marina a place where parents won't fear to tred?

In the spirit of the English pub where families and drunkards seem to effortlessly mix, The Tipsy Pig is going to try their best. They have a very cute kid's menu featuring chicken fingers 'n' tots for the ketchup dipping, mini pot pies and more, all typed up on a paper menu where instead of tic-tac-toe's normal X's and O's, kids are encouraged to draw snouts and curly pig tails. Maybe in the 5:30 to 7 pm range, before the Financial District gets off work, it'll be a haven for Bugaboo strollers filled with twins. As a parent I know that this city certainly needs more family-forward restaurants—especially ones that don't require the parents to choose between a milkshake and a Coke. Good luck boys.

You'll be able to check out the restaurant for yourself soon enough—it opens to the public tonight—but if you'd like a sneak peek, check out this video: http://rivera-pr.com/pig.mov

Check out their video: