Bon Appetit has a great article in their September magazine about celebrating birthday’s.  The author’s family celebrates by allowing the birthday child to pick any restaurant they want as long as it is specific to a foreign country.  (and Tex Mex doesn’t count)  They’ve gone to some surprising and not so surprising places and list Swedish, Spanish and Japanese restaurants as their examples.  What a great idea and fun way to introduce new foods and cultures to young kids ..and old ones too!   I’ll post a link to the article once it’s available online.   I know my oldest would immediately jump at the chance to eat Thai food since he has a hankering for all things noodle.  My youngest would probably try to identify a country that serves some version of mac and cheese.  Obviously our household would need a few guidelines to encourage new places.  Since my birthday is next in line, I plan to kick-off the tradition…..Ethiopian or Moroccan?  Any birthday traditions in your households along these lines?