Moab and Arches National Park Family Restaurants

Seven miles north of Moab is the Bar M Village, where families watch a "gunfight," eat a cowboy supper of chicken, beans, biscuits and more, then listen to the live music and comedy from the Bar M Wranglers. Dinner shows take place two to four nights weekly in the spring, more often in the summer into the fall; check website for schedule. Cost: about $28 adults; $15 ages 4 to 10; free for kids under.

This restaurant is about 15 minutes northeast of Moab, but worth the trip. Dinner menu items include salmon, chicken, beef and pork entrees; wines by the glass include offerings from the on-site Castle Creek Winery. But the real draw is the affordable Sunday brunch buffet with a make-your-own omelet station, pancakes, French toast and an array of pastries, muffins and more. If kids get antsy, take them out on the expansive grounds, which include at least one bona fide tee-pee to play in.

Pub food is naturally appealing to kids: burgers, nachos, chicken tenders and fries. But the pizza here is the house specialty. Picky palates might want basic cheese, but grown-ups should consider "Manzana Bleu," with caramelized onions, bleu cheese and Granny Smith apples, or "California Dreamin'," with artichoke hearts, sundried tomatoes and gorgonzola. A kids' menu is available.

Stop in the Moab Diner for value-priced comfort food, from breakfast burritos and biscuits and gravy to green chile cheeseburgers and roast beef sandwiches. Kids' lunch and dinner menu includes grilled cheese, chicken tenders, hot dog and hamburger.

At this "more than just pizza" family eatery, choose from entrees like homemade manicotti, grilled salmon and top sirloin. Order a pizza pie, or sample the pizza buffet, that comes with soup and salad bar. Kids can get pizza by the slice ($1.50), or grilled cheese, macaroni and cheese, dinosaur nuggets, mini corn dogs or pasta and meatballs.