Having done my fair share of indoor play places through the years as a past nanny, this place leaves a lot to be desired now as a mom.
I met up here with a mom friend with my 13 month old and her own as well. Price is fair for one child, but because of the size of the overall space I wouldn't pay anything over $15. The sitting area is cute, but tables are small and spaces got taken up fast with people dropping their bags on a table to go into the play area. Watch your step, you might trip over something. It looked like they offered coffee and tea behind the register, but I'm not sure I would pay the inflated price for a Nespresso pod and some syrup with the very loud music playing overhead.
While off the bat, I would say the decor is cute, the color palette of baby soft pastels does not sustain the abuse it goes through with foot traffic and little hands. I'm not sure if they could scrub it clean, but nearly every gymnasium vinyl cover material on the play place had a dingy appearance from general dirt/use. Everything looked like it needed a good wipe down.
The larger pretend play area contained many options for make believe play including, but not limited to, whether one wanted to be a doctor, a vet or a little barista. Although there were many toys to choose from, much was not anywhere near where they should have been, so in general, it was just pick up a toy and go because not much in that given area matched with the playhouse. Something I want to highlight with the toys was the mere amount of many small choking hazard pieces strewn about. For a place that garners most business from preschool-aged kids (and the average age of children developmentally putting things in their mouth until 3 years of age) I, my friend, and some adjacent moms were taken aback by all the choking hazards, including the corn kernels.
This is the last I'll say - the corn pit is a mistake. With no worker being vigilant over the area and parents not keenly watching every single move of their kid, the corn kernels are all over the entire play area in small quantities near every major play hub. Kids were putting it in their mouth and it's just a frazzled experience to get my own kid to spit out whatever she had and not get to more - even though we never were over in the corn pit. Please keep this idea for fall festivals only.
My recommendations:
* Have hourly/bi-hourly sweeps of the play areas between waves of kids: a gentle soap solution to wipe up surfaces and toys placed into their respective area.
* Turn down the music
* Better contain/manage the corn pit. Or do away with it..
Overall, the place provides a nice escape of variety to get the little one out of the house, especially in the winter time when options are so limited. With being a new business, I hope to see this place adapt and change as it gains more traction. I wish this place to thrive as I think we need many more places like this. read more