This seems like a really cool concept. Like 'Build a Bear' but cars. We stopped in on a busy…read moreSaturday and there was a bit of a line. There were only 2 people working at the time and they were both at the stations building cars with customers. This is for sure the type of place that could benefit from having a greeter or just someone that can just help answer questions while waiting. I feel like after waiting 10 or so minutes we kind of lost interest as the line never moved and we were still unsure about a few things. Would maybe circle back later on if my little cousins show interest again.

Two stars for the great employees. ZERO for management. I'm an older retiree with a love of…read moregadgets and toys. I was having a me day at the mall, and passed this shop. I was lured in by the young man racing a radio controlled car our in front. It started out well, everything was fun, bright and colorful cars, lots of customization options. I watched families play with toy cars, I priced out several models, and seriously was trying to figure what to get. Perhaps I talked to the employees a bit much, old people do tend to over talk the staff, we get a bit lonely. But I was really enjoying the place. (even if it was a bit overpriced for what it is, think theme park toys) Imagine my shock when the staff got a call from the manger (who watches the employees remotely on a camera) that I was to be considered a loiterer (I spent too much time shopping and not buying fast enough you see) and was to leave the store. Staff apologized to me, but I had to go. I'll take my 800+ credit rating and my stack of empty credit cards to a real RC shop that does not treat customers like dairy cattle. Avoid, you can get better RC cars from a company that does not treat potential customers like panhandlers. Really disappointed, I wanted to bring my partner and I in to buy cars this weekend. But we will go someplace where we are wanted. They call this the "Build a Bear" of RC cars. But I've spent a lot of money at build a bear and NEVER been treated like this.

I had so much fun at FlyOver America! From the moment the ride started, it really felt like I was…read moreactually on a real ride and flying through everything. The way your feet are dangling and you're lifted up in front of the big screen makes it feel so real. The visuals are beautiful and the effects make a huge difference you can feel the wind and even a little mist, which makes it even more immersive. At some points I honestly forgot I was inside the mall because it felt like I was really traveling. It's not too scary, but still exciting enough to enjoy every second of it. I was a little nervous at first, but once it started I just relaxed and had fun. The whole experience is very well done and something different from anything else in the mall. Overall, I would definitely recommend trying it. It's fun, unique, and totally worth it . I would do it again for sure!

It was great! My brother and I loved it! We're both seniors, so it's definitely a FUN experience…read morefor ALL AGES!

I love this place!…read more You know how your kid bugs you for a fish tank and promises to take care of it only to lose interest as soon as the first pair of guppies dies? Well, that was me over 50 years ago except I never lost interest. I've been keeping fish and visiting fish stores around the country for my entire life. The people from World Of Fish who started RiverShore Aquariums have done a great job. Located not far from the original World of Fish, RiverShore has clean tanks, friendly and knowledgeable staff and they are super keyed in on planted tank setups. These days my tanks are relatively simple just to keep things easy, rocks and driftwood mostly, but I've been wanting to do a planted tank for a while. I know the basics but had some questions on substrate, plant selection and lighting for what is basically going to be a freshwater nanotank. The staff person who helped me was super knowledgeable, answered my questions and gave me some good advice for getting started. They had a good selection of different kinds of gravel as well as an assortment of driftwood and rocks. I liked that they have a table where you can do a little aquascaping trial and error before you make a final selection. The fish were high quality and appeared healthy. Most were smaller species suitable for planted tanks. I even discovered a new species that I had never heard of - anchor catfish. Super cool and perfect for my little nanotank. I know enough about fish and have been to enough fish stores to know which ones are really good. Rivershore is at the top of the list if you live in the Twin Cities, and especially if you're interested in giving planted tanks a try. Even if its plants aren't your thing or you are new to the hobby, I'd checkout Rivershore for your first aquarium.

This is such a fantastic fish store. You know that one friend whose house is always immaculately…read morepristine, such that -- no matter how recently or how well you've cleaned your own house -- you always feel a little self-conscious & guilty when you visit theirs? Rivershore Aquariums is that friend: All the tanks are SO clean, and so perfectly lit, and all the fish are ready for their closeups. It's like an aquatic Parade of Homes in there -- 0% chance of the "Oh gosh, that fish looks so sick, should I mercy-buy it & set up a hospital tank & try to save it? Or should I not give this place my money?" experience. You should definitely give this place your money. They also sold me the sweetest, most industrious little pleco I've ever had in my life. I bought her as a bristlenose pleco, but she's secretly some kind of Turbo Pleco -- as in, my tank gets direct sunlight (can't be avoided), and it had the algae to match, but a week after I brought my new plec'ling home, I found myself asking a visitor, "Hey, you didn't clean the inside of the 55gal while you were here, did you?" (Spoiler: No, I do not have tank-cleaning houseguests. I just have a magic pleco.)

KIDS AT HEART Anyone…read morefrom 2 to 92 can have a blast at Mall of America's indoor theme park. Located in the center of the USA's largest mall is Nickelodeon Universe, a sprawling 7-acre amusement park covering 3 floors.  It's open year-round from 10am to 9pm with reduced hours on Sundays, and tickets can be bought online or in-person. I came here once in 1998 as a kid (back then it was called Knotts' Camp Snoopy) and in 2026 I returned with my wife and kids of my own.  Despite a colorful rebranding in 2008, this place seems frozen in time and looks virtually the same as when I visited 28 years ago.  Wow! We took advantage of specially priced "toddler Tuesdays", where kids admission is only $16.  A full day adult wristband is $52 but specially marked 'deal days' bring this down to $42.  Important note: if you have a kid under 48", you can go on rides with them as a designated chaperone and not have to pay!  This is HUGE and saved us $40 since my wife got to ride for free. There's enough attractions inside Nick Universe -- 26 in total -- to fill up an entire day.  I've delved into each of the major coasters plus the outstanding Log Chute (legitimately one of the best in the country) with separate reviews, but here's a brief summary. * Pepsi Orange Streak: a custom steel family coaster with a mesmerizingly long train, and one of the OG rides here * Fairly Odd Coaster: a chaotic spinning coaster with a decent amount of G-forces (beware the slow dispatch times) * Avatar Airbender: a brief U-shaped ride with a funky surfboard train and spinning seats * Spongebob Squarepants Rock Bottom Plunge: an intense roller coaster with 3 inversions that nearly scrapes the glass ceiling * El Circulo del Cielo: a large Ferris wheel delivers a relaxing ride and offers great views of the park * Shredder's Mutant Masher: an inverting 'Frisbee' ride with a Ninja Turtles theme, great for teens * Log Chute: a STELLAR log flume with a super long ride time and wonderful Paul Bunyan theme that doesn't soak you My 5yo son loved the Big Rigs, Crazy Cars, Diego's Rescue Rider, and Guppy Bubbler.  Our 2yo daughter enjoyed the Adventure Bay kids play area but kept her distance from most of the rides.  Swiper's Sweeper was a surprise hit, a 'whip' style ride where small cars on an oval track drift around tight curves. Staff were ~incredibly~ friendly and cut us plenty of slack when I brought my son with me on a couple rides that weren't part of the Toddler Tuesday discount wristband (oops!)  They waved us through and said, "don't worry about it, have fun!"  Big kudos to them for grace and understanding; this went a long way towards a 5* day. * TL;DR * It's always 72° and sunny inside Nickelodeon Universe, perfect conditions for fun. This amusement park is home to a plethora of rides including 5 roller coasters (1 kiddie, 3 moderate 'thrill' coasters, 1 'extreme' coaster), a Ferris wheel, bumper cars, a fantastic log flume, a drop tower, a swing ride, a dark ride shooter, and lots of smaller attractions. While I can't comment on the quality or cost of food within Nick Universe, I do feel that we got a great value for admission.  We felt safe and the ride operators we encountered were very kind.  The natural sunlight gives this park wonderful energy year-round. If you've got kids (or if you're an adult who really likes rides), I highly recommend spending a day at Nickelodeon Universe!

This was pretty cool! A theme park in the mall, what a…read moreconcept! It's Nickelodeon themed, so it definitely appealed to my inner child! They have plenty of rides for all ages. I didn't go on the roller coaster to kill some time. It was a blast! I could easily spend a whole day here!

It's been so long since we've been back to Crayola Experience but it was a nice time to go sitting…read morea mid afternoon with not a lot of families so it wasn't crowded. Not a big line for each of the activities. It was nice to not have to be outside in the heat. They have added one new activity which is the sketchbot. It's cool but not very accurate from the photo taken first. They had snacks available for purchase. Overall, a fun relaxing afternoon for my daughter to enjoy.

We have had an annual pass at Crayola Experience for several years because we live not too far from…read morethe Mall of America. Both of our boys enjoy going to Crayola Experience because of the variety of activities available, including two playground areas (one for toddlers and one for older kids). Highly recommend checking it out if you can if you have kiddos who are into art/Crayola.

If you've got time to kill with kids and you use a Groupon or coupon this can be fun. I will say…read morethough it's not worth the full price. The fireworks light display area needs new lights and unless you keep going back and forth, which we did, it's very short lived. Definitely fun to do it at least once with kids though.

My kids are obsessed with mirror mazes, and I really thought we'd make it out of MOA without…read morestopping but nope, I was wrong . We grabbed a Groupon so the price wasn't bad, and they had an absolute blast! You can go through as many times as you want during your session, which made it totally worth it. Super fun if your kids are into that kind of thing!

Saw a Facebook ad on this place and thought it would be cool to try out…read more You have to choice to play 1-4 rides. One ride was 6.99. Two rides was 11.98. Three rides was 17.99. Four rides was 20.99. The average ride is around 4-5mins. A friend and I tried the 2 rides combo. We Went with the Carnival ride and Pirates ride. Before going into the ride room, you are given brief instructions on what to do and grab a 3-D glass to put on to view the rides. The room we went into had 2 rows and about 6-8 seats per row if I can recall. We then strap ourselves into a motion seat equipped with a laser blaster to fender enemy attack in the ride/game. It lets you compete against others in the same room and ranks 1st to last place in terms of game scores and shows in screen. It was a fun experience and is for all ages. Would like to come back and try other rides.

What an incredibly fun and bonding experience this was. I brought my six-year-old, identical twin…read moregranddaughters on their birthday to have this special princess diva day. They wore Princess finery but it's not necessary because each child is allowed to select a tiara and scepter to keep, given a Princess & Diva robe to wear, and allowed to select a fun ring. They have slides to wear around the salon and little lockers to store their items. We did a package that included mani-pedis, facials, makeup, and clip-in colored hair extensions. The girls were in heaven. I was impressed by the staff and their engagements with little kids. Such simple things like, "What's your favorite animal? Favorite movie?" opened up a rapport I greatly appreciated. (Me: "Your favorite animal is a sloth?? So is Auntie Mad's!" Lol) I made a reservation well in advance because their birthday was the day before Thanksgiving and I knew the MOA would be busy. Passers-by definitely enjoyed smiling and waving at the girls through a huge window and they loved the attention! Tips: make a reservation on the website and choose your package; park in the East ramp; the shop is on the 3rd level, across from Marshall's; pay attention to the time allotted for your service, ours was 90 minutes. Enjoy and take LOTS of pictures!

I took my daughter here for a birthday present, and we both really enjoyed our experience! We came…read moreon a Monday, so it wasn't busy and it was nice to enjoy the peace and quiet of the salon. We were the only two in there at the time of our appointment. We did the "Just the 2 of Us" package, and it was reasonable and fun! We both got manicures and pedicures, facials, wands and tiaras, and juice in a cute champagne glass. The two individuals who helped us were very patient with my daughter, and they did a great job of engaging us both and making us feel pampered. We will definitely be returning here again!

Great experience! Friendly staff and lots of climbing walls to choose from with a variety of…read moredifficulties. Great value for the unlimited option. Definitely a fantastic way to let kids burn off energy-- my daughter always wants to go here when we visit the MoA!

I felt like the prices were ridiculously high for just a few things for the kids to climb. That…read moresaid, the kids had SO much fun exploring each of the climbing structures. The designs were playful and cute too. I would definitely recommend taking smaller children (10 and under) here as a special treat. Our tweens and teen cousins didn't even want to try this place out, so they just went shopping while we checked this place out.