Sweet Holy Mother of Christ!!! DON"T PUT THAT IN HIS HANDS!!!…read more I hate this store with a passion. Stomping feet tantrum throwing kind of hate! This is the kind of store that every parent should avoid. Why? If you're a parent, or a kid at heart, you know exactly why I hate this store. They have every single kick ass toy under the sun...and yikes... the toys are also educational and beneficial to your child's development, and there is absolutely no way that you can walk out empty-handed. I think that my husband and I both had SUCKER stamped boldly on our foreheads. They have the full line of Melissa & Doug toys. I've never seen that many available anywhere. I am a sucker for their products. They also carry many vintage reproductions of toys that I had played with as a child. The store is neat, and easy to navigate and displayed well within your child's reach. Every shelf featured something to ooh and ahh about and brought back some really happy childhood memories. The staff? Grrr. Incredibly friendly. Too friendly, and too involved. So involved that they know how to close a deal! I would have been perfectly happy if they ignored me, because if they did, I wouldn't have spent so much money!! My son is always eager to make friends and their salesperson leapt at the opportunity. The two of them walked around like old friends, holding hands discussing the merits of various toys, while my husband and I trailed behind like hired help carrying his packages. He was in search of yet another replacement of his dancing "Puttin on the Ritz" skeleton. They didn't have it of course..but they did have a life size skeleton puzzle with all the parts named. And then that evil saleswoman..if she had a mustache and top hat...I could picture her rubbing her hands together smirking...places that box in my son's hand!!!! Pure torture I tell you! Once she did that ....it was sold! We ended up spending way more money in that store than I had anticipated....and my husband even bought a toy for himself. A vintage repro robot toy that he recognized from his youth. Besides the giant skeleton, we bought a ton of art supplies for his brand new art easel, and a magnifying glass because he wants to study bugs close up. We could barely carry all our purchases!

I went in looking for a gift for my friend's nieces. Rudest staff! Did not event greet me or offer…read moreany help of any kind. I would not recommend.

"For here Am I sitting in a tin can…read moreFar above the world Planet Earth is blue And there's nothing I can do" Au contraire, Major Tom! There is so very much to do at Playoddity! Activity sets, classes, sets for the family. It is a bit confusing as this is a large open space. Lots of fun items.

Amazing, one of a kind concept. Very unique interior and products for special gift or if you are…read morelooking for something to do with your kids. Everyone at the store is super friendly and helpful. I also heard the birthday parties are awesome, we plan to schedule one for April.

I acknowledge that your local game store is going to pull all sorts of demographics. As a parent, I…read moredidn't know what to expect bringing my 5-year-old into the local game shop. But this is definitely going to be a local store that we'll be going to a lot more, even if the prices are a little higher for them to make margins. This is the kind of game store I want in keep in our community! I'll admit I was a little apprehensive to engage with the staff at first due to my inexperience in this kind of envitonmemt, but my kid immediately gravitated toward the Pokemon cards behind the glass counter and we were asked if there was anything we needed help with. We have been looking all over for affordable, genuine cards to little avail. Unfortunately, the cards at this shop were all way outside our range (he's just trying to get started out): $45+ booster boxes or $5+ individual cards. We were obviously not going to be able to make a purchase today (looking for something like one $5 booster pack) but the team member was very helpful taking the time to explain the kids trading card market, suggest other places to look, offer advice on finding affordable cards, and let my kid take his time to pour over the cards behind the counter. On the way out, he generously shared a simple gift that meant so much for my kid. I don't know if he'll read this but thank you so much for making my kid's day - he was over the moon to have some Pokemon cards of his own to share with his friends at school. This is the kind of local game store that is a treasure to have in the community. I definitely will be bringing my kids around in the future to support it some more! Thanks again!

After having Sunday brunch nearby I was looking for video game stores to stop at on my way back to…read moreWisconsin. Everything Games was close by and open, so I drove over to check them out. The store is impressive. They have an awesome selection of retro video games, board games, LEGO, miniatures for Warhammer, anime related plush, sports cards, and card games like Magic, Pokemon, and Yu-Gi-Oh. There's even a good size gaming area where I saw people playing in a card game tournament. As good as the inventory was, their customer service was even better. A specific video game I wanted was priced $10 more than the current market value, so I brought that to their attention. Rather than getting mad and arguing with me about their prices, the employee pulled up the same website I was using for a reference and confirmed what I was seeing. He then adjusted the price without hesitation. Now that's customer service. I would glad to go out of my way to come back to Everything Games next time I'm in the Chicago area.

this guy named jeff is amazing! he showed me all his trains!…read moreif you have kids that like trains this is a amazing place for them! please come here-Henry

Ron's Mundelein Hobbies is a gem. The main focus is on model railroading. Train sets, locomotives,…read moreindividual cars, buildings and materials for landscaping layouts are offered. A large selection of model cars, airplanes and ships is also on hand. Large stocks of Tamiya and Vallejo paints, cyanoacrylate and plastic glues are maintained. K&S Metal and Evergreen Plastics products are there for the scratch builder. And model rockets are also offered. That is a lot of good stuff, but what makes Ron's a gem is the service and the people working there. Stop in sometime, you will see what I mean.

I just received an order (Windy City Novelties LED Light Up 44" Jumbo Mardi Gras Bead Necklace with…read more3 Dynamic Light Modes for Festive Fun) The wire was broken and the largest bead was damaged. I won't send it back, since I wired it together & got it to work, but I'm not happy with it.

My experience was terrible. I spent $16.49 on 2 pks. of Warbling Bird Whistles. They were very…read morecheap and didn't make a bird sound as described, just kinda a whistle, but not even that, a faint whistle. Not at all the quality of the one I had when I was a kid (1980's). So, then I had to pay to send them back (out of pocket ($8.10), plus they didn't refund the original shipping ($5.99). So, I spent $10.50 for the merchandise + $5.99 shipping + $8.10 to send it back = $24.59 I waited for a credit back to my debit card and didn't get it after abouta month, so called them. He said the return of $10.50 was sitting in the account I had with them. I requested that it be transferred back to my checkingand he said yes, he could do that. So, I paid them a net of $14.59 for absolutely nothing!

Too Cool... for customers apparently. My kids and I stopped in briefly and were quickly chastised…read morefor merely touching the merchandise. We were coldly told the large "stuffed animals" in front were $400. They were on prominent display in front and the kids were simply feeling the fabric, nothing out-of-the-ordinary or obtrusive. There was a sign by them but it only said no food or drinks. Why put these items up front if you don't want people to touch or interact with them? I told the kids we weren't shopping there and received another cold & sarcastic "have a nice day" response from the rude employee on the way out. My kids are young, but they were even smart enough to point out that this isn't how you treat customers.

Not a minute after walking in with 2 of my buddies and I could tell we were being diligently…read morewatched by the owner (like we were there to shop lift). We received many looks from the owner without her once coming up to us asking if we needed help finding anything. As long as you're not a male in his teens or early 20s you should be fine! Wishing I had a more welcoming experience because it is an otherwise neat little store!

I would think twice if you are considering shopping at The Chicago Toy Co. I'm not sure if he is…read morethe employee or an owner, but Parker is extremely rude and unprofessional in his communication.

I can't say enough about this company and its service. They deal with driving and flying RC toys…read more(helicopters, especially) and their customer service is nothing short of outstanding. One of their staff, Richard, is particularly exceptional. We were drawn into the store by Richard's mesmerizing flying skills and quickly got interested in their reasonably priced ($59) and best selling helicopter. We had asked about more expensive helis and he even suggested we consider something less expensive than their best seller since my son really didn't have much experience flying, other than with Air Hogs and that their best seller was realistic and difficult to fly. When I told Richard that we'd probably just get the best selling and hope for the best, Richard suggested that he at least give my son some on the spot training with one of his demos and he did...a good chunk of hands-on time until my son was familiar with ropes. I should have taken lessons with my son 'cause soon after we had it home, I had a hard crash and broke one of the legs. I brought it into Richard and he fixed it the same day at a fair price. Richard treats you like a caring friend. He has great skills with their products and I highly recommend The Chicago Toy Co, Inc. By the way, you *might* find an identical helicopter online for less, but don't miss out on The Chicago Toy Co, Inc.'s service.

Nice 5 below every thing was clean and open it has iPhone cases and other stuff like toys car toy…read moretrucks it has everything it was nice

This is a cute and practical store that carries items for $5 or less. This location was clean,…read moreorganized and fully stocked. The shelves overflow with a wide range of items: candy, chips, basketballs, board games, yoga mats, kettlebells, teeshirts, school supplies, tech toys, and the list goes on an on. This place is definitely worth a meander, especially if you have children. There is no reason to pay more for odds and ends, when you can pay Five Below.

How can this place only have 3 stars. Everyone stop what you're doing and head over to Barnes and…read morenoble. We have to keep supporting these book stores so they don't disappear. And they have SO much more. The biggest puzzle collection I've seen. They also have so many legos and cool crafts. To make things even more exciting they have a cafe. And booooooiiiii is it good. You can sip on Harney and Sons tea (if you know you know) or grab a Starbucks coffee. They also have mini pies, tarts and more. It's so cute because it's all served on a cafeteria tray. We got a book and to the cafe to read and eat our goodies.

Relatively smaller B&N but still give you the same vibes as other stores. Sale shelves and what…read morehave you.

We were in the area and I haven't been in a True Value in so long. It was almost nostalgic…read more The shelves were fully stocked with so many types of items, but it also felt overwhelming with the amount of stuff in the store. We did speak with an associate about a specific type of matches who was very nice. Unfortunately they do not carry blue tip waterproof matches. Prices seemed good.

This was my first visit to Lake Forest True Value and I was surprised at how much I enjoyed it. Of…read morecourse the first thing I saw they were setting up Halloween displays which of course I've always got to browse. I saw a section on fancy soaps and gifts (wait, where am I?). There were the obligatory tools, paints, yard stuff and then in the back there were cards and city candles (Lake Bluff you smell good), housewares, knickknacks and whatnots. I was only here to purchase yard waste stickers and that plastic thing that goes on your windshield to keep your vehicle sticker from gooping up the glass (yup, they had it), but I also bought a zip code towel and candy. I could have bought a lot more but I'll pace myself. This is across from Sunset Foods so I know I'll come back.