Spent years and years visiting this store. Staff were always helpful and the choices were perfect. It's an UWS gem.

We're so lucky to have this store in the neighborhood. They have wonderful gifts for children of all ages. I shop here for my niece and nephew all the time. They are also attached to a little boutique with clothing and gifts for adults. read more

West Side Kids had lots of toys, games, and art supplies. They also sold puppets, and dolls.

My daughter loves this store and they have a nice selection. Some of the stuff is overpriced but it's expected for the location. We bought a backpack last year it was $89 n fell apart. read more

Good local spot. They are often a bit overwhelmed. I recommend an online order for big purchases.

Love this toy store. We've been coming here for years for quality toys. They have a nice selection and staff are usually very helpful. Not in love with the new location--seems tight and you have to constantly squeeze by people and displays to get to different parts of the store especially with a stroller. Perhaps a better layout would help the congestion. Other than that I would definitely recommend :) read more

This is a long-time anchor store of the community. They carry high quality, creative toys. (No junky plastic products, just the good stuff.) The staff knows EVERYTHING and what is appropriate for any age child you are looking to please. AND THEY GIFT WRAP. read more

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They are rude and talk down to you like you are a child. And in addition to that, you only get store credit if return an item. It is a scam store. read more

This is the first time in my life that I've ever written a bad review. I went in and bought roughly a hundred dollars worth of stuff with my son one day including a $2 penny whistle. I went outside and pulled it out for my son and the slide didn't work, it was just a whistle. I thought what a rip! So I went back inside to tell her it didn't work. Shop woman asked me to blow the whistle in front of her and when I showed her the slide didn't do anything, she replied "Well that's how that one works." If someone spends a hundred bucks minutes before you should offer to return the $2 for a broken cheap toy if you ever want a repeat customer. The stuff there is expensive but I wanted to support a local shop. MY MISTAKE. read more

Have been in here many times over the years. The staff have zero patience for children. Today my 7 year old daughter was indecisive on a squishy from the bins up front. She went back 2x to the bin to get another one to buy. Each time the older lady who worked there who was standing near would shake her head in frustration. No idea if she was angry that my daughter was touching toys period or that she was changing her mind. She's a child and children touch things. I told her if she didn't like kids she shouldn't be working in a kids store. Walked out with nothing. This is now the 2nd time where staff have been extremely unwelcoming. My daughter is not a rowdy or rough child at all and I am a very strict parent. So I cannot imagine how they may handle a more spirited child. Officially hate this store. read more

ZERO Star for the rude and obnoxious service provided by the female owner at the store today. There aren't a lot of floor samples in this cramped space so we asked her nicely I we could see a toy in a box to which her response was "I do not want you doing that" then walks away. She clearly does not even care to just be a decent human being with a simple no. Watch out for this grinch!! read more

I really wanted to love the store, it's right in my son's neighborhood so it was a close place for toys. There's a ton of different toy options, for a range of ages. My only issue is that I couldn't find anything in the store that wasn't made in China. I was just hoping for more one of a kind type toys. read more

This is the type of store that makes me so happy -- because I don't have a child I regularly shop for! Because, truly, this is the best-stocked and fun-loving toy store in the city. The people who work here are knowledgeable and friendly. There are toys, games, dolls, accessories in every corner of this store. Of note, they do not carry any electronic toys, at least that I could find, and I think that's part of why I liked it. Prices were on the higher end, though I've seen higher in NYC for the same toys. I'd definitely come back. read more

I ABSOLUTELY LOVE THIS STORE!!!! The customer service is EXCELLENT !! The staffs is very willing to assist you with any inquiries you may have!! Last year I bought the Maxi kid scooter for my daughter !! The staff were very patient , they took their time to demonstrate the scooter to me and answered all the questions I possibly had!! Weeks later I purchased my son his scooter !!! They actually gave me a call when the scooter arrived! Which was perfect since it came on time for his birthday!!!!!! Westside kids made my sons 7th Birthday such a memorable experience !!! And today !!! I'm out to purchase my precious nephews scooter!!!!! I LOVE WESTSIDE KIDS !!!!!!! And my Babies LOVE THEM TOOOOOO !!! read more

West Side Kids - WEST SIDE KIDS !!!! - Toy Stores Near Me - New York, New York

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This shop has a great selection of quality toys and books, and the staff is incredibly helpful even during the busiest season. They know their stock and give excellent suggestions based on the child's age and interests. My great-nephews love everything that they've received from here. read more

Good local spot. I always find good gifts and random kids stuff. It's obviously more expensive than big box but the people are friendly and it's nice to see local businesses. read more

We recently moved in around the corner from West Side Kids after living elsewhere on the Upper West Side. We have multiple young children who love toys and who have lots of young friends who have lots of birthday parties. We thought we would fall madly in love with this store and that we would be shopping there all the time. BUT we are disheartened to report that after giving the store numerous tries we are done and can not give it a lower rating. Every visit to the store has resulted in us shaking our heads, astonished at the rudeness of the staff. They seem to not want or value customers. No one ever offers to help. Our kids are polite and know what they want - They say "please" and "thank you", but the staff always seems to sneer, as they do to virtually all of their customers. There are never any "thank you"s for our business. The prices are high. We're fine with the higher prices - as we love the idea of supporting a mom and pop store over Amazon, especially during a pandemic. But we can't continue to support a store that seems to think of itself so highly - and to think so little of its young customers and young families. The store hours are additionally very out-of-touch - the store is open just a few hours a day and isn't even open seven days a week. If you work fulltime, which most families do in 2021, the hours are inconvenient. I would honestly give the store zero stars if I could. If you want to support a FANTASTIC mom-and-pop, locally-owned Upper West Side toystore, please do what we do - and frequent Stationery and Toy World at 125 W. 72nd St. The staff is incredibly helpful and kind, the hours are great, the employees have all worked there a long time and take such good care of their customers. They are happy to see the kids, happy to see the parents, and always make us glad we came. We literally walk nearly twenty blocks to Stationery and Toy World, even though West Side Kids is around the corner, because Stationery and Toy World understands what it is to be a good, local, mom-and-pop toy store that cares about its customers and has its finger on the pulse of what 21st century kids and their parents need. Go to Stationery and Toy World!! No attitude, better hours, better prices, kindness. You won't be sorry! read more

Desperate for a last minute kids birthday gift. I was surprised they had a great selection and were super busy. Happy to support small businesses rather these order everything on Amazon. read more

Awful experience. Terrible customer service. Rude dismissive Manger and even worse owner. When communicating with her through email about the bad experience I had with the manager, her responses were 100% copy and paste statements. Totally impersonal and unprofessional. I'll never step foot in West Side Kids again. Not only will I not recommend it, I'll go out of my way to tell people not to shop there. Don't support rude unprofessional businesses read more

Pretentious and over-priced. Inconsiderate and ignorant sales staff. Unkempt store - look at the dust on the shelves and ceilings. Frankly, I'm not sure how they are still doing business. The owner has skated by under the reputation of her mother - who was an exceptional person. Unfortunately, her daughter has not carried on the tradition of excellence. read more

Just visited WSK for the very first time. What a delightful store! Charming, wide selection, and the staff couldn't be nicer. Anyone who has an issue with this place must also have issues with Santa Claus, apple pie and ice cream sundaes. Can't wait to go back! read more

Love the toys and books here. Quality toys and lots of progressive children's books. We bought a lot of stuff for our 1 year old's birthday. So excited. read more

A great variety of toys. My six-year-old loves this place. Just try not to buy the whole damn store! Thank you West Side Kids!

Had to find a dinosaur for my little one, who was anxiously awaiting my return home from my business trip. Must. Not. Return. Empty. Handed. Didn't have time to make my way over to the Museum of Natural History. Nor did I have the interest in making my way through a massive gift shop. Instead, my trusty mobile phone and yelpers, pointed me in the right direction. I was in and out in a matter of minutes 7 to be exact. The staff was pleasant. And to be honesty I was in such a rush, I didn't have time to look around at all the other goodies, but their store seemed to be packed with interesting and educational toys. But I can tell you for sure,that yes, they do carry a pretty wide range of cool realistic-looking plastic dinosaurs. read more

The go-to toy store on the UWS. Good selection in a small space, with options for all ages, from classic board games to offbeat types of toys. This is a really good place to find a gift if you don't know exactly what you're looking for -- lots to be inspired by. Coloring books, puzzles, stuffed animals, jewelry boxes, toy trucks, arts & crafts supplies, etc. Yes, it's more expensive than buying online, but shop local! And the free gift-wrapping, which is very quick when they're not busy, is a definite plus. read more

This store has anything a kid can dream of. I made a pit stop here to pick up a gift for an 8 year old girl, and some presents for a newborn. I had no idea where to start so luckily right as I walked in I was approached by a helpful sales girl. I told her my situation, what I was looking for, and she was very ready to eager to help. Her suggestions were perfect and spot on. 5 books, 5 CD's, and a make your own quilt kit, I was out $140 and I knew it was money well spent. If I ever need to buy more gifts, toys, games, or whatever, I will definitely be back to West Side Kids! read more

Re-Posting my review from 8/12 -that was FILTERED! After YEARS of shopping here for my 6 nieces & nephews and for 2 + years for my own son I have had the WORST customer service experience in a long time. After picking out 7-8 items, four of which were gifts for others (not my son), I asked to have them gift wrapped. And, yes, they had accessed my prior customer profile. Since two of items were on sale, they would not do it, at all, even if I paid (store was nearly empty, and all three salespeople were up front looking like I was the crazy one). After a day of work I don't want to go home wrap other presents in front of my toddler. If I did, I would order for half the price on Amazon, and then wrap them myself. I walked down the street to Cozy, spent half as much, got everything wrapped for free with a smile. Sorry West Side Kids... you lost a previously good customer today over a COMPLETE LACK OF CUSTOMER SERVICE! That is the business you are in, sale item or not, and you should charge for wrapping if you need to on top of your insane prices, which I happily paid when I had a present ready to go. DONE with this place, sadly. read more

I don't have kids. I like the occasional child...generally the ones had by my friends (who are good parents). A couple just had their second child and I needed something to bring as a gift to a baby naming ceremony (as well as something for the proud, big sister who I didn't want to feel left out in the festivities). Since I don't shop for kids too often, I came to Yelp to find ideas of where to buy these gifts, specifically on the UWS. The reviews of West Side Kids are mixed, mostly due to the service. However, I decided to try it, knowing that I might end up searching elsewhere. The store is bright and cheerful (of course, they sell children's stuff) with the merchandise arranged in understandable ways (either by age when it comes to newborns and babies or by type of toy: outdoors, artsy, games, science-oriented, etc). Perhaps I just got there on a particularly good. I was asked if I needed help not a full minute after entering and was left alone when I said that I wanted to browse for a bit. Questions were answered quickly. And they gift wrapped my items quite quickly (though I would have preferred a nicer wrapping of one of the two presents: a stuffed animal and book. I would have put them in a box as opposed to artfully gathering tissue paper around the whole thing and tying a bow. However, it's still pretty and beats having to do it myself). I am pretty sure that some items (like popular games such as Candy Land, etc.) can probably be found more cheaply elsewhere (like Target). But on a whole, the prices seemed decent (for someone who doesn't shop for kids too often). I'll be back should I need another child/baby gift. read more

This toy store is awesome! They have everything you could want and things in all sorts of price ranges. The staff is very friendly. And they will even wrap whatever you buy for free, so you don't have to end up in this situation: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HezHt9MyR5o This is especially helpful when you get a toy car that is in awkwardly shaped box. I would definitely go back here. read more

This store is an NYC gem. They have the friendliest and knowledgeable staff, with a diverse and carefully selected group of toys. They simply don't make stores like West Side Kids anymore. I encourage you to take time away from Amazon and into this small family-owned business. It's a warm, timeless store that the Upper West Side would be really really sad to lose. read more

I love the selection of toys here. I have a one year old and a seven year old, and I can find great toys for both of them here. The store takes care to select the best toys, so when I let loose my son and tell him to pick out a birthday gift for a friend, I can be sure that no matter what he picks it will be something good. I have also found the staff to be very pleasant. A few years ago my son bought a tadpole kit, and they showed him their pet frogs so he would know what to look forward to. Another time we bought a butterfly hatching kit for one of his friends, and they took the time to warn us to order them in a hurry to get the best-quality caterpillars! So great toys and friendly staff. One of my favorite toy stores in Manhattan! read more

Neat store, very friendly people on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/West-Side-Kids/140040039376516?v=info read more

Very unfortunate experience. I have purchased a lot at the store. I received a gift that was a duplicate and I tried to return it. They claim that the box was damaged although that was exactly the condition that it was in when we received it. And they refused to give me an exchange. They were absolutely unwilling to compromise or offer me anything. I will never shop at the store again. read more

I was looking for a gift for my nephew and yelped close by toy stores. The idea of supporting a small business appealed to me and I set off to find a really tiny store. At first I was so disappointed as I didn't think I would find much. Imagine what a wonderful surprise the inside was! Great helpful staff, lots of interesting things not available on Amazon or big stores . I found WAAAY too much, which was beautifully gift wrapped for me, for free. I came home and cancelled my orders on Amazon. This is where I am buying all kids gifts from now on!! read more

My son used to go here when he was little on a daily basis to "feed his Lego addiction". There selection was not great, but it definitely had a variety of toys. As much as Legos are expensive they are not that expensive. The staff there are great and will even wrap your purchases for free. This place is a great place to buy presents, especially when our not sure what your kids want. read more

I have two nephews who I wanted to get toys for. Not wanting to go towards Toys R Us in Times Square area (basically to avoid traffic), I wanted to go see if I could buy decent stuff from a low-key place in the Upper West Side. Surely enough, this place did more than that. As soon as I walked in, someone helped me with picking out toys for my nephews, from A to Z. It was a great experience. Got my toys within 5 minutes and they even wrapped them for me. Highly recommended. read more

I needed to buy a holiday present for my friend's children. I have shopped here before, and they have a really unique selection of toys. I did not have time to get to the store, but I went to their website and saw that you can order online. I placed an order online, and then received message that one of the items I had ordered was out of stock. When I called them back, the woman I spoke with asked me some questions about the child, and then had a list of alternate items for me. My order went out that day, and my friend's children loved the presents. I was really blown away by their customer service and will continue to shop here! read more

the staff here is extremely rude. my sitter visited the store a few weeks ago with my kids in tow but couldn't find what i had sent her to get. when she pulled out her cell phone to text me a question regarding the toy, they rudely advised her that she could not use it in the store (under ANY circumstances). come on? then i went in there today and my kid decided to have a meltdown. rather then receiving looks of empathy, i received many cold and rude looks from the staff... as if telling that i should pick up my kid and leave immediately. shouldn't they know (being that it is a toy store) that part of being a kid involves having the occasionally meltdown or two? i will NEVER go to this store again!! this was just a few of many bad experiences that i have had at West Side Kids. but this time it was the straw that broke the camel's back. don't waste your time here. go to therapie on columbus & 74th. or one of the two planet kids stores on the upper west side. read more

West Side Kids has a lovely selection of toys, and I like it that they focus on good-quality, well-designed toys that don't have a lot of battery-operated bells and whistles. Unfortunately, however, the service here ranges from cold to downright surly. The atmosphere is strangely joyless and unwelcoming, especially for a kid's store. The people working here often seem annoyed by simple questions, and they are often short on staff, so that on busy days there is a long line to check out (there are two registers in the store, but I have never seen more than one open at a time). I prefer to support local businesses when I can, and if the people there actually seemed as if they liked their customers, I wouldn't even mind paying the high markup. But after several unpleasant experiences, we have stopped going to West Side Kids. There are so many other stores nearby where the service is much friendlier: Albee, Area Kids, Therapy, Giggle. And if we can't find what we are looking for at those stores, we simply order from Amazon (where the prices are consistently $5-10 lower than at West Side Kids anyway). read more

It's a little funny that people will give a store a good review because the staff answered their questions. That's why they are there and it's what they are paid to do. The time to judge a store if when you have a problem and you see how they resolve it. In my case, I've been shopping at this place for over 20 years. Buy a game, take it home, no problem. I'd say I probably spend several hundred dollars there each year. A couple of days ago I saw a new game on a shelf and decided to pick it up. Once I got home, this game was obviously defective. The board had a couple of scratches across it, that looked like someone had dragged a nail across it. Plus the paper wasn't entirely connected to the cardboard itself. Plus, the box had one corner that was totally ripped apart. It was too late to bring it back, so I called the store and spoke with the manager, who said she'd put another game aside for me, and took my name and number, and I told her I'd made the exchange the next day. So far so good, right. Not Really! The next day upon returning to the store the store Manager said I could no longer exchange the game for the same game. She wouldn't let me get a word in, as she kept on rambling about how she spoke with the manufacturer and I needed to contact them to get a new game. While trying to talk some sense into her, she hung up on me. I had asked if she wanted to risk losing a customer that spends hundredths there every year, over a $17.00 board game exchange. No she really didn't care and hung up. This woman should be fired if they expect people to shop locally and be treated like this. To actually get the game exchanged, I had to call the manufacturer directly and they offered to call the store to straighten things out, which they did. Suddenly the Manager was no where to be found and one of the sales people made the exchange for me. You have to ask, what kind of store hires insane people like this. I'll never, ever, go back there again. read more