See & Do

Review: Rowdy Rascals, Indoor play Centre, Jindalee.

Rowdy Rascals has only been open a week but from the turnout of parents and kids that I saw Wednesday morning I’m sure they’ll do very well. The boys had been invited to a birthday party so I was quite lucky to be able to experience how they run their party rooms. In all I was fairly impressed.

The entrance procedure was easy and friendly. Apart from the usual pay your money and make sure you all have socks (even the parents) the boys were given wrist bands with numbers and I was given the corresponding numbers. This is an extra security procedure that I guess is in theory supposed to stop a different parent from making off with another child. In practice I question whether it’s of any use.  I’m sure I’m not the only mum to promptly loose the ticket to the bottom of the handbag never to be seen again.

Inside there are a number of areas down the sides of the building that the kids can play in. From the front to the back on the right hand side you have a toddler gym, a bus jumping castle and slide, a larger climbing gym and slides for older children and the café. The toilets are at the rear 3 of them all unisex with the one on the right hand side including a change table.

Older kids might like a game of Foosball or Air Hockey which I was pleasantly surprised to find that unlike a games arcade you didn’t need $2 to make it work. Working our way back to the front of the building on the other side of the room are the 3 party rooms. The themes are a green dinosaur room, a blue under the sea room, and a pink fairy room. Each room has a CD player and special chair for the birthday child. The rooms are hand painted and I think they’ve done a pretty good job.

Next is the infant play area with their own Jumping castle, ball pit, foam seats and blocks and wall games. Then there is a home corner section, which has a plastic play house, cupboards galore, a wooden BBQ set, workbenches with tools and the list goes on. This is open to all ages and is a popular part of the play center.  For the quieter kids there is even a spot to sit down and do some drawing and colouring.

The Café

The middle is all tables and chairs and once you’ve placed your order with the café it will be brought out you. I was pretty happy with the pricing of the food and beverages. A basic vegemite sandwich is $2.50 a coffee will cost you about $3.30 and a slice of cake about $4.50. A larger sandwich, ham, chicken and salad about $5. In all I thought that compared to a standard café, the prices were slightly cheaper. My only criticism is that I didn’t see anything that was gluten free. There are plenty of signs advising parents that only food bought from the café can be eaten in the centre and this makes my life a bit tricky.

The minuses

•    The infant and toddler sections are fenced but not gated which allows smaller kids to wander into the path of the bigger kids.
•    It’s easy for the older kids to get into the younger kids area.
•    Balls from the pit in the infant area seem to find their way out into the seated café section. It’s a bit of a trip hazard especially if you’re holding a coffee.
•    No gluten free food or pieces of fruit available at the café the day I was there.

This family run business is quite pleased with the way things have started for them, though the afternoons can be a bit quiet.  I did enjoy my morning at Rowdy Rascals with my two rowdy rascals and I’m sure I’ll be back quite a lot over the summer.

Best
Glenys

© 2008 Brizzy Kidz.