Kid's Cuckoos Nest — Attraction in Aurora

Overall great place for drop-in's, not so much for booking parties.

We booked the Orange package for my son's 2 year old birthday on a Saturday. To sum things up, the booking experience and service was lacking in efficiency. In this day and age, booking should be done over the phone and via email, but I was asked to go in-person to confirm my party--that would mean driving 40min each way, which I was not ready to waste my time on--they eventually allowed me to sign/scan/return the form via email after some back and forth.

Policy states parties are asked to arrive no earlier than 15min prior to start-time, for any set-up that may be needed; and there would be some set-up since not a lot is included in the package (ie. BYO table cloths, extra serving bowls/utensils, drinks, food, decorations) Please review the list of items that you can and cannot bring to your party!.

We arrived at reception exactly 15min prior only to find that our room was not ready. We were not let into our room (that still had the previous kid's name on the board) until 5min before start-time, and found ourselves scrambling to set things up, as guests were now slowly trickling in.

The experience with the staff was strange, and may be due to new hires, lack of experience or poor training. From setting up juice boxes--why the staff decided to place the tray of juices at the front and offload the drinks from there to the back table, instead of bringing to whole tray to the back, is beyond me--to taking more than 5 minutes for writing/rewriting Happy Birthday (name) on the dry erase board--needing to ask multiple times, where our coffee/tea dispenser and water bottles were.

Another complaint is the cleanliness of the reception area and washrooms. We walked into the reception and was immediately greeted by locker room odours. If you expect us to be in our socks, I expect not to be tiptoeing around suspect puddles in washroom stalls. I've always been impressed by how other similar establishments have been able to keep their (even sometimes SINGLE stall) washrooms immaculate.

Here's the unsettling part--some of our guests, after some confusion on how check-in works, were able to enter the play area gate, without checking-in, or receiving wristbands. My family never received wristbands, even after one of the staff had said she would be bringing them. There definitely needs to be more diligence and monitoring of every individual who goes in/out (ie. Chucky Cheese's has it right with a staff at the turnstile at all times, and their ticketing system). The gate was seen left open on a number of occasions, where a child could have easily walked out.

Suggested improvements: -staff training -security -cleanliness of washrooms/reception area -air quality in general play area -packages to include BOTH juice boxes and water, not one or other -some balloons/decoration, table cloths

Bottom line: The party packages are not cheap and not a lot are included, so what exactly are we paying for?! I would not recommend hosting parties here;...

Let me just start by saying I barely write reviews, let alone take the time to leave a negative review, but with Kids Cuckoos Nest I was compelled to write one ASAP due to the horrible service we received this past weekend for my sons first birthday.

I had booked this place with the largest package about a month ago because it looks great, however after dealing with the owners Lizette and Susan on multiple occasions and continuously receiving RUDE service - I regret every minute of booking this place.

They are EXTREMELY strict with no outside food/vendors. They wanted me to pay over $350 for balloons through their vendor, whereas I could have paid less than $100 for what I wanted through my own vendor. They try and rip you off and don't give you the choice to do it with your own people! They made me cancel the cake and cookies I had booked and paid for because I had to use THEIR custom cake vendor - hmm... making commissions for sure! I had to spend 3 days coordinating all the details with their vendor and Kids Cuckoos Nest like a middle man, when I had already previously done all this work with someone else that I liked!

On top of that all - you cant bring any snacks for the kids as you are not allowed outside food. All has to be done through Longos Catering (which has barely any kid friendly options). All you could get was pizza.

LASTLY - a gluten free pizza that was discussed was forgotten about, therefore one of my guests had nothing to eat (mistakes happen, we wanted to just get her food so she has something to eat). We ordered her chicken bites through UberEats to accommodate the one guest, and when Lizette (owner) saw the order arrive, she made a scene in front of our guests in our party room and wouldn't leave the room until the food was out of her establishment. She made the guest sit OUTSIDE on the curb and eat her food alone outside!!!!!!! All because she has a dietary restriction. They had nothing on site to accommodate her, so not sure what she was supposed to do..

Just beware of the service and difficulty it is to work with the owners of this establishment. There is 0 flexibility with anything, and they are clearly trying to making money through outsourcing everything. Never will I come to this place again, and my 60 guests that were at the party, will also never step foot in here again! The place is beautiful for kids to play, I would have loved to write a 5* review, however the owners make it so miserable that you end up not enjoying your experience and the place!

Mikayla the party host however was GREAT!!! She is a student who was taking care of our party room, and she was so pleasant to deal with...

I would recommend considering alternative venues for your event. My experience with this establishment was disappointing, primarily due to the owner, Lisette, and her approach to customer service. I regret not reading earlier negative reviews regarding her lack of professionalism and prioritization of profit over client satisfaction.

During our event, I felt that many costs were unnecessarily inflated, which was particularly disheartening given the substantial amount we invested—around $800. This is a significant expense, and it would have been more enjoyable to spend that money on a nice dining experience. Additionally, Susan, Lisette's daughter, encouraged us to order more food than we needed, most of which went to waste.

A particularly frustrating incident occurred when one of our guests was refused entry at the door, even though we had not yet reached the minimum capacity for our event. It was surprising to witness such a lack of flexibility. Our guest left the event upset . I also noticed that a young family member, a 13-year-old, was allowed to work in the establishment, which I found unprofessional.

Furthermore, the policy of not permitting outside snacks, while allowing drinks, seemed contradictory and not very customer-friendly. This restriction, which they claimed was for safety, appeared to be more about limiting customer choices. For those seeking healthier food options, the absence of such considerations was disappointing.

I also felt pressured to purchase specific items such as cakes and decorations, which contributed to the overall sense of being taken advantage of as a customer. While Susan expressed a desire to apologize during the event, the timing felt inappropriate and did not mitigate the overall negative experience.

The balloons we purchased from them were not adequately inflated, leading to them not lasting the duration of our event.

I believe in treating customers with respect and care, and I would encourage Lisette to adopt a more client-centric approach that values customer relationships over profit. I would strongly recommend exploring other venues where the owners prioritize treating their guests with kindness and respect instead of taking...