Subpar Miniature Golf Alameda — Attraction in Alameda

Subpar is a nice little jewel in Alameda.

I decided to go to check out Subpar in Alameda this past Sunday with a few friends and it was...... fun. I really enjoyed the 18 (technically 19) East Bay themed landmark holes.

Now let me give you the deets.

It is located inside the old Walgreen's building off of Park, which means there is PLENTY of parking available at any given time. It's best to make a reservation online because the wait time can be extremely long. I believe it is $14.00 per adult and $11.00 per child/senior. This place is very family friendly and great for children's birthday parties as there were several going on while I was there.

If you're not interested in golf, there is a small arcade to keep your child's attention as well as a laser maze and pool tables for adults.

They do not allow outside food and beverage, but I think that's because they have a station where they serve food and Boba drinks in case you get hungry or thirsty.

Things I didn't like about the place.. There is no real waiting area. They should put benches along the wall at the front entrance (inside and out) for you to wait for your time or reservation.

Again, it is VERY family friendly and if you know kids... they're a bundle of energy that not even parents can control sometimes; and with miniature golf, there is a lot of waiting. One thing I'd suggest they implement is the '6 and done' method. Meaning you get 6 tries to get the ball in the hole before you move on. I believe a lot of the lag comes from people giving it limitless tries and it holds up the other games so kids end up jumping holes and it causes even more of a hold up because you don't want to be mean and ask someone's kid to move along.

It can also be VERY loud in there depending on the amount of kids. Be mindful of that.

There were also a few instances where the 'theme' was damaged - for example the propellers on the energy fan were completely gone. -- (edit) they fixed it today! Good job!

I'd also implement an 'Adult Only' play time on certain days. Maybe host that from 8:30pm-11:30pm. I think that would be a great date night, adult fun place without having to worry about kids.

Overall it was a really good experience and I...

I took my son to play his first ever game of minigolf at Subpar in late December. We had a great time up until the 18th hole. For context, the 18th hole looks incredibly cool. There’s a VW Beetle ON the course and you can try to hit your ball underneath it as an added challenge. There’s a sign on the car that says each player can try twice, otherwise they need to keep things moving and putt the ball the traditional route around the car.

While we were waiting our turn at the 18th hole, the girl in front of us was trying to hit her ball under the VW Beetle. She hit it so hard that it ricocheted off the car and hit me in the forehead. Her father apologized, but I was in shock and also in a lot of pain (thankfully I was fine).

I emailed Subpar Alameda afterwards to let them know about the incident, and to also to let them know my safety concern for that part of the course. I worry that if it happened to me, it could happen to someone else. However, I didn’t hear back. I was hoping it was because of the Christmas holiday, so I followed up again in the new year. But I still heard nothing back. So unfortunately that tells me either the owner doesn’t check his email or doesn’t care.

Please understand, I WANT to like Subpar Mini Golf. We used to frequent their original Alameda location next to Ole’s and were excited to see they reopened on Park Street last year. However what happened to me and the lack of response from the owner has left a bad taste in my mouth. We will not be back...

This place is the bomb , my teenager had a blast celebrating his 16 th birthday. The place is huge , clean ,mini golf arcade laser tag pool table and very affordable food . Amazing staff and hospitality, organization. The parent had fun to drink some wine n chill while the kids played various games. In a heartbeat I would come again even if it’s not a party. Now the shout out to the manager Alicia a wonderful sweetheart that accommodated my party 🎉 less than 2 weeks .She is just amazing , cheerful and organized the party like a charm in such short notice with no headache for me , the food drinks and set up , Jay coordinated the food n drinks and brought it out in time and informed the kids of their activities so they could enjoy the all the game and Katie she makes awesome personalized welcome sign for the party . She is super talented . Overall I am very happy and satisfied to spend , have fun at this establishment subpar alameda mini golf . We thank you for the...