Bullwinkle's Upland — Attraction in Upland

So, this is a biased review, I was there on the first official day, though I really do love it more than like it, however I have visited in the past so I am biased. I will return later in hopes of a less biased review. So, met the owner on way in, really nice guy, discussed future plans and did explain why the fountain show wasn't coming back. (Lack of space, too easy to break/steal parts) It is a bummer, but will hopefully do some sort of water feature if possible. Burgers weren't being done yet, but was told they should be really good and will be serving those in the future. (I don't recall seeing chicken or waffle fries, those were great way back when, but I don't think they have those) I had the pizza and it was okay. Actually, my order was done incorrectly, and I ended up getting overcharged, I could have said something, but opening day and the cashier was really nice and did seem a little green. Again could have said something but I choose not to, guy who brought me my food asked if everything was okay, so I had multiple times to fix it if wanted. ( So combo was charged as separate items, and wanted pepperoni but was charged for cheese with extra cheese, don't believe there was extra cheese either. When you go you may want to double check your order for the first few weeks.) Hit the arcade, and this is where things got interesting. Uses cards, cards are a dollar (will want to hang onto those), and your money turns into points, each point is 25¢. I used all my points, but wasn't sure if the tickets went to my card automatically or if you need to swipe, I swiped my card (which is now empty) and it put a credit on the machine. So I play the game, mentally review that the card is empty, but free game?, so, I try again for the hell of it, and it works again! It only does this twice. So for those counting, I am now square on the extra cheese. 🤷🏻‍♂️ I didn't mention this to anyone, as I figure it is likely another opening day issue and will likely be resolved shortly. They had some great games in there, but it was odd to see the dining room and the arcade flipped. As for mini golf, neon western and fairy tale courses are there, play 'em if they got 'em, while they got 'em. So, will I tell everyone I know to come? YES! Will I return? Hell Yes! Should you be aware that it just opened so things are getting settled? Yep, and that is fine for now. They are extremely nice here, and given time I believe they will be a great place for families again. This place is a somewhat like John's Incredible Pizza, but it isn't quite focused on pre-teenage kids, so the whole family can have fun together here which is outstanding. Was thinking, they may want to turn that back room into a place to watch sports games (I think it was some eagles nest or something way back when), may make it more desirable for families with a member that only wants to watch a game while the rest of the family enjoys the different features. Tons of dedicated parking. Entrance, seating, counter, restrooms and entertainment are accessible. Some features may not be accessible, but I think that is generally understood (motion ride, go-karts) Oh, no Skee-ball, slight bummer, miss the sound of a dozen plus kids rolling wooden balls up those ramps all at once. Glad they are open, am excited to...

Bullwinkle's is open again! They've done a GREAT job with the remodel. I am really impressed! I only gave 4 stars because it was so crowded (which is not really the fault of the business, but exciting for them!). As soon as I got there (4-ish pm on a Saturday), it was already the most crowded I had ever seen. The parking lot was COMPLETELY full, with a dozen or so cars trolling for a spot. The one we found was a miracle.

It was so crowded that I only saw the main building (the westernmost building near the bumper boats that used to be just the restaurant). I have no idea what's in the other building. We did not mini-golf (we were there to celebrate a birthday), but the kids got to do laser tag, bumper cars, and arcade games. Some of the kids waited to ride the Dark Ride. It was a two hour line. They also have a small bowling alley! I saw the go karts are still outside, but the other kiddie carnival rides are gone. I think the main building was expanded to take that over.

When you first walk into the building, you need to get in line. EVERYTHING is sold from one counter. It has a big START HERE sign over it. Food, attractions, mini-golf, etc. It's all purchased at that counter. For mini-golf, attractions, and arcades, you get a card to fill up with points. So make sure you have a plan by the time you get to the counter to avoid having to get in line again!

The pizza was decent (I am not an aficionado, so it would have had to be really bad for me to be upset), the appetizer sampler plate was all fried food. I'm sure there are probably healthy options, but I wasn't responsible for buying anything. The self-serve soda fountains had seltzer water instead of Diet Pepsi, and the fountain behind the counter had Diet Pepsi, but it was a little flat. I also noticed confusion between the order numbers and the buzzers (saw a few people complain that their buzzer was going off for other people's orders). I don't know the inner workings of that system, but I imagine if it was less crowded, there wouldn't have been an issue.

I gave 4 stars because I think they did a great job refurbishing it, I hope that they continue to thrive, and my daughter had a good time hanging out with her best friend. If you are like me, and prefer to find the less crowded, less noisy spaces, you may want to try a weekday or wait a few months for the initial excitement to die down a bit. But I do think I'll head back sometime this summer just to do bumper boats with the kiddo.

Edit (2/8/25): I forgot to mention that all the people working were super helpful,...

Absolutely awful. Before I get to that so this is not lost. Daniel at the food window was one of the nicest people. Absolutely, amazing people work here. The staff was mostly kind. Helpful. Polite. It makes me so sad to write this review. Alondra, one of the managers, is a terrible, rude individual. Just awful. I explained what happened, and that my children were very hungry. Alondra’s response was to eye roll me. Seriously. Eye rolled me. Like I am an extreme inconvenience and annoying to her. She told me I was lying and told me next time, go to Dave and Buster’s. I didn’t mention it the first two times they lost or gave away my order. It took placing an order 3 times for the same food order and then more than an hour and a half to get it. Alondra refunded the food purchase but told me the food was sitting on the counter and had been for quite some time and I was just complaining to get free food. Daniel told me our food order had been waiting less than 5 minutes by the time I got back to the window after spending 15 minutes at the front register. Alondra was obviously gaslighting. I spent $700 here today, which may not be a lot of money to some but for me and my family, it is a lot of money to spend on entertainment, and was treated worse than dog poop one scrapes off the bottom of one's shoe. I hoped this would be so much better now that it is open again and seems so nice. In addition to long lines to order food, get cards for game/play, or just get a water, the food took an hour and a half. A quarter of the games don't work correctly in the arcade or were broken, and at least one of the managers, Alondra, needs to be removed from her position. Etiquette and customer service are trending down since 2020, but this is a new level of horrible. If she were my employee, she wouldn't have a job right now. There is no reality where a manager should be allowed to treat people who are explaining a problem (respectfully) that way. I have never been treated so poorly by any place of business. Ever. Super,...