Skate Inn — Local services in Plainfield

Jeeze, what can I say about Skate Inn? I mean, this is not ever going to win community business of the year or anything. The place seems maybe a little tired, a little aged, a little non-modernized. But hey, that's kind of what makes it what it is.

I've taken the kids there many times now. I mean, for $10 per kid to give them something to do for a couple hours on a weekend afternoon, you can't beat it. If you eat there it's going to cost you a ton more, but they're always willing to let you have a pitcher of water, and then you can skip the eating and just enjoy the skating for a couple hours, then eat somewhere else after.

When we first started going here none of us knew how to skate. We rented some skate mates, hung out on the floor, and eventually started getting the hang of it. I watched some YouTube videos with some pro tips on how to stop falling all over the place, and then we really started to find our groove.

If you're going here for the first time, or have never skated before, I absolutely recommend just watching a couple YouTube videos first, as there are some pro tips that will make your life 1,000 times easier. If you haven't done that, then make sure you get here a few minutes early and be first in line to get one of the skate mates, which will help you while you get the hang of things. They only have a limited number of them, and they're first-come-first-serve, so if you get there late and don't have one, you're going to be clinging to the wall and falling on your butt a lot. Not a huge deal - that's part of learning to skate - but the skate mate was nice for my younger son who wouldn't otherwise have the patience to learn to skate. He can now skate without the skate mate, but only because he had it during those earlier skating sessions.

The $10/person also includes the skate rental, which is a great deal. The skates are totally old-fashioned, probably 50 years old, but they do the trick.

There's also an arcade which looks fairly decent, but which we haven't played in. Sometimes my son goes over there and watches other kids play and has fun doing that, but we mostly go there for the skating.

The staff has always been friendly and kind. I mean, they're not out there teaching people how to skate or anything, but they've always been helpful when we needed anything, always help people up if they fall near them, and they just keep the atmosphere fun and chill.

It's always good to have fun things to do with young kids, and this one is definitely on our list, and recommended to anyone else out there looking for a fun afternoon activity...

Skate Inn was basically what I expected - an affordable roller rink with a family atmosphere. I myself am 28, so I was concerned that I'd be too old for the crowd I was expecting; however, while it is true that most of the patrons were teens or younger, there were enough "regulars" in their 20s and 30s, as well as parents who also skated, where my fiancee and I didn't stick out.

In addition to the rink, they had an arcade, a pool table, an air hockey table, a small play place for younger kids, and a snack bar that served your basic, kid oriented fare (I didn't eat any food, but it smelled good and people seemed to be happy with it). In that regard, there is a lot to love for families with kids. They also had a pretty good DJ, who played a variety of hits from the last 30 years.

The only reason I didn't give it 5 stars is because there are a few high spots on the rink floor, which was a little disorienting for me as I hadn't skated for some time, and had to get my bearings. It looked like maybe the floor of the rink could do with a refinishing to even it out a little bit. This is a small gripe however, and ultimately I had a great time, I will likely come back, and I would recommend it to someone who wants to burn a few hours being active or trying...

The rink itself was clean and our group had a very good time skating. The downside, the music is awful. We were a mixed group and nobody liked it. It was super slow R&B type with synthesized drum beats. One out of twenty songs would be upbeat and you could see the floor get more crowded and the enjoyment in the crowd. We asked the attendant twice to see if they could speed up the tempo and they said they would see what they could do but nothing changed. Getting the music right for that environment seems like an easy task but it really proved difficult for them, clearly it was someone playlist on their phone. It should be 10/1 upbeat fun music to slow hand holding slow jams. I'm no DJ but I would be happy to come up one Friday night and show you how it's done. That would make a huge difference in the overall vibe there and it would be good to see a place like this get...