Main Event West Chester — Restaurant in West Chester Township

I recently had the misfortune of visiting Main Event, and let me tell you, it was a rollercoaster of disappointment from start to finish. The only positive thing about the experience was leaving.

Upon arrival, I was greeted by the architectural marvel that is Main Event – a building that looks like it was designed by someone with a passion for blandness. I half-expected the entrance to be guarded by tumbleweeds instead of an enthusiastic staff.

As I ventured inside, the ambiance hit me like a wave of mediocrity. The lighting seemed to be stuck in a perpetual state of dimness, as if the management wanted to save on electricity bills by keeping the place as gloomy as possible. It was like stepping into a parallel universe where fun goes to die.

The bowling lanes were reminiscent of an ancient, forgotten civilization. The pins appeared to have witnessed the invention of the wheel, and the bowling balls must have been used by Fred Flintstone himself. It's a mystery how they managed to make something as simple as bowling feel like a chore.

The arcade games were a chaotic symphony of malfunction. Half of them were out of order, and the ones that did work seemed to have undergone a rigorous training program in frustration-inducing glitches. It's like they took the concept of "game over" to a whole new level.

The food at Main Event deserves its own tragic saga. I ordered a pizza that looked like it had been through a culinary war – a battleground of flavorlessness. I wouldn't be surprised if the chef had mistaken the tomato sauce for watercolor paint and the cheese for plastic.

And don't even get me started on the so-called "customer service." The staff seemed to be on a mission to break the world record for the most disinterested employees in one establishment. It was as if they had attended a seminar on how to suck the joy out of every customer interaction.

In conclusion, Main Event is a masterpiece of disappointment, a vortex of despair, and a shining example of how not to run an entertainment venue. Save yourself the trouble and go anywhere else – even a deserted island would offer a more enjoyable experience.

But worst of all was the laser tag was the worst of all.

Ah, the laser tag at Main Event – a spectacle that managed to turn a childhood favorite into a tragic comedy. Picture this: a battlefield illuminated by flickering lights that seemed to be in a constant state of indecision, unsure whether they wanted to participate in the event or just give up on life.

The laser guns, if you could even call them that, were more like relics from a low-budget sci-fi movie. They emitted feeble beams that struggled to hit their target, as if the lasers themselves were on strike, protesting against the indignity of being associated with such a lackluster attraction.

The arena was a labyrinth of confusion, with neon paint peeling off the walls like a cry for help. Navigating through the maze felt like wandering through the corridors of a haunted house, only instead of ghosts, you encountered the ghosts of entertainment past.

The vests provided for the game were seemingly recycled from the dawn of laser tag itself. They were so bulky and uncomfortable that I half-expected them to come with an instruction manual on how to properly wear medieval armor. It's a mystery how anyone managed to move, let alone enjoy the game, with these cumbersome contraptions.

And let's not forget the thrilling soundtrack that accompanied the laser tag experience – a cacophony of malfunctioning sound effects that made it sound like a symphony of dying robots. I can only assume they were going for avant-garde, but it came across more as a cry for help from the audio equipment.

In the end, the laser tag at Main Event was a tragicomedy of errors, a slapstick attempt at recreating a beloved childhood pastime. If you're in the mood for a game that makes you question every life choice that led you to that point, then by all means, give it a try. But if you value your sanity and the fond memories of laser tag, I'd advise looking...

Absolutely do NOT recommend this venue. Huge expense for an extremely disappointing experience, broken games, shut down activities and rude staff.

After careful deliberation, my almost 9-year-old chose against a traditional birthday party to bring a few close friends to this location. So we loaded up the car and drove 40 minutes to spend his birthday here. And it was a massive disaster.

Larry, through Laser Tag, was the ONLY redeeming factor, and honestly singlehandedly prevented the entire experience from being an absolute misery. I want to be clear - Larry was amazing...and should probably find another job working somewhere there are others with his character and work ethic.

If you are considering this location for your child's birthday, I would strongly reconsider.

First of all - experience. We arrived - a carful of kids after driving from a different city - super excited. We waited quite awhile to pay and get checked in, likely due to short staff, which I know is a national problem and is something I empathize with. However, the laissez-faire and unapologetic attitude of staff was biting. With careful consideration of the prices, I ultimately made the decision to buy "all access" passes for each of the boys. This decision was primarily due to our interest in the gravity ropes and laser tag, with potential interest in other activities, and hopes to do laser tag multiple times.

We started with the arcades... There are MULTIPLE games that do NOT work. Yes, the staff will "reimburse" your card for the lost tokens, but this is only after you wait in line for another 10-30 (not exaggerating) minutes to see a staff member at the front desk. And the broken games, which are known to be broken based on staff reactions to requests for reimbursed tokens, are NOT labeled as "out of order".

Laser tag - great experience. This was run by Larry, who was a gift, and again the only redeeming component of the entire experiences.

HOWEVER - we next went to do gravity ropes, which were "out of order" until 6pm. I was not made aware of this while asking the front desk about activities and clearly deliberating about which package to choose. So....because this was the primary reason for choosing the all access package... I approached the front desk and requested a refund for the all access and to be downgraded to just laser tag. At this time I was informed that the prices listed above on the DIGITAL (and therefore assumedly easily edited advertisement of offered activities and prices) was actually "not updated to reflect the current prices" and that laser tag was actually more, per person, than listed clearly on the screen above. Additionally, throughout the venue it was advertised that there was a discount for the day and time we were there, that was neither discussed with me, nor reflected in the price I paid.

Next - staff. With the distinct exception of Larry - who truly was incredible - staff was repeatedly incredibly dismissive and rude, for no apparent reason. I recognize this post makes me sound like a complainer, but you will have to take my word that I am not one to make waves, nor an intimidating presence by any means. And yet, every request or question, including the simple task of ordering food, was met with an attitude of annoyance and general, absolute disdain for their job and anyone who helps fund it (i.e. us, the consumers).

Finally - value. Absolute rip-off. Extremely disappointed. Huge waste of money. I don't really know what else to say about it. We decided against other (closer, cheaper, easier) options to drive a further distance and pay more due to the additional amenities offered by Main Event. And we were overly and without doubt fully disappointed.

So... if you are considering this venue for any special event... learn from my mistake, and choose somewhere else.

This was, without a doubt, the most disappointing birthday (for my son) to date, and was all because of our experience...

We came here to celebrate our kid's doing well in school for the quarter and it was a massive let down. We walked over to the "restaurant" area to see a sign that said, "Please go to the front bowling desk to be seated in the restaurant." After waiting in line for 30 minutes, the bowling desk told us that we could just seat ourselves. The restaurant area had 0 clean tables, and I ended up having to clean off one of the tables with my hand because I could not find any restaurant workers and there were not any napkins anywhere. We had to put our order in with the bartender, who was extremely friendly, but this took a while as well as he was the only bartender/server for 50+ people. Furthermore, you have to pay at the time you place your order which is crazy because that is also the time you usually include your tip. How can you add a tip for service when you have no idea how good, or in our case, how bad your service is? I had to take our drinks to our table and when our food arrived, they brought no silverware or napkins and never checked on us again. Once our food was delivered, whoever delivers the food just disappears, so you are left with the busy bartender as the only person who can help you. We were hoping the games, gravity zone and laser tag would make up for the dining issue, but the first 5 games we tried took our tokens and did not work. There are a lot of details they fail to tell you, like gravity zone and laser tag are only at certain times. We were able to get our refund for the laser tag as it was not working at the time we originally paid for it. The atmosphere in the place is sketchy at best. Near the end of our trip there was a large group of people in the business that reeked of weed. I was watching my son play a claw game for tickets and noticed that a grown man ended standing next to him and started paying attention to where my son was placing his Main Event token card. I walked over to my son and asked him if he had any luck, and the guy gave me a look and immediately walked away. Based off of this guy's behavior, I can only assume he was hoping my son would put the card on the machine so he could take it by his reaction. This is a great idea for a business, but it is severely understaffed. When a game does not work, you cannot find anyone to assist you. The restaurant is service awful at best. The burger was good, but the fries tasted funky. There was a massive piles of dirty bowling shoes on the counters as well. I am not sure if this place is severely understaffed or if they just don't care. What was supposed to be a fun afternoon out for a celebration ended up not being so with us apologizing to our kids for the let down.

We will never go...