Chuck E. Cheese — Restaurant in West Des Moines

I visited Chuck E. Cheese today with my family, including my five-year-old and seven-year-old. We purchased food and a two-hour play pass for the kids. During our visit, one of my family members mistakenly thought the salad bar was included with our meal and began to serve herself. The general manager promptly informed her that the salad bar was not included and that it would be an additional $12.

Another family member, standing nearby, made a light-hearted comment, saying, "Why does it matter? You’re just going to throw it out at the end of the night anyway." While we understand policies must be followed, what followed was extremely disappointing. The general manager responded by saying the salad bar still had to be paid for, which is fine — however, the tone and escalation that came next were completely uncalled for.

He aggressively approached us and told one of my family members, “You are not going to disrespect me,” and then said, “I own this place,” implying he could behave however he liked. When we later asked for napkins, he pointed vaguely across the dining area and told us to find them ourselves. After being told that the napkins weren’t there, he doubled down rather than offering help. When one of my family members calmly pointed out that his attitude was inappropriate, especially in a family environment, he responded by threatening to kick us out, saying, “I’m the general manager and I can do whatever I want.”

All of this occurred in front of our two young children, making what should have been a fun, family-friendly experience unnecessarily uncomfortable and tense.

While we understand the need for rules and structure in a busy establishment, there is absolutely no excuse for hostility, power-tripping, or unprofessional behavior — especially from management. I truly hope the company takes this feedback seriously, as this experience left us disappointed and...

My daughter and I attended a friend's birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese. This was our second party there for the same friend and my daughter had a great time playing with her friends. However, as a parent, this party was a bit more confusing than the last. The wristbands were not ready at the start of the party (a concern because they are only good for a certain amount of time that is supposed to coincide with the party time). The wristbands were ready around 15-20 min late, the lunch/cake serving was late (we sat around waiting for the cake because they didn't have plates or utensils ready for us, which can be challenging for kiddos who would rather go back to play games instead of wasting 10-15 minutes waiting for a cake that should have been ready to go right as they got done with eating pizza). My daughter was very disappointed that she didn't get to watch her friend open the present she brought for him because the delays resulted in not leaving enough time to open gifts. The mother hosting the party let me know she was not allowed in early like she had been for the previous party, so they didn't have time to set up. When she tried to go in early, per the contract, she was told to go back to her car or the manager would cancel her party. She also had difficulty getting her pizza order in since she wasn't allowed in early, which may have contributed to the schedule delay. The pizza and treats were good and I'm glad my daughter had a wonderful time with friends, but as a parent, I was disappointed in the poor service and concerned with how the management treated my friend (the mother hosting). I was considering hosting a party for my daughter in the future when she gets a little older, but this most recent experience has made me...

We just had my son's 5th Birthday party here. It was FANTASTIC! We were greeted by our personal party coordinator who showed us to our table. It was already prepared with the plates, cups and a sign with MAX on the front with three balloons flying behind it. My gal was new so she had another coordinator with her and they were both so very sweet and helpful. Right away we were given a run down on the party schedule and given the wristbands with the play cards attached. I was allowed to bring in my own cake, ice cream and gift bags for my kiddos' guests. The kids arrived and they played until the pizzas came. The pizza surprised us all being pretty dang good, we were glad to have leftovers to bring home. Chuck E came out just for my special boy to sing happy birthday and pose for pics for those who wanted them. I should add that the my "party helper"gals brought out the cake, lit the candles and even took the cake back and cut it for us. This may not seem like much but it really was nice to have that added help! They also danced with the kids with Chuck E. and had a very good attitude. One of the things I really appreciated was the fact that some of my guests didn't show up and I was able to have those charges taken off of my bill. The gal that helped MAX with his tickets for prizes was awesome! I wish I could remember her name BUT we chatted about the heat and she mentioned she had mowed earlier in the day WHICH leads me to the only reason I took one star back. It was very hot in there. Mostly just in the area where the stage and tables are but it was super sticky and I was sweating the entire time.

I STRONGLY RECOMMEND CHUCK E. CHEESE (Des...