Review: A birthday party at Waffle and More, Harlow (AD)
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When it comes to planning a Birthday party for my little girls I do find it just a tiny bit stressful! From not knowing whether to invite the whole class, or just whittle it down to closest friends, and then finding somewhere that can cater to a few different ages too, I just want something that's a bit on the easy side sometimes which is where Waffle and More Harlow have come in!
In the past we've hired out a soft play, and invited 10s of children, and we've also had smaller events at home, all of which my daughter has loved. I feel like it's nice to bring some variety to children's Birthday parties, instead of doing the same thing every year.
This year my daughter, who was turning 9, wanted to have an arcade party with her friends - and so we've headed to Waffle and More, located at 21 Broadwalk, Harlow, to fulfil her wish!
Despite their name they actually do a lot more than just waffles - but more on that shortly!
Party packages from Waffle and More:
Waffle and More offers a variety of different party packages, which cater to different preferences and budgets pretty well I think.
If you're working with a tighter budget or don't mind sharing the arcade, then non-private hire allows your party to enjoy the arcade alongside other guests. This option still offers the same fun but in a shared environment, and with a few less bells and whistles.
If you can afford to opt for private hire then this guarantees your child and their guests the entire arcade exclusive use for their party. This option provides a bit more of a personalised experience, allowing your group to enjoy the facilities without sharing the space with other guests, and there are some more goodies with the private hire too.
The cheapest non-private hire package starts from just £9.99 per child, with a minimum of 12 children. The cheapest private hire package starts from £19.99 per child, with a minimum of 12 children. For at least 2 hours in the arcade, plus unlimited squash, I feel like the non-private hire package is a really good price!
You can even hire the arcade for adults, and receive savoury menu items, beers and more, from £24.99 per person. This would be nice for an adult birthday if you want to spend time with your friends, and have fun, without spending £100s each on a night out, especially with the addition of some beers for those who drink.
We went for a gold package, the 3-hour private arcade hire, and this is what we received:
- Kid's hotdog, nuggets, burger or pizza with fries - vegetarian burger available too
- Kid's menu dessert - mostly waffles and pancakes to choose from
- Crisps and snacks - we got a mixture of different crisps, chocolate bars and sweet treats
- Birthday cake - this was huge
- Unlimited squash - they kept us well topped up
- Pick and mix each - the kids received a pot each in their party bags with a good variety.
- Tea and coffee for adults
- 3 hours private arcade hire
This cost £24.99 per child, or £8.33 per hour, which I actually think is very reasonably priced for children's entertainment, and for what we actually received.
When booking a Birthday party at Waffle and More I just wanted something that was going to be easy, and basically allow us to turn up, enjoy my daughter's birthday, and not have to worry about dealing with any of the mess or fuss, before or after, which is exactly what we got.
Another great benefit of booking this party was that I paid a £50 deposit and then the balance was payable on the day, which was great for budgeting, and gave me a bit of extra time to get the money together - always a winner!
The arcade at Waffle and More:
It's an absolute haven for both adults and children, because the machines are free to play, there is no need for coins or tokens, and there is no need for your little ones to be pestering you constantly for a bit more money
This is a great perk of the arcade hire, whether private or not, and there are quite a few different machines to choose from.
I felt like the machines being free to play also meant that the children could play constantly, or rest if they wanted to. Also, if anyone wanted to abandon a game midway through it just didn't feel disappointing, you know?!
The arcade games were mostly retro ones with 1000+ games to choose from including classics like Donkey Kong, Sonic the Hedgehog, The Simpsons, and more, but there were also driving games, table football, a punching bag machine, an air hockey table, dance machine, and more.
The mixture of arcade games was really good, and the machines were working great for the entire 3 hours we were there. I believe there was one machine that was not operational, but it was not an issue at all, and none of the children even noticed this.
The food at Waffle and More:
The package that we chose came with a kid's hotdog, nuggets, burger or pizza served with fries. I have to say that the food was all cooked to order, hot and fresh, and while it was the usual children's party food (which they love!) it was still nice quality, hot, with generous portions, and served pretty promptly too.
The children were all able to order a kid's menu dessert, which consisted of a range of different waffles, sundaes, or ring doughnuts, with a variety of different toppings including chocolates, bubblegum crunch, sauces, berries, and a variety of different ice cream flavours including vanilla, bubblegum, cotton candy, white chocolate, or good old whippy style ice cream.
Basically - it was heaven for little children! Lots of bright and vibrant looking desserts, and everyone was able to choose what they wanted from the menu.
I feel like the presentation was great for the kids, and everything looked really appealing. The desserts were cooked well, and we really didn't have anything to grumble about. The portion sizes were generous too with some children unable to finish their full serving.
The adults at the party enjoyed hot drinks, and we also had some chicken bites and fries together too, which was a hit with us adults - and the quality of the chicken bites was really good!
The overall experience at Waffle and More Harlow:
We were pleasantly surprised overall with how well the party ran. We'd never visited this location before, so didn't know what to expect, but we were pleasantly surprised.
When we were arrived the arcade was all ready, looking clean and tidy, and the machines had all of their pieces (for things like air hockey, and boxing gloves for the punching bag etc).
The staff were polite and friendly, the arcade was a real highlight for the kids, the food and waffles went down a treat with everyone, and the whole thing felt well run.
We had private arcade hire, and didn't have any unexpected visitors during our 3 hours, which I think indicates that this is well policed. This meant that we felt safe with our daughters and their friends, and they were able to relax, have fun, be themselves, and I felt confident that they were only with their friends too.
Being honest, when I booked, I was a tiny bit apprehensive, as we'd never visited this location before, but my daughter and her friends had such a lovely time with a couple of party guests saying it was the best party ever!
I feel that the price we paid, £24.99 per child, was really great value for what we received. As a guide I costed up the food, dessert, arcade visit and drinks, and these alone would be close to the price we paid, and the arcade hire was exclusive for our party food.
I initially worried that 3 hours was just too long for the arcade hire, but the time flew by in a mixture of arcade games, a character visit, food and drinks, desserts and birthday cake.
We also received some lovely party bags at the end with a tub of pick and mix for each child, plus the cake had been cut for us and some was placed in little tubs too.
My daughter, and her friends, seemed to have great fun and overall it felt really well run from start to finish. We'll definitely be popping in again to eat waffles and play on the arcades, and as they have a lot of special offers running it's going to be a great place to visit during school holidays too!
If you're looking for a party in the Harlow, or surrounding areas of Essex or Hertfordshire, then I firmly recommend Waffle and More.
