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Almost on my doorstep, Playspace Cafe on Liverpool Road in Penwortham opened its doors in September and is a fantastic little spot to take the little ones.
There are four sessions most days that can be booked online with adults £1.50 and children (aged 0-6) £6, which is a similar price to other play cafes around Lancashire. You can also take a sibling under 5 months for free.
I’m blessed with Thursdays off work for Mummy and Daughter days and being half-term, our usual baby and toddler group wasn’t running so I booked the 9.15am session at Playspace but it is open seven days a week.
Upon arrival we popped our shoes in the storage area and B went off to play. Although small, Playspace is well planned out with loads of educational toys and a role play area as well as chairs in the play areas for adults which pleases my dodgy knees and back greatly.
I dumped our bag and coats at our table and despite just wanting to chill at one of the tables with a coffee and the warm sun shining in on me (which is surely the adult’s highlight of these play cafes), I went to play with B… Whilst eyeing up the pumpkin truffles on the counter.
After drawing swirls on the blackboard, ‘eating’ a yummy wooden ice cream from the little ice cream stall, revealing all the Halloween surprise pictures on the huge Montessori board and B trying almost every toy for about 20 seconds, I ordered some food and well needed coffee.
Although a small menu, I thought it had some great choices on it and I’m looking forward to trying more of the dishes in the future. I went for the Breakfast Taco (£8) with an Iced Vanilla Latte (£4). I also had to get one of the little Pumpkin Truffles off the counter and I chose a Picky Platter (£4.50) for B.
As I ordered, B decided it was time to start throwing toys and climbing things she shouldn’t have been… uh oh. Taking her down from the windowsill, she threw herself to the floor and started screaming. Luckily, I was in a space where everyone understood and although I saw the food arriving, I had to grab the changing bag and head to the toilet, where playing with the tap water calmed her down a bit.
As we came out, B spotted another child’s milk bottle which she wanted, so I went to the counter and ordered her a milk (£1) where the lovely lady tried to calm B down too as she noticed I hadn’t had chance to eat my food. We sat down and armed with Tractor Ted music on Spotify, I finally managed to eat some food which although now cold, was very nice. The scrambled eggs combined with the pico de gallo and sour cream was a delicious combo. Hopefully, I will be able to have it again but hot next time. The chocolate orange Pumpkin Truffle was an absolute delight. B drank her milk, chewed her straw, and ate one piece of strawberry. On another day, she’d have wolfed down the food as she loves hummus and cucumber.
I felt like scrapping the review at this point but I don’t think you can visit a play cafe without one or two kids having a tantrum, it’s all part and parcel. Unfortunately this time, it was our turn and I was grateful for the help the lady behind the counter gave us. She also boxed up the picky plate for us to take away.
We will definitely be visiting Playspace again and I’ve already picked the Playspace brunch roll for next time. It’s a fantastic location for us, lovely atmosphere, good service, a tasty menu and excellent educational toys and role play activities for the children. It’s exactly what Penwortham needed.
Have you visited Playspace? Tantrum or no tantrum, let us know.
