Cold Spaghetti

With the ongoing birthday drama, I thought it would be helpful to list some of what I’ve found out about birthday options in the Greater New Orleans area. If you, like me, cannot host a birthday in your house and feel oddly compelled to still have one, here are the options I’ve found… with my take on each.

Please feel free to help me with other ideas!

Audubon Park. Bathrooms are few and far between, but the park is beautiful and space is plentiful… if you manage to not co-incide your event with a big family reunion blarring music, a huge walk-for-(insert cause here), or a torrential rainstorm. If you want electricity, you’ll need a shelter, and those range in price from $125-550 per day, depending on the shelter size and location. Space walks and the like are allowed with permits. There are two smallish ‘tracks’ good for small kids to bike their hearts out. Shleping stuff in and around the park can be a pain, but that’s why we families have wagons.

Audubon Zoo. Best I can tell, arranging to have a party at the Zoo is a painful, expensive process where you have to hound your friends and neighbors for their membership status and plans of party attendance weeks in advance of your party or else the Zoo Keepers come and pop the balloon of the birthday child and confisicate all their presents. Just reading the rules and requirements made my head spin.

The Children’s Museum. This seemed more reasonable than the Zoo, but I avoid TCM on Saturday mornings because it’s CRAZY when parties are in session. Maybe parties there are better with kids 8 and older who know how to elbow kids for a turn.

The Monkey Room. The new hotness. Super-fun indoor play-yard for kids wearing socks. They must wear socks. A very reasonable $90 on the weekdays and $125 on the weekends gets you 2 hours in a party room (there are two) and each kid who comes to the party is an additional $5 and has free reign to Monkey their hearts out. They give you plates, utensils, and cups and will help you coordinate food delivery from local vendors. Except for random Monday nights, they are pretty much booked solid on parties until 2010.

Ivanov’s Gymnastics (Metairie). We went here for a party pre-K. Will was two and the party was for a 4-year old — everyone had a great time. They set up an obstacle course of gym mats and bounce equipment for the kids and then did some activity games. A small party room was used for the last 30 minutes for cake cutting. 90 minutes total for $170. Not a lot of room for loitering parents, but we had fun watching the kids bounce around. They pretty much just have parties on weekends.

Creole Creamery. Ice cream parties offered before they open at noon (parties are from 10:30-12). The whole place is yours to play in, with the last 30 minutes for make-your-own-Sundays ($190 covering 20 Sundays, $5 for each additional Sunday). Older kids can have a ‘this is how we make ice cream’ tutorial party for $250, followed by MYOS. Parents can buy their own treats either on a party tab or pay-as-you-go. Love the idea, but hated the thought of feeding 5 year olds ice cream at 11am and then sending them home to their parents.

Gym Rompers. Big beautiful church room with bad indoor lighting holding a ton of fun toddler and preschool climbing equipment. We did this for Will’s birthday last year (thank goodness, since there was frost on the ground that morning!) They do a short story/song game with the kids, too. There is a stage set up in the room with a long table for a last-supper type cake and ice cream celebration. $200 for 2 hours.

Elmwood Kidsports. The Harahan mega-gym has a variety of parties, two offering indoor play spaces and one seasonal pool party option. The price range goes from $10.95-15.95 per child, with minimums of 15 or 20 children depending on which option you choose. One party option is a huge inflatable obstacle course with climbing and a trampoline. In this option, you stay in the room the entire time, even for cake and snacks. The other party goes from room to room (where different equipment is located) at the sound of a bell for 60 minutes and then spends 30 minutes in a tiny party room for snacks and cake (we’ve attended one of these parties before — fun but sort of loud and crazy). You basically can’t bring a thing — they provide food options, cake options, and only provide utensils, table clothes, plates and napkins if they provide the cake. They provide juice boxes for kids and have soft drink pitchers available for purchase for parents. They also have a Gymnastics party option in a separate facility down the street with similar pricing and offers.

Rivertown Kenner Science Center. $200 for 2 hours, facility is open to the public during the party (but since it’s not particularly busy on any day, this isn’t necessarily a big deal). Sort of a really really really small children’s museum, with toys and a few exhibit type things to play with. Bring quarters for the little rides. There is an upper level that involves steep stairs, so you’ll be freaking out about toddlers in a party environment. Otherwise, it’s a decent size and there is plenty of seating and tables for food within the center itself.

City Park. The Carousel Gardens offers parties located around different rides in the amusement area, including the carousel, from $250-300 for 1 1/2-2 hours. Some parties are offered before the area opens to the public at 11, others are offered during opening hours. Storyland also offers party space within it’s storybook themed areas, ranging from $150-250. You bring everything into the park and do your own set up and clean up. The parks are contained but still spacious and you need a lot of adult supervision, particularly for small children. The parties limited to one ride (i.e.: the City Park Train or the Carousel) are more contained in one spot.