Last week the girls and I shook up our regular playdate with friends and headed over to Detroit Kid City in Southfield.

I’d never heard of the place before, but my friend Rochelle (hi Rochelle!) read about it and suggested that we check the place out.

I literally went into the playdate not knowing at all what the place was.  I thought it was somewhere downtown in the basement of a museum…no idea where I got that notion! LOL

So when we pulled up and saw that it was a coffee shop, I was surprised but excited to see what it was all about.  We saw a stroller sitting outside the door, and that clued us in that they weren’t permitted inside.  I was glad that I brought our Ergo carrier, but my friend took her sweet baby boy inside in his carseat carrier and that worked out fine too.

We were greeted right away by a friendly guy in a mechanic-style shirt bearing his first name.  He gave us a rundown of what to expect (admission charge, craft and story time) along with a short disclaimer sheet to fill out.

I noticed immediately that all of the employees were young, friendly guys and I thought that was a cool concept.  So many kids spend nearly every waking moment around women and other kids.  There’s nothing wrong with that, but I think it’s great for them to be around good men too.

We arrived about 45 minutes after the place opened, so it was still relatively quiet inside.  We walked along the “city street” to a couple of adult-sized benches.  They were situated right in the center of the city, so we had a good view of the area the girls were going to be playing in.  The whole place was no bigger than most Starbucks, but it certainly didn’t feel crowded despite all the options for the kids.

The girls quickly scoped the place out and we snapped a few phone pics before getting our chat on :)

Throughout the morning I saw the guys tidying up areas that kids had moved on from.  How fun to leave an area only to find it all put back together when you wander back to it later?!  The grocery store bins got put back together, the postal uniforms were hung back up and the kitchen was re-sorted occasionally so that each one would seem fresh and fun for the next round of play.

I know that Grace’s own toys all seem more appealing when they are cleaned up and organized rather than mimicking a tornado’s aftermath, so I loved that they thought of this as a part of the process there.

When we checked in at the door we were given this paper bag with cut-out pieces to make the Father’s Day craft.  They had a craft area set up with paint and glue sticks and kids could make their craft at any point in the morning.

Story time started at 11:00 and after some quick Q&A with the kids about their playtime so far that morning, one of the guys read 2 short books to the kids in the “back woods” area.

I just scratched the surface of the city with the pics above.  There was also a recording studio, a grocery store, a car manufacturing plant and more.

So if you’re like me your main question at this point is, “How much was it?”

Regular admission is $10 per child over 12 months old and parents are free with the purchase of a drink.

Because I didn’t realize it was a coffee shop, I guzzled my cup of joe on the way over, so I wasn’t itching for another beverage.  My friend and I didn’t get drinks, but no one was policing that and when we checked in they charged us for our two girls (not the babies) and didn’t even mention us having to buy drinks.

I will say that they have an impressive menu of organic coffee drinks that are all under $3.50, so I wouldn’t hesitate to get a drink next time.

Each of our girls had a snack part way through the morning and it was only $1 for a small bag of Annie’s Organic bunny crackers which I thought was totally reasonable.

This would obviously be kind of crazy if you have 3 or 4 kids over the age of one because who want’s to drop $30 to $40 for a morning of play? But if you’re like Rochelle and I and have a baby and a bigger kid, it’s really perfect.

Memberships are available and run $100 for a month of unlimited access for up to 5 family members.  If you live in or near Southfield and have a few children this could be a good investment.

I also saw something about a summer (3 month) membership for $125 which is a $175 savings and would be a great option for rainy summer days.

Overall, I was pretty impressed with the place.  It was a different and fun thing to do with Grace and I enjoyed the adult conversation that Rochelle and I were able to have while the girls played and the babies chilled out.

If you’re in the metro Detroit area you should check it out.  Let me know if you have any other questions and I’m happy to answer them in the comments!