Last weekend my family and friends were invited along to the Castlewood Brewers Fayre located in Derbyshire to test out their brand new Beano themed play area for ‘Play at Brewers Fayre’. As every parent will know soft play centres can often end up being a bit of a love/hate day-out. Of course your kids love them, but if the centre is unclean or unsupervised they can be a real let down. Did we love the new area at Brewers Fayre? Read on to find out!

First impressions

The play area is bright, clean and surprisingly roomy (I could stand up straight inside and I’m reasonably tall). My friend also pointed out that the flooring was both clean and sensible so you didn’t mind mooching around in just your socks. The staff were very attentive keeping things spick and span, I saw them out with a cordless vacuum on a couple of occasions.

But is it fun?

Thanks to a great face-painter, my tiger, menace and ninja were straight in to test out the play equipment. There was a slide, tunnels, swings, rolls, cars and more, so the kids were thoroughly entertained. In fact they thought the equipment was so good that they’ve asked me every day since if we can go back! They even managed to meet Denis and Gnasher. I believe the cost to use this equipment is £3 per 90mins which seems like a fairly good deal, especially as parents can sit (or even eat) on the side lines while their little angels are having fun.

How about food?

The food on offer at Brewers Fayre is fairly typical for a chain restaurant. Along with the new play area there is now a Beano themed kids menu which got a thumbs up from my three. They tested out:

The Cod-Apult

Load up with crispy cod bites, chips, peas and ketchup.

The Big, Bad Dog

Hotdog, chips, ketchup and mini corn on the cob. Get your gnashers around that!

The Menace Burger

Beef burger with ketchup, coleslaw and chips.

Cookie Double Dare

A cool layer of ice cream sandwiched between two cookies.

Tricky Minnie Doughnuts

Lip-smacking mini doughnuts.

Plus unlimited soft drinks (this caused a lot of excitement).

The only complaint I heard was that the Cookie Double Dare dessert had rather small cookies.

So would we recommend a visit?

For families with kids it’s often hard to find a restaurant that can cater to the needs of everyone without testing the patience of the adults or boring the kids. Play at Brewers Fayre does a fine job of keeping everyone happy and well fed. We would definitely go back, in fact the kids have asked if they can have their birthday party there, which says it all I think.

For more Information

Visit Brewers Fayre online to find your nearest restaurant.