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Build-A-Bear Workshop

3.5 (81 reviews)
Open 10:00 am - 9:00 pm

Build-A-Bear Workshop Photos

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Reviews With Photos

Grinch 10/10 super adorable!!!!
Erica M.

Can't ever go wrong making memories here at BAB. My son just had to get the Grinch. He is soooo adorable. The staff here are super friendly and has great customer service. P.S. Don't forget the certificate:)

Staff stuffing my bear and putting its heart inside! Awwwww
Win L.

This place is so much fun for kids and adults alike! They take COVID seriously and don't deserve the lower ratings due to complaints about masks and waiting times; they are taking precautions to keep customers safe and I really appreciate that! Wait Time: - can be long during peak times because the store is small and they take proper COVID precautions but the wait is shorter than other locations Staff: - really friendly, observed they tried hard to help and make every customer feel special - knowledgeable and patient with the kids (and parents!) - they do upsell (as I imagine they're trained and expected to do) but it wasn't obnoxious and they were respectful Price: - there's a range of pricing but it's definitely not cheap and see it being a special reward and experience Parking: -tons of easy/open parking at this mall location; it's a perk to hit up Hillsdale instead of Valley Fair

Absolutely love the bear she picked
Rheine N.

As a super protective mom and promoting double masking to protect our children. This shop really takes the pandemic seriously and does what they can to keep us safe. I greatly appreciate it. My toddler (3) and I are more than happy to wait in line outside so that we can prevent the spread. It was our first time and all of the staff are more than happy to walk us through every step. Thank you so much, my daughter had a blast!

San Mateo mask order
Cassandra C.

If your child is even slightly over the age of 2 and can't/won't wear their mask, you will be denied access. My family and I tried to go to the store but was denied because my newly 2 year old won't wear a mask. I informed the employee the local mask ordinance states that "any child 2 years old or less must not wear a Face Covering because of risk of suffocation." And also that "the Order does not require that any child aged twelve years or less wear a Face Covering." The employee said that it is there store policy. Rather than arguing, my family and I left and my child super disappointed. I went on the Build-A-Bear website and it states in their FAQ page "guest are expected to follow local government and mall requirements." It also states that "Bear builders will be wearing a Build-A-Bear mask and ENCOURAGE our guest to do the same." Upon gaining that information from their website, I called the store to obtain the store managers name and store number since I will be contacting corporate. Fortunately the store manager picked up and I was able to tell her my experience. She was super nice about the whole thing and apologized and told me that she will talk to her general/area manager about their mask rule and call me back. She called me back and said that they are still enforcing the "2+ mask rule" because they are following State order although the company website clearly says LOCAL. I let her know that the verbiage needs to be changed on their website because it contradicts what they are enforcing in their store. The only reason why I'm leaving a 2 star opposed to 1 is because the manager was actually pleasant to talk to. (Side note: we've actually been practicing with our 2 year old to wear and keep it on but if you can only imagine the struggle....)

Unstuffed $15 online special bear
Joanne T.

As an adult purchasing a bear for myself, the staff were extremely friendly and answered all the questions I had! They were also understanding when I had changed my mind about a bear they were putting an online order for me. My only complaint is a miscommunication issue that I wanted them to ordered a pre-stuffed bear for me, not an unstuffed one. Otherwise I had a pleasant time at the store itself!

Kenny C.

#NationalTeddyBearDay We dropped into (BABW) & didn't expect to get a bear. However #NationalTeddyBearDay at $6.50, sure! Why not! I'm not sure who the MGR is & I hope this review gets escalated to Corporate. The help w/ EVERY single staff member was pure amazing! I know having to deal w/ retail, customer service and especially children is no easy task. Manager...you know who was scheduled for work yesterday. Please show them this review & please continue treating them well. "When you take care of your workers, they will take care of your clients" - Richard Bronson (Sunday, September 8, 2019)

Bear employee

I often take my children to build a bear and they have had amazing experiences in the past at other locations. Today I wanted to take my two nieces as they have never been before. Unfortunately our experience was extremely poor with the young lady Thea handling our bears. She looked as if she did not want to be there and lacked enthusiasm. Her sass while explaining instructions to our children and inability to show joy during what should have been a magical time needs to be addressed. With the Covid times it is these events that mean the most to children and parents . And after spending over $150 you would think there would be more care from the employees. I would appreciate a response on this from management. Thank you. Date/time if visit- 8/12 1:00-2:00p

Making her birth certificate. Welcome Lulu!

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4 months ago

The worst unempathic staff in the world. Wouldn't recommend buying from here as the staff is rude and slow.

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3 years ago

It was fun and worth the money and the staffs were nice. Kinda expensive but it's build a bear

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Ask the Community - Build-A-Bear Workshop

Review Highlights - Build-A-Bear Workshop

hehe As for clothes for the stuffed animal, I was hoping to get the Safari as I seen it on their online store, but I realized ..

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Safari Run - Arcade

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4.2(225 reviews)
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We've been here for camp, open play, and birthday parties. Always a clean play place!…read more This review is specifically for the summer camp. My daughter really enjoyed it. As a parent, a few things that I really liked about this camp: 1) they provide snack 2) they make sure the kids wash their hands 3) they have a drive thru pick up/ drop off system. Very easy and convenient. You show your ID to pick up your kid - very safe. 4) the kids did so many activities throughout the day. They would play games and do crafts and it seemed like the workers were very engaged with the kids 5) they share pictures with you at the end of the week. You can also find pictures on instagram each day Great place, highly recommend!

Parking is very limited in the area and primarily street parking…read more Weekends are closed to the public for birthday parties. They run multiple parties at the same time and you rotate hourly between the gym, food, and arcade. Gym: Nice play structure with a small area for younger kids. Probably most ideal for kids 3-5. Food: Aside from cake, you have to utilize their food options. We had pizza, fried chicken, juice/water/soda and fruit. The dining area is quite small so if you are expecting more than 30 total people, you will feel like sardines. Arcade: Geared towards young kids, but they also have skeeball. Birthday packages are on the pricey side (starting at $750) so probably would wait until kids are at least 4-5 so that they can enjoy everything.

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Safari Run - Clean and fun!

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Imagination City

Imagination City

4.6(159 reviews)
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We hosted my daughter's 3rd birthday at Imagination City and had an amazing experience. Janine, the…read moreowner, was incredible and present throughout our entire 3 hour party. She truly took care of everything, from setup and food refills to coordinating the group photo, cake time, and a smooth wrap-up with goodie bags. We also used their preferred décor vendor, Air Lollipops, and the balloon setup was already beautifully done when we arrived. It looked fantastic and added so much to the party. The kids had an absolute blast. The space is perfect for a wide range of ages. I loved the layout because parents can relax in the party area while still easily watching their kids play. Easy location, good parking, and completely stress-free. We would absolutely come back and highly recommend hosting a party here!

'im extremely disappointed with my experience at Imagination City, specifically with their customer…read moreservice and lack of flexibility. I booked a same-day playtime slot for January 2 at 3:00 pm. Unfortunately, my children woke up from their nap with a fever, and as a responsible parent, I chose not to bring sick children into a shared play space. I reached out that same day to explain the situation and request a refund or at least a credit. I never received a response and had to follow up again two weeks later by calling. Only then was I told that no refund or credit would be issued due to their policy. While they repeatedly stated they "empathize" and agree that sick children should stay home, they still refused to offer any accommodation -- not even a credit -- and abruptly ended the conversation. I was also told comparisons like missing flights or Disneyland trips, which felt dismissive and irrelevant to a small, local children's play facility. I understand businesses have policies, but a children's business should also show compassion and common sense when illness is involved. This experience made it clear that customer service and flexibility are not a priority here. I would not recommend this place to other parents based on how this situation was handled.

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Imagination City - Grocery store set up

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Ninja Republic

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4.5(31 reviews)
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Kid friendly
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This is a great place to come to if you have a high energy kid that needs to burn their energy off…read more My son has recently taken an interest to American Ninja Warrior and Nina Republic has obstacle courses set up that mirror the same obstacles you would see on the show, which is really cool. We came by on an afternoon during open gym - you pay a flat fee to get up to 4 hours of playtime. While there are some staff members present that might give a bit of guidance on how to go through the courses, it is relatively hands off and you are on your own. Parents can sit on the chairs on the side to watch, but can also go on the mat as needed to assist their kids. My son really enjoyed his experience here - when he started off, he could only go halfway up the warped wall but after a couple of hours of practice, was able to reach the top with his hand. He is already looking forward to his next visit here so he can try again. Everyone wears their outside shoes on the mat so I think that takes away a bit from the cleanliness of the place, especially on the type of rainy day that we came by. Bathrooms could have also been a bit better maintained - paper products were running low and soap ran out as well. Not a huge deal as we could work around this, just something that could be optimized for an even better experience.

Hosted a joint 10 year old birthday party for about 20 kids and 20 adults. Planning the party was…read moresimple with Regan. It was clear that his top priorities were safety and all guests having fun. He worked with our schedule needs and the kids various interests. Our kids were nonstop running around, laughing, having a great time. And the best part as a party mom was that he frequently encouraged me to sit back and relax as he and his staffed had everything under control with the kids. The facility is clean and spacious. The gym has endless opportunity for fun and challenge. Our 10 year olds did not want to leave.

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Ninja Republic - Birthday cake brought in at one of our Ninja Parties!

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Birthday cake brought in at one of our Ninja Parties!

Palo Alto Junior Museum & Zoo - Feeding the tortoise

Palo Alto Junior Museum & Zoo

4.4(388 reviews)
10.7 mi

I had to run some errands in Palo Alto, and my little one tagged along with me for this trip. I…read morethought it'd be fun to bring her along to this museum. There isn't much fun stuff to do in Palo Alto if you're a tiny tot, but this place seemed like it was created for the little ones! Would highly rec if you are in Palo Alto for a day and want to bring your young child somewhere. There are different parts to this - a museum, and also a mini zoo. The museum has all sorts of fun activities, similar to the Bay Area Discovery with building blocks, magnets, trains, cars, tops, etc. The mini zoo is also quite fun with a variety of animals, although not many. The quality of the animals was great, though. They had a feeding hour for the Flamingos when I was there, and although my toddler was not interested, it seemed like the staff stayed for the whole hour, and made sure that anyone who wanted to do it had a chance to do so. Other animals there included a free-roaming peacock! The only draw here is that it's a little small, compared to a real zoo, or a real museum such as the Bay Area Discovery Museum, or the California Academy of Sciences. That being said, the price for this museum was quite reasonable, at $14 per person over 1 year old. Even for the 1.5 hours I was there, I thought it was well worth it! Free parking too. If in the area, I'd definitely stop by again.

Pretty nice little spot for the kids to spend some time. It's not very large, so be prepared for…read morethat. Still, we were able to spend a quality couple of hours here and enjoy the time with the kids. A nice little museum with a tree house and some animals that the kids will enjoy. Again, slightly small, but overall a good time.

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Palo Alto Junior Museum & Zoo - Flamingo!

Flamingo!

Palo Alto Junior Museum & Zoo - Feeding the flamingos

Feeding the flamingos

Palo Alto Junior Museum & Zoo - Climbing in the Tree House!

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Climbing in the Tree House!

Build-A-Bear Workshop - toys - Updated May 2026

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