Just this summer alone I've been to painted plate 3 separate times! (Parties, girls nights and whatnot) Each time something different impacted the experience in a negative way. One trip we sat by the window and we were all boiling!!! On their Facebook/IG it always says come in and enjoy A/C but the employee told us it's always super hot by the windows, so no hope of a cool environment if you're in a big party. On another visit (with my 5yr old) it took them almost 50min to bring out her Italian soda. We basically took it to go at that point. I also feel like prices have gone up a lot. The average piece is around $50 or you can paint a ceramic animal for closer to $20. Overall I know I'll be back because the employees are great and getting to paint your own pottery is fun, but I wish the building/food experience was better! Still 4 stars, and watch their social media for deals! read more

The Painted Plate - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Olympia, Washington

So much fun for the family and kids of almost any age. We were there with a group of 5 to 10 year olds and a baby. When it's busy, the place can get awfully squishy so I'd recommend making a reservation during weekends and holiday seasons. They also have coffee and ice cream. Regardless of the season, they still push out the finished projects in the same time so we were there on a Sunday, our items were ready for pick up the next Monday. Once your seat is reserved, you walk in and pick your items to paint and a helper will bring it to your table. The paints are on the table and you need to find the number that matches the sample pallet, which is very helpful because it shows you what the paint will look like afterwards. You can write the numbers on the paper on your table to help remember what colors you're using as a helpful tip. There's many sizes of brushes and paint pens. Afterwards add your name on the bottom and take a picture of your work, that's how you claim it. read more

The Painted Plate - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Olympia, Washington

Really fun few hours. The employees were super nice and friendly! We went for my birthday in November (fam of 4) and then my daughter and I went the week before Christmas. read more

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Very upset with how employees acted while I was there with my family. Talking badly about customers and other employees is NOT ok. Especially when other customers can here you. Very unprofessional and I will not be coming back here. read more

Came from Portland to visit Washington and stayed in Olympia. Tried this place out, they only accommodate for two hours, there's absolutely no room at all to even walk around when there's a lot of people, worse of all they do not ship your work. We had to go back after a weekend and were told they do not do any shipping. It's extremely inconvenient because now we have to drive three hours just to pick up our $86 bowls. We felt rushed to hurry and finish our bowls. Instead of rushing people to get out, why don't they get a bigger place? It just wasn't relaxing as we thought it would be. Not coming back here again for sure. Edit: forgot to mention, they don't tell you on their website but they charge a fee for work in progress. read more

This place was so cute and fun! Lots of pottery options to choose from and love that they offer refreshments as well. Staff is very friendly and accommodating. Would definitely go back read more

The Painted Plate - a heart shaped dish and a cup - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Olympia, Washington

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WONDERFUL Experience for us girls to spend the dY being creative! Professional staff, informative and easy to follow instruction. Ice cream bar a bonus and hydration options available! Will be back! read more

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This was by far the best paint your ceramic studio I've been too! They offer a wide variety of snacks and drinks including Ice cream and wine. A variety of pieces to choose from. They have several stencils, paint brushes and sponges to use. It is a bit pricey like most ceramic studios. The staff was super friendly and accommodating. Everything was very clean and organized even with how busy it was. You can call ahead to reserve a spot. We were a walk in around noon and it started filling up shortly after we were seated. We parked a couple blocks away by the flea market since we planned on stopping at several stops. read more

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My girls and I like to paint items as gifts for people. Half the time, we decide to keep them, but that's just the way it is. I prefer it to the mall. We just moved here and had our spot in Redmond. This place was superior in a few ways. 1) All colors are available at each table, though there are about 50 colors. You can pluck from another empty table if you are missing something. 2) We had a waitress who served us ice cream and mimosas. 3) They take tap to pay It is a pretty penny, so save up for your experience. A date with my kids was about $50 before tip. They ask you to write your name in pencil on your item and take a pic of it before leaving. I also took a pic of my receipt. It is not as disorganized as other reviews lead you to believe. Also, the service was incredible. If anyone appeared snooty, it was the other customers. It was very busy and reservations are recommended. They squeezed us in before an afternoon reservation. Customer service does not mean kissing ass all hours of the day. The love you make is the love you take. read more

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It is best to have an appointment as the business is in a small store front. Parking maybe an issue as it is primarily street parking. You will have two hours to select and paint your pottery, so be focused. Make sure you take pictures and label your work, it will help when you go back to pick it up. Be sure to return promptly to do your pickup! Staff is busy going from table to table helping customers, so you may have to seek them out. They are very helpful and friendly. Basically, have fun painting, you will get a lifetime of joy using or looking at your creation. read more

I've been here multiple times and it's always so much fun! They have a huge variety of pottery to choose from and the staff is wonderful. Definitely recommend Painted Plate! read more

The Painted Plate - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Olympia, Washington

Girl that was working today was super sweet and made a great drink, thank you! I didn't paint Today but came back because the Oly Fog was so Good. read more

It's definitely changed over the years- used to be amazing but not anymore. I used to love this place. While it is cute and fun for kids the customer service is lacking now, very rude and don't like to help everyone. The was one of the places I would go downtown for (I hate downtown oly now) but now I have no reason to go down there read more

There is basically no verification of which item belongs to who. They just let anyone walk in there & take whatever item they want. So you can go & spend your afternoon painting your custom item & pay for your custom item and go back to pick it up to find it stolen. The store doesn't care. If you value your time & money, definitely do not go here. 100% do not recommend. Reading the other reviews, I can see we aren't the only one with this problem. You'd think they would get a better system in place to make sure you get the item back that you created and paid for. read more

The pros: the art pieces were really cute and they had a good selections of paint colors The cons: Parking is awful, the building was freezing so badly my kids did not enjoy their time, pricing was outrageous. Probably a decent place for adults (bundle up) but I think it was a way overly priced to bring kids to paint pottery, for example a plate was around $50! Also had no clue about what supplies they had as no one showed us, I stumbled upon them when we were finished painting with just the regular paints. read more

Such a fun place. They have a wide variety of vessels to paint and many color options. Staff are very friendly. Items take a week to be ready to take home. Place is a little small. read more

Great staff that were very helpful. Came in to make some gifts, there are COVID precautions in place and masks are required. Ample seating, great choices to paint, lots of supplies so we never had to wait for a color or tool. There is a snack menu as well, coffee and treats, overall great experience and value. You may think you could do all this at home, well you can but you'd have to maintain all the supplies and materials and then figure out how to fire the pottery. For me, not that artsy, this place rocks. Thanks team, excellent work. read more

I've been here 5 times in the past two months. I seriously love it. There has been someone different working there each time. 4 out of the 5 employees have been super friendly and provided awesome customer service. I can't remember all their names, I think one was named Autumn or Meadow and another was Izzy. There was only 1 girl that I have any complaints about, I don't think she told me her name, but she seemed very bothered that I was there and annoyed when I ordered some coffee. It was the middle of the week and it wasn't even busy. Like I said though, most of the staff has been awesome. I strongly recommend going on a weekday, it's a nice atmosphere when not all the tables are full and it's actually quite relaxing. I have been there on a chaotic Saturday night and it wasn't horrible, but I definitely don't prefer it. I've had a few food items off their menu, the artichoke pesto and bruschetta with the parmean crostinis are delicious and good sized portions for 2 people to share. I have yet to try the ice cream, but I have seen others order and it looks like their portions are quite generous. I especially love that you dont have to feel rushed to get a piece done and can come back another day to finish up. It can definitely get a bit pricey, but I'd say it's worth it. read more

The Painted Plate - Flower pot in progress - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Olympia, Washington

After spending almost $100 on items and not being advised that they toss them after 30 days, we finally got around to picking out items up, only to be advised that they were thrown out. Awesome. What a waste of money. read more

I always try to find new activities to do as a family and something where the kids will enjoy themselves. And before all this covid stuff started happening I was walking around downtown and stumbled uptown this art studio and knew I'd have to come back and bring my boys for a day of fun. Online it says you do not have to make appointments but I had called and decided to make one just incase they got busy. When we arrived it was easy, they had our table ready and sat us down after everyone who was painting picked out their art piece they wanted to paint. The staff here were extremely friendly and went over all the different ways the kids could paint and would bring the colors the kids wanted. This is a fun family activity and they sell snacks for the whole family from sundaes and milkshakes to coffees and little bites. So the kids got to fill up on sugar and make a masterpiece- every kids dream. But once we were done they had us initial our pieces and gave us a receipt for the following week when our final products were ready. My boys really loved seeing their final pieces. Now it can be pricey but they offer many different price tiers and have specials as well. And coming here you support local business which is always a plus. We'll be back in the winter because pieces like these will be great for Christmas gifts. read more

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My daughter and I come here every year for her birthday. It is a tradition to get her out of school early, get lunch, and come paint a plate which reflects the past year of her life. We always have amazing service, there are plenty of options, and lots of ideas and colors of paint. It loses a star because the last years plates we got chipped after a week of having them. Not sure if they weren't glazed enough or what but it was super disappointing to pay all that money, work so hard on our project to have it chip so easily. This is not a cheap activity but it is a fun way to spend a few hours with your kiddo. Yummy ice cream, snacks, and coffee. read more

Just went in for my first time during quarantine for their "painting party kit" to do at home! It was so simple and fun to choose my pieces and paints and the staff were super helpful! Very clean and safe (hand sanitizer and masks available) and social distancing was enforced! Perfect for an at-home painting party with those you love. read more

This place is so much fun! The casual environment, and great assortment of items, made for a great experience. The food was also good for snacking while working on our art pieces! read more

My favorite place to go! I think the prices are very reasonable, and they often have special events with lower pricing. Love their ice cream! The staff is super friendly and will help you if you don't understand something. read more

Are you looking for a super fun place to express your creativity near #JBLM?? Make sure to check out The Painted Plate Olympia! Went there with the kiddos and they had SO MUCH FUN!!! You can even get drinks, food or ice cream!! #paintedplate #jblmareathingstodo #funwithkids #paint #art read more

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My friend and I are hardcore when we get together. Every time we visit each other we eat ice cream and paint pottery, like I said.. hard core. When she came to visit me here in Olympia we looked up and found this place which seemed perfect for our wild weekend. The Painted Plate is a very happening place in downtown Oly. We came in on a Saturday and could barely find a place to sit! The place is rather intimate with two rooms separated by a half wall and the ice cream bar and barista station taking up one corner. The rest of the walls are covered with shelves exhibiting the different pottery available to paint. There are several small tables and a long table for seating and painting. There are a variety of options for painting but certainly less than other places I've painted at. My friend and I were able to find a couple of fun rice bowls with chopsticks. Once you pick your pottery you can go grab paint and brushes and even a treat or coffee and start being craftsey. The people who work here were very nice and offered to help us with a couple of techniques we hadn't tried before. We spent a couple crazy hours sipping cocoa and painting. Because it was so busy it was pretty difficult to hear each other and we were sharing a table with some other people who bumped the table every time they got up, which can put a damper on your masterpiece. Next time I think we'll try a day that's a little more quiet and nab a table to ourselves. Overall the price was comparable to other places, the snacks and nom beverages were a nice touch, employees were friendly and fun, and our pottery was ready on time. Solid friend date night location! read more

The only reason I am giving two stars is because it was kind of fun and they serve alcohol, I don't think I will be coming back though. My boyfriend, his brother, his brothers girlfriend, and I decided to go on a double date here because there was a deal. It was fun to just sit and paint while having drinks but the reason I knocked off two stars was because of the horrible service. Right off the bat, I felt like we were a complete burden to the girl that had to help us. I asked a simple question which was if I could order a drink and she really rolled her eyes and let out a fat sigh. I also asked questions about what we could paint and what exactly was apart of the deal. She was so rude that we didn't want to ask another question for the rest of the night. The tone and vibe she gave off to us and other customers was horrible. You can have drinks and ice cream all you want, if your service is shitty then no thx. I would rather drive to Puyallup or Seattle for better service and the same concept. This place isn't that special, just close to home. read more

This place is super cool - pricey - but cool. Perfect for a family outing. Pick your ceramic, paint it, pay, then come back in a week after they have put your ceramic in the kiln. There are so many ceramics to choose from and they serve appetizer and drinks. Downsides are it can get super cramped in there. Practically every table was full and with people moving around it makes getting anywhere challenging. The other downside is lack of inspiration. We were newbs and I picked out a cool platter.... but after I sat down I was like, "ok... what the heck do I paint on it." Looking around all I saw was Christmas inspired stuff and that isn't what I wanted. Maybe I missed some inspiration on what to paint somewhere? But I loved this place and I will definitely return! read more

I took my niece and nephew here yesterday to paint plates for my parents as Christmas presents. The store is brightly lit, spacious and has great examples littered around to inspire your creativity. The paint selection is extensive, you can wipe away mistakes with a wet sponge and there even stencils if you don't feel like freehanding anything. The staff were very nice and helpful even though they were extremely busy juggling all the customers. The only downside to my experience is that I had no idea how expensive it is! Each of the dinner plates the kids painted were $24 and with tax, our total was $52! That's a lot for two plates. But it is a priceless gift and a great memory to share with my niece and nephew, so in the end, definitely worth it. read more

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A friend and I took our kids to The Painted Plate yesterday. We had a blast! The staff members were extremely helpful. They walked us through the process of choosing, painting, leaving the item(s) on the shelf when we were done, and then paying at the end. Staff set up the table for us. All of the materials needed were provided. The glazes were numbered and they were accompanied by a palette of what the fired glazes looked like. The prices are reasonable since all of the bisque items are made on site, painting (glazing) materials are included, and staff fires your items for you. The kids ranged in age from 2 to 5. They painted a pig, a turtle, a magnet, and a cup. My friend painted a new sign for her house. This is a great activity for all ages. Everyone had a great time. The Painted Plate takes reservations for painting groups. I am very thankful I dropped by on Thursday to see if Saturday was going to be busy. If you have a party of five or more, I suggest you make a reservation so you can get a table. Some of the painting packages such as the parent and child package include a drink or ice cream in the price. Their ice cream is amazing! We got ice cream on the Thursday visit. When my daughter dropped her ice cream on the ground, the gal who was there gave her another one for free! This is a great business. We'll be back! -edit- I forgot to add The Painted Plate has a handicap accessible bathroom with handicap rails on the wall near the toilet. There is also a baby changing station available. Be careful---the door sticks and can be difficult to open! read more

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A fantastic experience!!! My husband and I came in for the first time for a date night, and coincidentally they have a "date night" special :-) there was a shelf of items that pertained to the special; my husband chose a regular plate and I picked a coffee mug. And with that, we were able to choose two beverages (I suggest the lemon chamomile tea for something soothing and delicious!) Maddie was super friendly, greeted us with a smile and sat us promptly. She understood it was our first time, so she took the time to thoroughly go through how to do everything with us. She did mention to make sure that we do 4 coats of paint for everything; the base and any design to follow on top of that, other wise it will end up being more like a water color once it has been baked- glad we listened! They recommend that you allow about 2 hours of your time to do the painting, and it literally does take about that after all the coats of paint! All in all, a great experience, and excellent service!! We will be back for more fun :-) read more

The Painted Plate - Not bad for my first time :D - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Olympia, Washington

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Environment was very relaxed, drinks were phenomenal, and service was great. 100% will be back and glad we came.

Edited down to 1 star: Never go here please! We went for Valentines day spent over 75$ we went to pick and part of me set was missing. We were told there was nothing they could do as "there are signs saying to put your name on it." We checked the main room there were no sings. Maybe it was in the back room, but we were told not to go there as it was too crowded and no one told us to put our names on our saucers. We will not waste any more money with this poorly run business. Let's start with the Pros: The painted plate as a good selection of pottery not to large and not too small in my opinion, and all of the prices are listed clearly. They have a nice selection of paint for every table and your own brushes for each table. They also have come fun extra supplies in communal bins. Their starving artist cheese plate with fig and goat cheese is to die for. Their sweet drinks (coco, coffee and such) come in huge mugs with generous portions. Lastly their ice cream is pretty good too. We enjoyed the raspberry sorbet and I appreciated the dairy free alternative. Thing you should know: When you make a reservation you get a two hour time slot. They do not tell you this and my boyfriend who is a slow painter felt rushed and frustrated with his final result because of that. This place is often crowded which makes it hard to get around. It also mean that you will be numbed into a lot on busy nights. Me and my boyfriend and pretty skinny people and we both felt cramped trying to walk in the place. Cons: We went on a busier night and I have some sympathy for that, but our table got straight up ignored for a lot of the night. I'm not sure why. We are young and I do have colored hair, but we live a town where that is common. We were always polite and tried to be as patient as possible. When we first got in we had to wait in the check out line to be checked in for our reservation. We saw after that facts several other tables being checked in at the door. We placed our drink orders and got them quickly. We were always doing a deal where we got a Sunday with our pottery. They dropped off a Sunday card for us to fill out. Over an hour later no one had picked up our Sunday card, come over to take our other order, or checked in on us. We saw all the tables around us getting checked in with. We also need a new paint as the bottle my boyfriend was working with turned out to be mostly empty. Having to wait 30 minutes to get a new color cause we couldn't not find anyone to help us really put a damper on the night. Our waitress literally ignored us while when walking buy. I ended up going to the front to place the orders for both things and was told I should have waited. This pissed me off some as at this point we had less then an hour left to finishing painted and eat. We did get our food and paint, and we managed to finish our pieces in time, but the lack of customer service made the whole night a little frustrating. Final thoughts: I would come back, but only when they have light traffic. Also; at some point they let one couple open to the door to the place which made our table freezing as we sat further back at and angle to the door that let the wind blow into us. To their credit they made them close it a little while later. read more

this place is so fun! not many paint places also serve drinks / snacks, so this was nice. and their options were cute and reasonably priced

I really hesitate on how many stars to give this review--I am between a 2 and 3. I am specifically going to review the birthday party I had there. All phone calls/visits before the birthday party and after were 5 stars to me. Between 2 and 3 stars was specifically for the birthday party I had there. We planned a birthday party for a Friday from 7p-9p. We planned on 9 kids, but 13 showed up. I had already called painted plate and told them 9 kids. We arrived a little before 7p and the place was pretty busy. Everything was set up for our party. Everyone started by picking the piece they wanted to paint. They were able to choose from a plate of $12 or $15 items. Once everyone had their piece, the instructions were explained and the painting began. This is where the customer service went downhill. I am accustomed to having a party host for the ENTIRE duration of the party. There were 2 people working that night and neither was 'assigned' to my party. With 13 kids, we had questions and needed help. I had to find one of the two workers each time this happened. It's not that they were messing around or doing unprofessional things...they were busy working with all of the other people that were at the painted plate that night. Since you can order food there, they were helping people with food and with the painting process. As kids from the party finished up, I was the one cleaning up their area and bringing their dirty brushes, paint tile, and bowl to the sink. I was the one throwing their paper towels away. This was not how I wanted to spend my time at my daughter's birthday party. After the painting was done, I again had to find a staff member to actually clean the tables so we could do cupcakes and presents. No help with cupcakes or presents. It was nearing 9p and I had parents picking up at 9p and we still needed to do ice cream. I found a staff member and asked her if she could handle ice cream because parents would be there soon. (Paid $2 per kid for ice cream.) So all in all, the birthday party was not how I envisioned it. I have had numerous birthday parties at different venues and a party host/hostess is assigned to basically do all of the work for you so you can enjoy yourself. When I am paying over $250 for a birthday party, I expect that. read more

We love The Painted Plate. When our daughter was about 6 months old we had her hand print and foot print done in clay and then came back after it was fired to decorate it. Since then we have been several times. We have picture frames, trinket boxes, and a clock, all are great treasures and memories. The Parent/Child package is a great deal, two items to paint and two drinks or two ice creams for $30. We went recently with the whole family and I had no qualms about letting my 2.5 yo paint her own plate while I painted her a popcorn bowl. When we go to pick up those pieces we are going to do our son's hand and foot prints! read more

Went there on a date with my husband. We had a blast!! It was so cute and exciting (doing something completely different that we had never done). We painted mugs specifically for each other. Everything was great. We spent $60 total including a latte and an ice cream cone. It was a great experience. Here's the kicker- we specifically asked if we could DISHWASH our mugs. She told us yes (and at $20 per we damn well better be able to). We went and got our mugs and loved them!!! They were wonderful. ONE TIME in the washer and they are cracked. We were like hmm... Ok... Washed again just thinking maybe it needed to settle and it was significantly worse. Now we can't even use the mugs because we tested and they in fact leak liquid on the outside. I gave 2 stars because the experience was great. But I DONT like wasting my money. Of these weren't dishwasher safe then I should have been told. I have plenty of things that need to be hand washed... Very disappointed. read more

This place is great! They're really friendly and they have lots of options I was even able to make a spoon holder for my ladles! They have an option for rushed since it takes a couple of days for them to fire it and if you're coming from out of town they also have a cool option where they can just ship it to you so you have to worry about picking it up later on your trip. read more

I wish I could give The Painted Plate more stars but I just can't. We came here for a party that I had booked 5 days in advance with a 6 person reservation and a party platter. The lady I booked with said it would be fine if I called and decreased that number at any time. I did need to so I called that morning and decreased it two. I left a message that later on they said they never received. This party was for my girlfriends birthday and we had been wanting to try this place for a while. We live in tacoma so we drove about 50 minutes to get there. The place was noticeably not busy and I was intimidated right away. I even told our hostess that to warn her of my subsequent questions. She gave us a run down of what to do and left us. Every time we had a question we felt like we were imposing. There was a point in which we didn't want to ask a question out of fear of bugging her. I honestly picked out the easiest thing to do. A white vase with black lettering. In the beginning the host had stated that if we made mistake you could just wash it off. I made a mistake and started to wash it off and she scolded me saying "don't wash the paint pen off! That's why we paint it first!" Then took it out of my hands saying she would fix it. I started to tear up a bit and didn't hide it. I said to her as she was "fixing" it that we must be her most high maintenance customers and she must just want us to go home. She said nothing and walked away. This was supposed to be a fun birthday date for us and it turned into the complete opposite. This was so disappointing. The kicker is now we have to go back for our art pieces. Ugh! read more

Went to with my daughter for special Father-Daughter evening this past Friday for a watercolor lesson and the entire experience was simply FANTASTIC! From the greeting we received, to the wonderful and patient lesson from our local instructor and the end when we walked out with our frames prints it was all a memorable experience. I have lived in Olympia now for over 10 years and while I have looked inside and seen the various goods they have, this was the first time I actually had the experience. I highly recommend The Painted Plate! read more