BIG EASY: Adventure Quest Laser Tag

People are often waxing nostalgic for the good ol’ days. Y’know, for a simpler time, when we weren’t obsessed with electronic devices, and when a birthday party meant inviting kids over for cake, ice cream, and pin-the-tail-on-the-donkey. And while I agree that we need to occasionally shut off the smartphones and engage with our families, I am REALLY glad the current trend is to pay someone else to host my kid’s birthday parties!

Don’t get me wrong, I’m a working mom who has to budget both time and money. I’m not some Real Housewife of New Orleans, who throws elaborate parties that cost more than a mid-sized sedan. I’m just talking about the kiddie arcades and bounce places where you get in, play, eat, hand out goodie bags, get out, shell out some cash to the proprietor, and retreat to your nice clean house. We’ve enjoyed partying with the giant mouse and the inflatables in years past, but we had the ultimate little boy birthday party at Adventure Quest Laser Tag in Harahan last weekend, and it was a HUGE success!

If you’ve never been there, file it away in your brain for the next rainy day or boring day-off from school. It’s got an arcade and laser tag (obviously), plus cosmic bumper cars and mini golf. They have three birthday packages at different price points to choose from, depending on how many activities you’re looking for and what extras interest you. Each one includes a private party room, a party attendant, two slices of pizza per guest, unlimited drinks, table settings (plates, cups napkins), cake serving tools (utensils, candles, lighter, knives), a birthday banner, and at least two of the aforementioned activities. This also covers up to 12 guests, with a per guest fee applied to any overage. That fee varies from package to package.

We chose the middle “Treasure” package and purchased the medium sized bundle of video game tokens, which was $50 for 220 tokens. (Please note: we had eight seven-year-old boys, and it barely lasted us until the end of the party!)

As our guests arrived, our very helpful attendant slapped a wristband on them, handed them their tokens, and sent them on their way. As you can imagine, this place can get a little hectic, which is why it’s so awesome that someone else kept up with our itinerary and announced over the PA when and where our party guests needed to go. And each time, the boys would magically appear, like a herd of spastic little monkeys. Our attendant helped serve the kids their lunch, cake, and drinks – and the table would miraculously get cleared afterwards. Our bags of supplies and gifts even found their way to a cart at the conclusion of the party. Amazing!

The kids had an outstanding time, our stress level was very minimal, and we returned to a relatively tidy house, where we could put up our feet and nap for the rest of the afternoon. Name one 1950s housewife who got to enjoy that! Sometimes progress is a good thing!

For more information, or to book your party, visit http://www.lasertagnola.com/ or call (504) 207-4444.