The Mighty Axe in North Phoenix!

 

If you are looking for a fun way to relieve some stress and learn a new skill, then heading to an axe throwing location may be right up your alley. There is a fun hangout spot located on High Street near Desert Ridge in North Phoenix called The Mighty Axe. They offer axe throwing, a small arcade, and a cozy bar area where you can get a drink or sit an play a board game. They offer walk-in's or you can make a reservation online prior to visiting. 

Depending on the size of your group & if the room is available, I would recommend booking the VIP room. The open lanes are $35 per person an hour and the VIP room is $45 a person, while you still only get an hour to throw the difference between the two is being in your own private area with the ability to select your own music & you'll have a personal waiter who will periodically stop by to see if you need anything. Online is shows that you need at least six people in your party to book a VIP room, we only had five, but I called ahead of time and asked if there was open space if we could book it anyway. The general manager on that day was awesome & let us book the VIP room since they had plenty of openings on the day we wanted to visit. 

Upon your arrival you'll enter into their bar & lounge area, where you'll find plenty of seating along with quite a few board games you can play with your family and friends. I found the space to be quite cozy & inviting, we had visited shortly after the holiday season so everything was still decorated for Christmas and added to the charm making it feel more like a winter getaway cabin. The VIP room felt very much the same, it had a nice seating area with three private throwing lanes. We loved being able to pick out our own music to listen to while throwing. If you get hungry they had a menu which offers a few in-house dishes, but also has options from several close businesses. We ordered some sliders & some brussels sprouts from a spot nearby that was featured on their menu. After a short amount of time, our waiter came by to let us know that the food spot was a bit busy & running behind on their order so he was going to extend our time so we could eat and throw some more which was very nice of him. Drink wise, you can order soda and alcohol from the bar. 

We loved that the lanes had a tablet that allowed you to choose from a number of games to be projected onto the throwing boards. One of my personal favorites was the tic-tac-toe and competing against my husband to see who would win. The kids had a fun time with the zombie target practice, and the darts style throwing. We were having so much fun that the hour along with the extra fifteen minutes we were given, completely flew by! 

The regular throwing lanes had quite a few people when we arrived, but still offered plenty of space to walk through without feeling like you were in the way of anyone. The arcade area offered mostly pinball machines, but we love them so we were exited to check it out after our timeslot was over.  I was actually kind of surprised that when our time slot was over & we came out of the VIP room that all of the regular throwing lanes were completely empty & we were the only party left, so we were able to have the whole arcade to ourselves. This is definitely a spot we would want to come back to! 

🌵 If you live in Arizona check out the "Things to do in Arizona" section of my blog to find entertainment, restaurants, vacation spots & more. (Click on the name or locate it on the right-hand side of my page).

🟊 This is not a sponsored post, we paid for this ourselves. I just enjoy sharing awesome spots with my readers. 

Osaka Japanese Steakhouse in Mesa, Arizona!

 

When celebrating a birthday, it is exciting to be able to find a fun spot for dinner that not only has delicious food, but fun entertainment as well. We recently had the pleasure of stopping by Osaka Japanese steakhouse in Mesa, Arizona to celebrate my husbands birthday. A few of our family members live over in the area, so they invited us out to dinner to celebrate and spend some time together. Osaka offers a regular service style section where you can order dishes like sushi, and appetizers or you can request a teppanyaki table & order a dish to be grilled right in front of you. Quite a few restaurants that have this style of seating will often sit smaller groups together at one large table, but lucky for us the table we were sat at fit seven people which was perfect for our party, so we didn't have any strangers at our table. 

Depending on the day & time you want to visit for a meal, I highly recommend calling ahead of time to make a reservation. The restaurant was absolutely packed when we arrived & if we hadn't called earlier in the week to make a reservation we would have been waiting around for quite a while for a table to open up. 

Every teppanyaki plate comes with rice, some veggies, two shrimp plus your choice of meats along with a small salad and soup. I am not a huge fan of the dressing they use, so I didn't eat the salad but the soup was good despite being just a broth with two small mushrooms floating in it.

My teppanyaki dish was delicious, the meat was cooked just right and I enjoy the sauce they serve with it. I do wish that the veggies had been cooked slightly more and they could use slightly bigger portions for the meats with how much each dish is. While I do understand that part of the cost of the meal is the entertainment from watching the chef cook, a bigger protein portion I think would help balance out the cost. Especially since most parties will typically type the chef as well before he leaves the table.

Our table also had some of their sushi, spicy edamame and dumpling. All three dishes were enjoyable and I didn't have any issue with them. A family member of ours treated us to a dinner here for my husbands birthday & had mentioned to the staff that it was his birthday. At the end of our meal they brought over some small cakes, a big candle & a fun mask for my husband to wear while they played some loud drums and a happy birthday song. You'll frequently hear this through out your dinner as almost every table there had someone celebrating either a birthday or another event. The chef who did our teppanyaki had also made my husband a balloon headband to wear because it was his birthday & the chef liked his hair style. This spot is a little pricey per person for a meal, but to visit for a celebration or a once in a while thing I think it is worth it for the experience! 

This specific location is located at 6730 E. Superstition Springs Blvd Mesa, Arizona 85206 and they have a secondary location in Gilbert.  

🌵 If you live in Arizona check out the "Things to do in Arizona" section of my blog to find entertainment, restaurants, vacation spots & more. (Click on the name or locate it on the right-hand side of my page).

🟊 This is not a sponsored post, we paid for this ourselves. I just enjoy sharing awesome spots with my readers. 

Winchester Mystery House Review!

 

For quite some time I've wanted to visit the Winchester Mystery house in person, even way before the movie it was a spot on my list of places to visit. The history of the house is quite interesting & I've always loved things that are spooky/supernatural so of course it was on my list of places to see. We were finally able to stop by in December on a family trip to California, thus we were able to be there when it was decorated for Christmas. 

I thought it was interesting that they allowed guests to take photographs, but we were all told we couldn't film inside of any of the rooms. Our whole tour lasted about an hour, and it took us through about a dozen rooms in the house. The house is much larger than that, but a lot of the rooms are closed off to the public. 

The tour might not be for everyone, the ticket prices are a little high & none of the furniture in the house is original from when the home belonged to Sarah Winchester. However the furniture is from the same time period, after she had passed away her niece inherited all of her belongings so she kept what she wanted & sold off the rest. I didn't want to visit for the furniture though, I can to see the house itself. It's story and the way it was built is interesting and something we aren't likely to see again, so the tour kept us interested and we had a good time. 

If I ever happen to be blessed enough to build my own home, I would definitely want an indoor green house like the rooms she had built here. It would be nice to have a whole indoor space to take care of my plants and protect them from the elements. Speaking of plants, the property has a large garden which you can also tour. We weren't able to do that this time around because we were on a schedule but we did opt to buy a photography package. You were given some period friendly clothing to wear over your own & then the photographer takes you inside of the house to take some photos inside of the rooms. 

We 100% thought the photography package was worth it because not only did we get to take photos inside of some of the rooms you aren't allowed to enter on the tour, but the photographer told us quite a bit of extra information and history of the house. The gift shop was lovely as well, they had a ton of stuff to look at if you are waiting for your tour time to start. I picked up a few small souvenirs to bring home with me, but I was sad that all of the penny press machines and such were not working.  All in all, it was a lovely visit and I can cross this off of my to do list! If I had a chance to see more of the house and explore the gardens, I would come back again. 

If you are planning a trip to California & are looking for other activities to do feel free to type in "Things to do in California" in the search bar of my blog so you can find some other great activities in California. You can also click the "Things to do in California" link located on the right hand side of my blog/in this post.

🟊 This is not a sponsored post, we paid for this ourselves. I just enjoy sharing awesome spots with my readers. 

Madrez Cafe Review! (Flagstaff, AZ)

 

When we go on trips whether it is a slightly bigger vacation or just a small weekend trip to explore one of the cities in our home state, I like looking for locally owned or small chain restaurants to support. On our most recent weekend trip to explore a few things in Flagstaff, I found a small locally owned restaurant called Madrez Cafe. There were one or two options I was looking at for lunch while we were in town, but I am so glad that this is the spot we landed on because lunch was fantastic.  

They offer breakfast & lunch at this spot and are closed for dinner. This is the first spot I've been to that has consistent price across the menu, pretty much all of the breakfast options are $13 each and the lunch options are all $14.50 each. In total for the four of us our lunch bill came out to $60 which isn't too bad for an actual restaurant since some fast food spots can run you just as much. Several of us had ordered the Birria tacos, and they were so good! I like that they came with different sauces to dip them into along with some extra cut up onions. The breakfast bagel, breakfast burrito and the farm skillet were all also pretty good and came with a good amount of food.

Inside of the restaurant felt open, welcoming & cozy and I like that they feature the artwork of local artists on the walls with QR codes you can scan to see more of their work. If it is nice out and you feel like enjoying the weather instead, they have seating outside as well. Wait times for the food were short & everything came out on metal plates which helps keep the food warm and also cuts down on waste as they are reusable. (the staff will collect your plates when you are done eating). So if you happen to be in the area and are looking for a spot for either breakfast or lunch, I suggest stopping by to try out the food for yourself!

🌵 If you live in Arizona check out the "Things to do in Arizona" section of my blog to find entertainment, restaurants, vacation spots & more. (Click on the name or locate it on the right-hand side of my page).

🟊 This is not a sponsored post, we paid for this ourselves. I just enjoy sharing awesome spots with my readers. 

Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, AZ - A short review!

 

I've always been fascinated with the beauty of space and I have been a fan of science centers since I was young, so when we visited Flagstaff I knew I wanted to check out the Lowell Observatory. The Lowell Observatory is family friendly & they have an awesome area for small children that offers a lot of hands on science & space based activities. Even as an adult you might find a hands on activity or two in this room that you'll enjoy, like building a mini rocket and trying to shoot it through some hoops. 

A secondary room offers hands on activities that are for teens and adults from balancing two weights to make a chair spin without moving your body, or even a spot that has different things to smell there is quite a bit to do on the first floor. If you want to sit down for a bit they have a theatre that features a number of different presentations ranging from half an hour to an hour long. 

Outside you'll find a number of telescopes set up pointed at different planets & stars with a staff member next to it explaining what you will get to see, how to look into the telescope properly and answer any questions you may have. There are also a few buildings to explore which contain museum pieces, huge telescopes & more. Depending on what you decide to do while here and how quickly you walk around looking at everything you'll be here for one to four hours. 

If you end up getting hungry or want to grab something to drink, there is a café up front across from the gift shop. We had a lot of fun visiting & exploring everything the observatory had to offer. It was definitely worth the visit, and it was nice being able to enjoy the lovely weather while walking around the outside portion of the observatory. Everything was laid out to where things were easy to find, they had plenty of benches along the way in case you happened to become tired plus there were plenty of lovely photo opportunity spots. 

🌵 If you live in Arizona check out the "Things to do in Arizona" section of my blog to find entertainment, restaurants, vacation spots & more. (Click on the name or locate it on the right-hand side of my page).

Disclaimer-  Lowell Observatory provided us a discount in exchange for a review, no other compensation was provided. However, no product compensation will influence the outcome of any review. My honest opinions are used in all reviews, they are solely my own & they may vary from others. My reviews are posted for readers in order to provide an informed decision before purchase.

FlagTagAZ - Family fun in Flagstaff, Az!

 

When we travel, I try looking for local family-friendly attractions to visit in-between seeing the typical tourist destinations, so that we can get the most out of our vacations. We wanted to beat the summer heat, so we decided to head up north to Flagstaff where the weather is significantly cooler than in Phoenix. The main three spots we wanted to visit were Walnut Canyon, the lava cave and Out of Africa. However, I knew we were going to have some downtime, so instead of hanging out in our hotel room we decided to look for something exciting to do together. We were looking for something that was indoors & out of the weather, FlagTag Az fit the bill. FlagTagAZ offers Axe throwing & Laser tag, plus they have a small arcade. I do want to note that this spot is geared towards pre-teens, teens & adults. We visited on a Saturday afternoon and were surprised by how few patrons were visiting at the same time. We were originally told that Saturday is their busiest day, so we were expecting packed throwing lanes. Needless to say, that surprise worked out in our favor as it was quieter than normal, and we didn't have to worry about feeling cramped next to other large groups.

You can purchase each activity individually or opt for one of their packages which give you a bit of a discount. During our visit we opted for the 'Groovy Combo' for $35 per person which includes thirty minutes of axe throwing along with two laser tag games. We've visited other Axe throwing locations & something that makes FlagTag stand out a bit from the others is that fact that they also allow you to throw knives & ninja stars.

The throwing lanes are equipped with a tablet that allows you to choose one of their digital games you'd like to play while throwing. The game is cast onto the wooden planks at the end of the lane using a projector. You can choose from games like battleship or just do regular axe throwing, it all depends on if you want to throw for fun or compete against a friend/family member. I do wish that they offered different weighted & sized axes, the larger sized axe they offered was a bit awkward for me to use compared to smaller versions I've used at other throwing lanes. I do not necessarily think it was due to the weight, but the length as I felt like the handle was too long for the way I tend to throw. 

Throwing the ninja stars was an interesting experience, they were so light weight compared to the axes. I am not going to lie; the first time I tried to throw the ninja star it flew up much higher than I was aiming for and stuck above the wooden planks, I almost couldn't reach it to get it back down! However, I know I am not the only one who has overthrown the ninja star because there were quite a few spots next to where I threw it & some marks even higher than where my star landed where others have hit. Your time on the lanes will go by faster than expected, so I would keep that in mind when deciding on which game you'd like to play. 

After we finished our half an hour of axe throwing, we went over to the laser tag. The space they have for the laser tag is actually pretty large and even includes a second story. I didn't go into the laser tag, so I cannot personally comment on the laser tag experience however my family members who played had a fantastic time! While we waited on our laser tag group, the rest of us had a look around the facility. 

There is a cafe area where you can pick up snacks, or drinks including alcohol. You'll also find a small selection of arcade games plus a row of claw machines. I had also noticed that they have a small corner set up with a number of family board games and a giant version of connect four. The last activity they offer is Dart throwing, where you can use either regular plastic tipped darts or metal tipped darts. We had fun checking out everything FlagTagAZ had to offer, and I think it is a fun spot to bring your family. FlagTagAZ is currently located at 1801 W Rte 66 #102 Flagstaff,AZ 86001 however, by the end of summer they are hoping to be in their new location, so please check their website to verify the address before visiting. 

🌵 If you live in Arizona check out the "Things to do in Arizona" section of my blog to find entertainment, restaurants, vacation spots & more. (Click on the name or locate it on the right-hand side of my page).

Disclaimer-  FlagTagAZ provided us a discount in exchange for a review, no other compensation was provided. However, no product compensation will influence the outcome of any review. My honest opinions are used in all reviews, they are solely my own & they may vary from others. My reviews are posted for readers in order to provide an informed decision before purchase.

Hash Kitchen Review!

 

I was recently invited out to try some of the new menu items at Hash Kitchen. It was our first time eating here & we had a great experience. Everything on the menu sounded delicious, for our appetizer we ended up ordering the Billionaires Bacon & the Cannoli donuts. The bacon can seem a little pricey at $8 for one slice of bacon, but my goodness it was amazing. The glaze they used is fantastic & it was a very thick cut of bacon. The Cannoli Donuts were amazing too, we didn't realize how big they would be so we didn't eat all of them just part. You could probably order it as a main course if you wanted. We stopped by the Peoria, AZ location located at 16222 N. 83rd Ave Peoria, AZ 85382.

For our main dishes I ordered the Red Velvet Pancakes which were huge! I was brought a plate with four big pancakes, syrup and cream cheese frosting. It was like having cake for breakfast! I was only able to eat about a quarter of them before I was full so I took the rest home for another meal. My husband ordered the Brunch sandwich which was amazing as well, it was the perfect combination of breakfast foods.

Drink wise I ordered the BYO Seltzer and choose watermelon + vodka. Usually I am not a big fan of most alcoholic drinks as they are too strong for me, but this was the perfect combination. My husband got a muffin top which was basically a boozy muffin in a glass, and he also got a shot. Inside the restaurant feels like a dance club, there is a live DJ playing and it was crowded when we went. We choose to sit outside, it was a little quieter and was quite comfortable for us.

Along with what we selected they had dozens of other scrumptious dishes & drinks. Food Portions are large, depending on what you order you'll be able to get more than one meal out of it. Our waitress was friendly & so was the host who sat us. This is a great spot to go for brunch whether it is for a date with your spouse, or a girls day out, this spot is a lot of fun.

🌵 If you live in Arizona check out the "Things to do in Arizona" section of my blog to find entertainment, restaurants, vacation spots & more. (Click on the name or locate it on the right-hand side of my page).

Disclaimer-  Hash Kitchen provided this experience to us for the review  free of charge no other compensation was provided. However, no product compensation will influence the outcome of any review. My honest opinions are used in all reviews, they are solely my own & they may vary from others. My reviews are posted for readers in order to provide an informed decision before purchase.