W.O.W Cafe

We had our daughter’s 6th birthday party at WoW and it was everything we could have asked for. The entertainers kept the children engaged and they all loved learning the disco routines. The party food was amazing, sandwiches in shapes and cute mini burgers and fruiit platters. All the parents enjoyed the cafe upstairs whist the party was going on. Our table had Jamaican Jerk Chicken, Waffles and Salads and they were all superb. Great food, great service and brilliant atmosphere. Worth every penny x

Overpriced, deceptive specials/offers info and not really family friendly. Awful experience.

I recently visited this café with a friend and our two toddlers and we’ll never be going back again.We were there for lunch and were misled to believe that all kIds under 7 ate for free by the waiter. However, when the bill came we were charged for the two kids’ meals. Upon questioning, the waiter changed his tune to say that only main meals came with free kids meals and that which meant we had to pay. To add insult to injury, as we exited the café we saw on their blackboard that one of the dishes we had ordered was on the lunch special that day (nearly £4 cheaper) and they had charged us full price for it!!!! As if their overpriced food was not bad enough (£6.5 for a goat’s cheese sandwich is crazy even in London), we overpaid around £10 because of the ambiguous info on pricing given by the waiter.

And finally, this place is not really family friendly. They are quite proud of their layout (lavender hill entrance is for adults without babies and back entrance is for adults with prams). However, inside there is no division between the spaces which means the kids can run up to the adult sans kids area proving a nuisance for the parents who have to interrupt their overpriced meals running behind the kids as well as for the adults without kids who are trying to enjoy their cafes without stranger’s kids running around their tables.

The play area disappoints as it is very, very small and the play mat was even dirty. At the time of our visit, there were only three other tables being served but there was no room to breathe. The prams blocked all of the free space between tables and wall which meant there was literally no room to walk on!

Stay away from this place!

Pitched up when quiet so can’t comment on when it is busy with families.

Very friendly staff and it has a family run business feel to it. Free wifi as well with small tables near plugs.

Food is very nice and has homely feel to it and has large range of ice cream as well. Agree with description by first comment submitted.

Great coffee shop if you like avoiding the nerocostabucks.

Also – I think it would be better to classify this as a cafe and not a “kids activity” AND the map marker is very wrong.

WoW is a newcomer to Lavender Hill, having opened in January 2012. As a concept, it would seem to be well placed – an explicitly “child friendly” café, striking distance to Nappy Valley. Menu-wise, a fairly full selection of brunch-esque favourites, plus a sprinkling of other hot mains – e.g. fish and chips, and a fab-sounding Jamaican chicken curry. Very good coffee, plus the cakes, croissants, and muffins you might want to go with it, as well as smoothies and milkshakes, all served by friendly and helpful staff.

But this skips over the real features of the place – there is a play area for the kiddies, and a selection of toys – there is also a big playroom downstairs, rentable for parties. Also, WoW boasts their very own “director of entertainment”. The child friendliness does not stop there – the menu has an explicitly kiddie section, and one under-7 eats free per paying adult. For the tiddlers, there is also a range of Ella’s Kitchen baby food available. A range of interesting looking toys is available for purchase; in particular, there as some very good puppets. Last, but not least, on the walls of the café are a range of works by local artists, which are available to buy.

You’ll perhaps feel out of place coming here if you have no children – on the other hand, it’s great if you have, and want to catch up with other mums and dads while the little ‘uns amuse themselves.