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Visit Kent, WA for Kid-Friendly Adventures

One of our favorite things to do on weekends here in Seattle is exploring nearby cities for a PNW getaway. This past weekend, Visit Kent WA invited my family on a press trip to discover what makes Kent such a kid-friendly place in Washington State.

We had so much fun that I spent all day yesterday writing about this trip!

Lake Meridian Park

One of our favorite parks in Kent is Lake Meridian Park. We started coming here when my oldest was a baby for little baby play dates with our PEPS group.

Now, 4 years later, it’s still a destination park we love to visit!

As a mom of a preschooler and a toddler, I appreciate that the entire playground has cushy rubber mats, wood chips, or turf. I don’t worry about my kids running around (especially when they are wearing shorts!)

And it’s pretty easy to see my boys no matter where they are at the park. One can be swinging and the other can be racing cars down a hill and I can keep an eye on both.

While the playground is fabulous (I mean, there’s a PIRATE SHIP!) I also appreciate the vast grassy fields and the lake itself! That makes it easy for us to spend hours here.

There’s also a great covered area with lots of tables. We saw a family bring hot pizza to eat while the kids ran around. Such a great idea!

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Airways Brewing Bistro

All that playing made my boys hungry, so we headed to Airways Brewing Bistro in Downtown Kent. I’d heard they have a kids menu and that their food was tasty.

When we arrived, I saw that they have two separate entrances: One for the 21+ brewery and another for the family-friendly brewery. They are separated inside by a long hallway.

The family-friendly side was awesome! We picked a table that looked into the open concept kitchen. Our server was super friendly and helped us choose an array of items to try.

While they prepared our food, I took my toddler out to the courtyard to check it out and I was floored!

They have a whole kids play area set up! At first, I saw a cart filled with tons of chalk, a couple containers of bubbles and a bunch of bean bags. Then, I realized they also have corn hole!

So, instead of managing antsy kids at the table, we were able to fully engage with them on the patio! And it was semi-enclosed, so I was able to let my toddler run around a bunch.

When the food arrived, it was fantastic! My kids had macaroni and cheese and french fries as their entrees.

But, they also shared a mini charcuterie plate with prosciutto, cheese, bread sticks and blueberries. The kids LOVED it!

And I had a caprese sandwich with honeycrisp apple slaw that really hit the spot! Plus, I had sea salt truffle fries with an aioli that I’m still salivating over!

While I didn’t sample any of their beers, I can say that they offer many varieties, including cider.

So, this may be the coolest kid-friendly brewery I’ve been to! I can’t wait to come back with another family (or a few families) to just hang out while the kids play!

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Kent Teaching & Toys

After lunch, we played a little corn hole at Airways Brewing Bistro before walking over to Kent Teaching & Toys.

This is another spot that’s always a hit with my kids! It’s right behind the Kent Library, so we walk here after story time sometimes.

My friend is a former kindergarten teacher and she’s the one who originally told me about Kent Teaching & Toys. She suggested having a play date there a couple years ago and we’ve been coming back ever since!

It’s the perfect spot to go if you are looking for good quality toys for your kids or to give as gifts. They have a wooden train section and sell individual train track pieces (which saves so much time when your child is looking for a specific piece that may be ANYWHERE in your house!)

As I looked around the store, I found so many items that would be perfect travel toys! Here are a few of my favorites:

My kids always enjoy the train table! They also play a bit with the Calico Critters table, but usually go right back to the train table.

And don’t forget to check out their bargain sections. I found a really cool building toy on clearance that kept my son fully occupied in the hotel room!

The boys picked out mail trucks as their souvenir. My brother is a mail carrier, so they were ecstatic to get their first mail truck toys!

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Punjab Sweets

One of the things I love most about Kent, Washington is the sheer vastness of ethnic cuisine! My family thoroughly enjoys food from around the world.

So, I was excited to check out Punjab Sweets. My husband went to India last year for Holi Festival and tried several sweets over there. He tried to explain them to me, but I figured we better just try them ourselves.

Punjab Sweets is located right next to a sari shop! I was tempted to go in an peruse the colorful outfits, but I had my boys with me and I had promised them treats!

The first thing we noticed was the display case featuring their tempting sweets. Without knowing exactly what everything was, I picked a few colorful items, a few featuring flavors I know I like, and then asked for recommendations.

I also ordered a chai tea and lassi drinks for the boys. After running around a bit all day, it was nice to sit and drink something hot while sampling the goodies!

We also got a bag of Indian snacks. My friend’s mother-in-law sent them similar snacks that we had tried, so I knew my kids would like it. Nice to know we can buy them in Kent!

Trapper’s Sushi

My boys still had a lot of energy, so we went back to Lake Meridian Park to play more before dinner. They spent most of that time racing their mail trucks down the hill at the park!

After a bit, we were ready to head over to Kent Station to enjoy a meal at Trapper’s Sushi.

My husband and I can eat sushi almost everyday. The kids can be hit/miss. We usually give them rice and miso soup. But, we always encourage them to try new things.

The kids menu at Trapper’s Sushi is perfect for families with adventurous (and not-so-adventurous) children. The portions are large and my boys were able to split a kids order of teriyaki chicken, rice, and fruishi.

Fruishi is fruit sushi. Cute, right? This one was sliced up green apples rolled in rice. I tried one and it was good! It’s a fun (and healthy) dessert option!

With the kids situated, my husband and I wanted to try some of Trapper’s Sushi’s specialty items. We found a couple of tempura rolls that sounded amazing. And they lived up to our expectation!

As parents, we appreciated that Trapper’s Sushi was a bit loud. Our toddler was melting down a bit, and it was barely noticeable. That allowed me to finish eating without feeling stressed out. We left very full!

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Best Western Plus Plaza by the Green

The Best Western Plus Plaza by the Green is a two story hotel located on a golf course. It’s also next to shopping and restaurants and has plenty of parking.

As soon as we walked into the hotel lobby, my son said “This place smells GOOD!”

We quickly discovered that they offer complimentary freshly baked cookies in their lobby! They had chocolate chip as well as macadamia white chocolate cookies. We grabbed two before checking in!

Check in was a breeze and we quickly took the elevator to the second floor.

Our room faced the golf course. We arrived at dusk and the course was empty.

We decided to get into our jammies and enjoy our chocolate chip cookies before heading to bed!

The next morning, we decided to check out the continental breakfast spread and have a little something to eat before we packed up. My 4 year old enjoyed filling up his own glass of orange juice and looking out on the golf course.

Then, it was time for us to pack up and continue exploring Kent!

Turnkey Park

Since we are early risers, we thought we’d hit up another park before breakfast. After a quick Google search, I found Turnkey Park.

This is another super cool park in Kent!

First of all, they have a giant sandpit with those interactive construction diggers. But, they also have a water spigot where kids can pour water down some hills INTO the sand pit! It’s like what they have at Northwest Trek!

Second, they have a Hidden Mickey scavenger hunt! Since we are a HUGE Disney family, we set off immediately to find them!

Third, they have an ADDITIONAL scavenger hunt featuring fruits and veggies! My son joined a few other kids in running around the park to see what they could find.

I felt a little bad piling back into the car for breakfast, but my tummy was rumbling! We’ll definitely be doing a play date here soon!

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Saimin Says

If you’ve never had a Hawaiian breakfast, you are missing out on something special! I discovered Saimin Says years and years ago while I was working on the Live Aloha Hawaiian Cultural Festival at Seattle Center.

My husband and I started coming here for breakfast when we were dating and it started to be a regular thing.

But, since we had our youngest, we haven’t made it back to Saimin Says.

So, we were extra excited to enjoy a leisurely breakfast here. The kids split a plate of scrambled eggs and a Mickey Mouse pancake (after my oldest used banana slices to place Mickey’s eyes and nose!)

My husband got the Loco Moco, his favorite Hawaiian breakfast item. This time, he ordered it with more meat patties and less rice to be “low carb!”

And my favorite thing to order here is their fried saimin. I mean, saimin is right in their name, so you should order it!

Finally, we grabbed a SPAM musubi and Portuguese sausage musubi to snack on later. OMG so good!

Kent Farmers Market

After all that yummy food, we needed to walk it off a bit. Luckily, we were there on a Saturday so we could take advantage of the Kent Farmers Market.

It’s located right by the Kent Library, Kent Teaching & Toys, and Airways Brewing Bistro! Super convenient!

The kids were immediately drawn to the crazy shaped pumpkins and gourds. They looked so perfect for Fall decorating!

I liked seeing the brightly colored flowers! They are so cheery and the sellers were so excited to talk about them!

It was a great way to end our adventure in Kent, Washington!

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If You Have More Time in Kent

If you’ll be staying in Kent a bit longer, I have a few more kid-friendly options of things to to in Kent, WA:

NORTHWEST HARVEST

For families with kids ages 9 years old and up, sign up to volunteer packing up food at Northwest Harvest. I did this while mentoring at Seattle Girls School years ago and we’ll be doing this as a family in 5 years!

CARPINITO BROTHERS

If you love fresh produce, this place is awesome! It’s seriously my Mother-in-law’s version of paradise! Plus, during the holidays, you can usually meet a camel or reindeer. And they have an incredible Pumpkin Patch at their field in Kent.

CAVE MAN KITCHEN

If you like roadside BBQ, this place is a ton of fun for families! You can eat outside on picnic tables (and yes, they have kid-sized picnic tables, too!) My Mom first came here decades ago, and I’ve been bringing my kids that past year.

SOUND TRANSIT

Last month, we took the Sounder Train during a play date and it was awesome! The kids excitedly hopped on board the Sounder at Kent Station for an adventure around Seattle’s Chinatown Neighborhood. It’s also an easy way to get to Kent from Seattle.

WILD WHEAT

This is another great breakfast spot. Get a table by the window because chances are, you’ll see trains whizzing past at least once! My boys go NUTS and it provides a lot of entertainment while we eat. And you can get yummy treats to go!

Thanks Visit Kent WA for hosting my family on this press trip. All opinions are my own.

More PNW Adventures with Kids

Funko HQ Tips for a Fun Seattle Family Activity
Semiahmoo Resort & Spa Pacific Northwest Weekend Getaway
Family Weekend Getaway to Winthrop, WA: A Wild West Town
Family Travel Guide to Portland, Oregon with Toddlers
Spend the Day at Pier 57 in Seattle with Kids

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