I am in charge of a very large meeting that will be at the Hyatt Cap Square next weekend (Thur, Fri, part of Sat). I've decided to bring mr. RNR and our 16 month old son along for various reasons. 

 

I will be tied up a lot of the day both thurs and fri and will only see them at night. Neither of us are at ALL familiar with Columbus, but mr. will have a GPS.

 

1. Are there things close by the hotel he could do with the baby? For you parent-less folks, our 16 month old walks a little but will likely be in a stroller when not exploring a small area like a portion of a park or fountain or something. So needs to be stroller-accessible.

 

2. Are there restaurants nearby for a man and baby but which are not applebee's type fare? We don't eat chicken fingers and kraft mac and cheese and neither does our kid.

 

3. What could they do (one thing each day) both Thurs and Fri as an outing? Is there a children's museum or something similar? Preferably indoors as it's fairly cold and could be raining.

 

Examples of things he likes - trucks, planes, liked the county fair because of all the moving rides and flashing lights and music. Not into zoos - the action is too far away and too slow for him to get at this point. Doesn't even need to be a child "focused" option, just something where he would have something to look at or would be welcomed to attend along with his Dad.

 

Would love any ideas you all have.  Trip is next week.

1. Close to the Hyatt @ Capitol Square for children?  Nothing in the near vicinity except for COSI Science Museum across the river.

 

2. Yes.  What kind of food do you like?  One of my favorites downtown is Tip Top (Vegetarian joint with eggplant fries!)

 

3. Plenty.  COSI Science Museum (also acts as a children's museum), Ohio Historical Museum, Columbus Art Museum, Wexner Center for the Arts, blah blah.

Thank you! Through my foodie folks I already found the Tip Top and was planning on going there for dinner my one free night, which is Wednesday.  Would it be an appropriate place to bring a small child during the day? Don't know how much "bar" it is. Not that we care too much what anyone thinks so much, but if it's a place that, say, wouldn't even think of having a high chair, that's probably a no.

Yeah, it's fine during the day.  Mostly work folks.  At night, probably not (a bit more...adult).

The Statehouse across the street also is a good place to take a toddler in a stroller -- the bright open space and high ceiling of the Atrium, the Map Room below, and, of course, the Rotunda. I've seen many kids in strollers craning their necks to look at the stained-glass Great Seal at the top.

thanks! I also found the zoo/aquarium online, so that's an idea, moreso for the aquarium part as he wasn't really into the zoo so much.

He might be too young for COSI if he's not walking yet. Most of the stuff at COSI for kids are hands-on. He might get something out of it but I'm not sure. Maybe you should call them and ask about that. When I took my nephews there they were 2 and 3 so they were climbing through all the tunnels and playing with all of the contraptions. They have a great store in there with a bunch of educational toys for toddlers.

1. Are there things close by the hotel he could do with the baby? For you parent-less folks, our 16 month old walks a little but will likely be in a stroller when not exploring a small area like a portion of a park or fountain or something. So needs to be stroller-accessible.

 

TONS of stuff to do!

 

You're less than a half mile walk from the Columbus Metropolitan Library, which has been consistently ranked as one of the best in the nation. They have an awesome kids area: http://www.columbuslibrary.org

 

Directly behind the library is the Topiary Park. If the weather holds up, it's worth a stroll: http://www.topiarygarden.org

 

Just north of the library is the Columbus Museum of Art: http://www.columbusmuseum.org

 

Your hotel is about a block from the OSU Urban Arts Space, which always has a variety of interesting exhibits: http://uas.osu.edu

 

Friday, October 29th is the final day of the outdoor Pearl Market, worth strollering over to if you're free between 10:30am and 2pm: http://www.downtowncolumbus.com/pearlmarket/

 

+1 to UrbanSurfin on the Statehouse Tour: http://www.ohiostatehouse.org/Tours/Index.aspx

 

Swing by Sugardaddy's on Gay Street and pick up a brownie or two. Best brownies in the world! http://www.sugardaddys.com

 

You're about a mile from the North Market, but you can easily spend an hour or two there. Fun for kids, and a great place to eat: http://www.northmarket.com

 

2. Are there restaurants nearby for a man and baby but which are not applebee's type fare? We don't eat chicken fingers and kraft mac and cheese and neither does our kid.

 

The aforementioned Tip Top is a *ok* suggestion, but most of their seating is at high tables that aren't optimal for balancing a 16mo. They have a few booth seats, so request one if they're free. http://www.tiptopcolumbus.com

 

I'd probably recommend Dirty Frank's instead. Their seats are all regular tables, so it's easier for kids. http://dirtyfrankscolumbus.com

 

The new Spinelli's Deli is another good choice. Local, good sandwiches, great for kids: http://www.spinellisdeli.com

 

El Arepazo is always a favorite spot of mine: http://elarepazolatingrill.com

 

3. What could they do (one thing each day) both Thurs and Fri as an outing? Is there a children's museum or something similar? Preferably indoors as it's fairly cold and could be raining.

 

See #1. I'd probably recommend Library/Topiary Park/CMA on Thursday since they're all close together and then Pearl Market (outdoors) and the OSU Urban Arts Space on Friday.

 

Have fun!

1. Close to the Hyatt @ Capitol Square for children?  Nothing in the near vicinity except for COSI Science Museum across the river.

 

You're not thinking hard enough. :P

Hah. "Across the river". I've never heard it said like that but after living in Cincinnati, it's pretty fitting.

 

If you do the Pearl St. Market thing, try out the Great Harvest bread, if their stand is still there. Honestly the best bread I've ever had and they probably still give out free samples!

thank you! you guys are great

1. Close to the Hyatt @ Capitol Square for children? Nothing in the near vicinity except for COSI Science Museum across the river.

 

You're not thinking hard enough. :P

 

Sorry if the library or 19th century old floozies encased in shrubbery didn't pop in my head :P

1. Close to the Hyatt @ Capitol Square for children? Nothing in the near vicinity except for COSI Science Museum across the river.

 

You're not thinking hard enough. :P

 

Sorry if the library or 19th century old floozies encased in shrubbery didn't pop in my head :P

 

Ha! You have to see it through the eyes of a child! ;) My 3yo *loves* riding the bus. It's like the coolest thing ever for him, while most adults I know would consider it to be pretty uncool. ;)

Bus > Demon Shrubbery.

do you know the HELL what season it is my HNIC of UO???

 

cornball topiary might be just the thing!

 

or wait it could scar the kid with nightmares for life...  :laugh:

 

Hi all!  Just wanted to thank you for all your suggestions. It was a very crazy time for me.  Things I know were visited that were suggested include the Tip Top (I went there for dinner Thurs - good but not great, and we weren't made to feel very special - originally a 4 top, and then 2 of my guests left after 1st round of drinks and we were a 2-top having dinner, the other 2 chairs were quickly snatched away by our server for other tables.  After we ordered our 3rd round of drinks he then asked to move our table physically down to make room for another group - he had been ignoring us for awhile and was smart assed about giving us water so I told him if he was making us move on top of it, I hoped he would do something for us and he did, took a drink off the check).  It was a further walk from the hotel than I anticipated - for UO reference, I was in dress shoes and so were the 2 others who joined us for a drink and we were all complaining about our feet hurting (and about being freezing) by the time we got there.  I know this is a really short distance, but it's one of those differences between men and women that is sometimes missed by my male UO compadres - things like distance are relative depending on if you're a woman or a man because women are usually dressed up more or have more painful shoes so they're subject to colder/feet hurting even with only a few blocks walk.  I actually felt bad by the time we got there for insisting everyone join me there because it was so far and so cold out - the 2 hotel girls had never even been there before if that gives you any idea how close women stick to their workplace.

 

Anyway, went to the Tip Top, and I know mr. RNR and little RNR hit the aquarium on Friday, which they loved though mr. remarked on how surprisingly small it was. Little RNR was equally captivated by the construction nearby the hotel and mr. left me a voice mail of him going "ooooooooo!" and "tuck!" repeatedly (tuck=truck).  I know they went walking around the immediate vicinity of the hotel but don't think they did anything else in terms of outings.  mr. remarked at how poor the food choices were in the immediate vicinity for someone with a little child, everything was a sandwich shop, etc.  It didn't seem much different from downtown Cleveland in design but there did seem to be a dearth of restaurants there.

 

I had a fairly negative experience at the hotel which I won't go into great detail about here, but I'll include the mention of when I was greeting guests to direct them to dinner through the lobby, a hooker was there trying to pay cash for a room.  And yes, I'm 100% sure it was a hooker.  And the guy who was approaching my guests on Saturday morning trying to get them to give him money for a cab, and walking through the hotel quickly and suspiciously - it's a good thing nobody got anything stolen. And the fact that there is no gift shop there at all was hobbling to many of my guests - I can only bring so many things with me, you know?

 

anyway, I really appreciate all the suggestions and am sorry I didn't get to see and do more.

I'm pretty sure there's a gift shop but it's in the building attached to the Hyatt. It's like a gift shop/news stand kind of place. That's weird you had a bad experience there - most people love the Hyatt. They usually go to German Village for kicks though. As someone who has worked at restaurants, I don't see anything wrong with taking chairs away after people leave (it actually makes the table less cluttered) but they should ask first and I personally wouldn't ask to move your table unless the manager demanded it - that's just taking it too far). Unfortunately, busy downtown restaurants never make you feel special unless you have a group of 5 or more which guarantees a large tip. The waiter copped an attitude because you wanted water? Wow. People would get mad at me because I filled their drinks too often (we can't get any privacy because he's always over here filling drinks!) lol.

 

The food choices downtown are literally few and far between. Overall, it just works for business people on the go. I regret not mentioning German Village because it's so walkable and there's so much to eat and do all clustered together. It would have only been a short cab ride.

There is no gift shop, the hotel told me this as well.  I had a meeting out in that "mall" area as that's their overflow space. Everything there is closed. There was a newsstand there at one time but the space is empty. There was a restaurant there which also looked recently closed, San Francisco something. 

 

I didn't have a lot of time or energy to go out anywhere and Tip Top worked fine for that - I don't think there was much closer that could have served a similar purpose.  I just was a little off-put by the service, no big deal.  My food was tasty.

There is no gift shop, the hotel told me this as well.  I had a meeting out in that "mall" area as that's their overflow space. Everything there is closed. There was a newsstand there at one time but the space is empty. There was a restaurant there which also looked recently closed, San Francisco something. 

 

I didn't have a lot of time or energy to go out anywhere and Tip Top worked fine for that - I don't think there was much closer that could have served a similar purpose.  I just was a little off-put by the service, no big deal.  My food was tasty.

 

Wow! They closed all that!? I admit I haven't been over there in a while. Well at least your food at Tip Top was good. Next time you go to a busy restaurant, make a reservation under Goldman Sachs or Intel. I bet your service will improve  :angel:

LOL.

There is no gift shop, the hotel told me this as well. I had a meeting out in that "mall" area as that's their overflow space. Everything there is closed. There was a newsstand there at one time but the space is empty. There was a restaurant there which also looked recently closed, San Francisco something.

 

I didn't have a lot of time or energy to go out anywhere and Tip Top worked fine for that - I don't think there was much closer that could have served a similar purpose. I just was a little off-put by the service, no big deal. My food was tasty.

 

Wow! They closed all that!? I admit I haven't been over there in a while. Well at least your food at Tip Top was good. Next time you go to a busy restaurant, make a reservation under Goldman Sachs or Intel. I bet your service will improve :angel:

 

San Fran Pizza Oven closed back in February, and supposedly the owner of the franchise is working on opening something else in the same space, but I haven't seen anything making progress yet:

 

http://www.columbusunderground.com/san-francisco-oven-closing-and-transforming

I know you hate Debbie Downers Walker  :lol: but I don't know if it was just my own observation, maybe I would just go at a bad time but when I worked in LeVeque Tower I went in there twice as it was right near my bank and I was the only one in SanFran. It seems like a great spot, they have that great outdoor eating area with the bar. I really don't get it. I don't think it's too bad of a location, maybe people weren't impressed with the food (though I was lovely,  :wtf: ) or maybe they had a hard time surviving because that part of downtown can only capitalize on a lunch-crowd. I don't know. There's always solutions though. Maybe it's bad management and marketing/advertising. People seem to overlook that when they judge a place leaving. You have to look for opportunities like catering. With the fabulous hotel right there, they should have worked out promotional deals with them. I don't know, maybe they did. Perhaps this is job for "The Rent Is Too D@MN HIGH Party"!  :laugh: