Jingle Jangle Tea Garden review, Moreleta Park (Pretoria)

Credit: Luschka van Onselen

Luschka has been at it again, scouring Pretoria for kid-friendly places where she can get a great coffee at the same time. Thanks Luschka!

Jingle Jangle is my favourite place in Pretoria. It ticks all the boxes I need when we need some time out of the house, it's peaceful and has great coffee.

Date last visited

March 2011

Location and Setting

Jingle Jangle is located in Moreleta Park in Pretoria East. It's accessible from all major routes and pretty easy to find – there's a map here.

Jingle Jangle is set in a large area with beautiful bluegum trees and loads of activities for children. It's a perfect afternoon out, and even on the hottest of days, there's a cool breeze under those trees.

For the kids...

Credit: Luschka van Onselen

For the kids there's a costume shop and a stage for fancy dress – an additional fee applies for this. There are plastic 'motorbikes' and quad bikes (also additionally charged) on the riding circuit for older kids. There's also a play area with two climbing frames, a pole for sliding, a tunnel to climb through, a 'horse' to ride, a sandpit and swings.

Jingle Jangle's play equipment includes a trampoline and a bouncy castle as well as ride on toys such as dinosaurs, a Flintstone-style car and so on.

As with many other places in Pretoria, there's an animal farm, although it's really more of an enclosure than a farm :)

The children's menu has nice foods on it, and their chocolate and vanilla milkshakes are very yummy. 

There are pony-rides on weekends and public holidays too.

For the adults...

I think about Jingle Jangle, and I feel relaxed. 

I'm not kidding...For adults, there's really just the tea room – and if you don't want to be surrounded by children, there's a lovely separate enclosure too. 

I love the outdoors area though. Shaded by bluegum trees, able to keep an eye on the little ones, and have a bite to eat, there's not much missing. 

Credit: Luschka van Onselen

Their fruit juices are fantastic, as is the coffee.

Anything else?

There's plenty of parking and a car guard on duty. 

The toilets are lovely and there's a small baby-change area. You can book the area for private parties, or bring your own cake, but for that there's a 'corkage' fee.

Final words

As I said, I love this place, and it's my favourite in Pretoria. 

It's one of the most relaxing spots I've found and if you visit, you're likely to find me there!

Getting in touch

Address:

Wekker street
Plot 54
Kimiad Estate
Moreleta Park

Pretoria 

Credit: Luschka van Onselen

Telephone:

012 997 0134

Fax:
0866 924 724

Email:
jinglejangle@vodamail.co.za

Website:

http://www.jinglejangle.co.za/

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Papachinos, Crowthorne (JHB)

Once in a while, you come across a venue which really just seems to do all the right things.
If you ever find yourself in the Midrand area and you need just such a place, look no further than Papachinos Continental Cafe in Crowthorne.

Date last visited

January 2011

Location and Setting

Papachinos Crowthorne is situated at 40 Whisken Avenue, Crowthorne, Midrand.
It's slightly outside of Midrand proper, so GPS it if you can, or use this direct link to Google Maps to find it.

For the kids...

Papachinos has one of the most extensive kids play areas that we have yet come across.
It stetches virtually the full length of the property, which means that wherever you are seated, you are never far from a play area.
Now if you are part of my generation (born circa 1980), then you will remember the type of jungle gyms we had back then - large multi-coloured square metal structures which were rather unforgiving on the body, should you ever lose your footing or grip...

They also had a tendency to boil in the sun, which made for a rather unpleasant time if you chose to go down the slide in your shorts...

Thankfully though, this is 2011, technology has advanced, common sense has prevailed and plastic is now the order of the day :)
By plastic, I mean the new generation of jungle gyms that are taking the kiddies world by storm - I mean just take a look at this giant chunk of playtime fun:)

Papachinos Crowthorne has no less than 3 of these, and it makes you want to be a kid all over again!
The ever-present child-minders even have races with the kids down the slides... I am envious!
Speaking of child minders, these are ones that you really don't mind tipping as they do such a great job :)

In the photo above you will also spy a bit of road - there are 2 of these tracks in different areas on the premises, along with a fleet of fancy ride-on bikes for the little tykes to practice their lap times on.

The playground also has some more traditional play equipment - swings, see-saws, ride-on animals (thankfully bolted into the ground, otherwise airborne children and injuries would be plentiful!), and of course the signature Papachinos kiddies-pizza-making facility :)

Here they can sit alongside other kiddies at a kids-height counter, and create their very own pizza from scratch, starting from a pre-cut circle of dough and adding their topping of choice.
Fun and food combined :)

If pizza won't do it for them, then there is a great kiddies menu that will definitely provide enough of a choice to keep those growling little tummies satisfied :)

For the adults...

It really is all about great food at Papachinos - all of the meals that we have had here have been fantastic, from good old pizza, to unique Mediterranean-style wraps, to a great breakfast selection, right down to a comprehensive kiddies menu, Papachinos just do great food.

As already mentioned above, all this great food can be enjoyed safe in the knowledge that the kids are well taken care of and having a ton of fun.

You also have the choice of sitting outside (alongside the play area), or if you prefer there are no less than 3 other areas in which to enjoy your fine dining - an inside area, a bar area and a small outside courtyard just next to the bar.

In our experience, even during a busy Saturday lunch, Papachinos didn't feel quite as chaotic as one may have expected with so many kids running around.
There seems to be an equal emphasis here on keeping the kids happy while still retaining the "come back again soon" factor.

Anything else?

There are dedicated baby-changing facilities on the premises, and high chairs are readily available if the little ones are not yet ready for full-size chairs.
There are also small picnic benches and tables especially for the kids to sit at.

According to their website, there are also safety officers and first aid kits onsite (which we thankfully didn't have to use :).

Booking ahead is highly recommended.
Arriving early enough on a Saturday morning might be ok without a booking, but be advised - this place does fill up quickly.
Parking is plentiful and there are car guards on duty.

Final thoughts

Papachinos Crowthorne is a great all-rounder.
Great food, smiling kids galore, and a venue which really looks out for all of its patrons, young and old.
A winner.

Getting in touch

Telephone:
011 702-1234

Website:
http://www.papachinos.co.za

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