Brenton Skating Plaza

Came here to people-​watch, did not actually skate, because I do not know how to skate. It was a busy night when we came out, it was absolutely packed! There were tons of people skating, but it did not appear as if they were at capacity because everyone was skating pretty freely.
The staff we spoke with were very friendly and able to answer any questions we had about rentals and skating procedures. They actually serve food here, a little pizza and chips. They offer more services than I had thought, including sharpening skates!
This is a neat place and if you skate I recommend you come check it out, everyone appeared to be having a blast! Parking is available on the street only.

While I enjoyed my time today overall, they really have to improve the sharpness of the rental skates. You cannot skate, and certainly not learn to skate, on dull skates. All of our skates were crazy dull. They sheepishly said they sharpen them once a week. Clearly not good enough. They resharpened our skates, which then fixed the problem and my two boys had such a better time! Owners of this place– you have to put more emphasis on sharpening the skates!!!

Overall terrible experience here. Went with a large group of family members on Christmas night for skating and was really looking forward to it. Did not go into the building to pay because another family member was paying for us and my children have their own skates. Because I did not go in, I didn’t know that the «skate aides» cost $ 5/​each. So, I grabbed one from beside the door and sent my young niece and my sister out onto the ice with it. Literally within seconds, my sister was harassed by one of the staff on the ice. So, I walked in to pay the $ 5. During that time, the EXACT same employee harassed my sister A SECOND TIME, despite telling him after the first time that I was going in to pay for it.
Meanwhile, as I was waiting in line to pay for the skating aides (which is a total rip-​off to begin with), I watched the young female employee at the cashier stand let a number of her friends in for free. I guess Tina Fey said it best in Bossypants, «Most fees are a scam and only suckers pay them.» :(
Ice was not well-​maintained; it was more like skating on a thin layer of snow. Staff at the skate counter were rude as well. If you want to go skating, then be my guest. But be prepared to deal with some of the rudest, most unprofessional kids in the DSM area. No joke.

Went to a concert, great if you want to stand and drink, not so much if you want to sit and watch the performance. Don’t come too early unless you want to find a place to set your lawn chair so people can stand in front of you. This place needs to get organized.

I have never been skating here, but it always looks like a blast and I always say I’m going to go, but I’m probably about as good a skater as Rocky was, remember we he took Adrian skating that was a nice moment!
Anyway I have been to a concert here and it was a great spot for a concert in the summer, the fog and the lights have an amazing arena for showing off! The sound is good too, and you can be outside without being to concerned about the elements of rain and to much heat!
Anyway I love that downtown Des Moines has a multi season purposed place like this! Skating for families in the winters and beer drinking and concert going for adults in the summer by the river! The view from here is one of the best in town, and this place rules! Maybe I will get the nerve to skate around next winter.

This was a lot of fun for us and the kids ages 6 & 9 — music was great, getting skates on was a little cramped for space but still an overall great experience for all of us!

The quality of the skate rentals was poor. Everything else was great. Kids liked the music and atmosphere of skating outside. Reasonably priced concessions was a nice bonus.

Met up with some friends here on a saturday afternoon. It took a bit of time actually getting through to the register as there was a big crowd.
The rink itself is a moderate size, and they re-​ice it every few hours. I had a great experience here, especially being able to skate outdoors was just great. The music and vibe that day was on point… they had some really good loungy electro tunes playing on the speakers.
For $ 7.00 a person (after admission + skate rental)…its a great deal, especially since they dont max out how long you can skate for!
I highly suggest a visit here for a fun date night or if you have kids and are looking to spend quality active time with the family.