Gather

Fabulous play space for kids (my children are 2 and 5 and had tons of options!) and fun art projects. Atmosphere is very inviting. My girls would have stayed all day if possible!

We hosted my daughter’s first birthday here last week. We were so impressed! Everything was just so perfect!
The owners, Angela and Dan along with Andy took care of EVERYTHING. They set up the food and cleaned up. And even served the cake. I didn’t have to do anything except enjoy the party.
The space is comfortable, cozy and festive.
It was so nice that we were actually able to really enjoy our own party. And all of the guests had a great time — especially the kids. Everyone is still talking about how great it was.
I also attend the playgroup for meetup here and was impressed the very time I came here. It is so clean and I love that they have the no shoes, socks required rule.
We look forward to enjoying all that Gather has to offer as our little one grows.

Just lovely place to spend time with your little one!

I have only been to gather once but I was definitely impressed with the variety of art supplies available. Our kids loved painting and checking out all the other options. We also went to the yoga/​storytelling class and, while our kids were too young, it was still very cute. Only reason I gave 4 instead of 5 stars is I felt it was a tad expensive for a twin momma! Just a bit more than comparable playspaces for two siblings. We’re likely to return, though!

Dropped in on a Saturday morning with my 14 months old. He had a great time. I love that this place caters to numerous age groups. He definitely didn’t feel too young to be there, but he can also enjoy different aspects as he grows older. I love the tea and couches for the parents. We’ll be back!

We hosted our son’s first birthday party at Gather and had an AMAZING experience. Angela, Dan, and their team made everything so easy and the space is clean, modern, and full of fun things to keep stimulate little minds — a perfect place for kids to run around and a nice place for the adults to hang out. All of our guests were raving about how perfect it was for the occasion. We look forward to coming back to take advantage of all of the other offerings, including the classes and free play. Highly recommend!

Amazing experience! The craft area was unbelievable– great selection of paints, paper punches and art supplies. My 4 yo also loved the imaginative play areas– especially the mini grocery store. I appreciated the free tea and coffee. The place was beyond clean and sunny and bright! I am looking forward to our next visit!

This is our favorite play space! It is very clean, the owner is just wonderful and there is free coffee and tea! You can’t beat that. The back quiet room is great as well.

My granddaughter and I drive here from Wicker Park. Very personal attention, lovely parents and nice children. Three rooms; crafts, play and a relaxing lounge where we like to read. Activity specials every day. Outstanding.

Hours are open later for the winter and they have so many great classes and workshops made available for their members. Now, they’re open until 6pm Monday — Friday and Saturdays from 9am — 5pm. Last time we came on a Saturday morning and were lucky enough to sit through Music Time with Brea which was fun.
What a fabulous spot as they continue to develop more programming for their members. I’m looking forward to using them as a birthday party location for my youngest one, too.

I went here yesterday for the first time, and loved it! I took my 2 year old son, and dragged along an infant. I dont think it is fair to compare (well, ok maybe fair but not really relevant) Gather to Little Beans, etc. We also often head down to Little Beans, but LB is a PLAY space, and is not a creative space at all. I take my son there and he runs and goes wild– quite fun!
What I liked about Gather, though, is that they emphasize crafts and creativity– my son will run around all day long, if I let him, but I love that he can sit here and play with play dough, paint, draw, draw on the chalk wall, etc. I also love the complementary coffee/​tea, the organized events (there was a free lactation consultant there the day I was there). All in all, a wonderful addition to downtown Evanston and just what the mama’s and baby’s up here need! Looking forward to going back.

I’m a big fan of gather. i’ve been several times with my year-​old daughter, and we both really enjoy it. it’s a great space filled with super fun toys. everything is very clean and well taken care of, which i really appreciate.
my one complaint is that i wish they had little gates or doors separating the central play space from the front/​art area. my daughter spends half the time trying to escape to the front windows to play with the chinese paper lanterns hanging there, so i end up chasing her around quite a bit, which makes it a bit challenging for me. i wish there were some partitions separating the different areas, so she could just be confined to the play area and i didn’t have to worry about her ripping the lanterns down the whole time. maybe something the owners would think about?
but all in all, we like this place a lot and plan to keep going frequently. it’s a great addition to the kid-​landscape of the north suburbs.