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San Jose Skate
Rating Details »
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
25 reviews for San Jose Skate
Funnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn fun funn!
I mean, yes, this place is totally old... opened since 1934... smells old too.. but it's such a fun way to spend a few hours of your day... doing something totally old school and different from today's kind of "fun".
I came here with my sis and nieces and thought.. "omg, I'm totally stoked for skating....." (sarcasm to the max)...
but once I heard the music playing while we were paying for our entrance fee... I was like .. "DOES THIS PLACE SERVE ALCOHOL TOO?!?!?!"
After we got our skates.. I was ready to boogieeeee.. they play some good music.. which was fun and every hour or so they have a game for all the skaters to participate in to win a prize.
Anyway, we were here for about 2 hrs and there were kids, tweens, teens, 20 something yr olds, and adults all on the rink having fun! Some people are really good and were getting down while skating around.
I had a lot of fun here and we're *thinking* about spending nye here for the kiddies! Something extremely different and still fun imo =) but of course, if that does happen, I'll definitely have to sneak in some alcohol. Shhhhh don't tell anyone!
Went here for the first time a few nights ago, my boyfriend and I were dying to go roller skating (because we're awesome) and this was the closest place. We went at 6 and apparently they only have skating from 7:30 on and it was a school fundraiser night etc etc, trying to get info from the people that worked there proved to be difficult, and they seem like... the cliche' pissed off teen working at a crappy roller rink. I don't much care for catering on packs of children, so I understand but still, working a job means putting a smile on your face, regardless of whether it's genuine.
ANYWAYS. Waited for a whiiile, the attendant taking care of our line just disappeared so we had to get in other one. Finally got our skates (ugly, dirty, but I guess what more can you expect...) wobbled around and dodged droves of awkward kids. After a while we picked up some speed and enjoyed ourselves.
I'd say I won't be back but apparently there's a Goth/Industrial night I simply MUST see. Sounds like a grade A "LOLfest".
P.S Pee before you come to this place, the bathrooms are nothing less than vile. Spit wads on the ceiling, broken locks, etc etc. Sorry, but it was just downright disgusting.
If it's raining and there's nothing else to do, I definitely recommend this place. Only thing that's missing is some beer and a flat screen TV.
I took a star off for lack of beer
LOTS OF FUN! And great music!!
Second Tuesday evening of the month is an event called Wumpskate. It's alternative music and each month there's a different theme. Fun times and friendly people - well worth it!
Its ok. The skates are horrible!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The music is good. The games are unfair. It smells!!!!!!!
The only reason to keep this place around is for SVRG, but if you go there to actually skate, whatever you do bring your own skates. I should have brought my Rollerblades but thought it would be fun to try some of the old quad skates again, and what they give you is something that was made before Pong was invented. It's bad enough I haven't been on skates in so long I look like a kid struggling to stay balanced, but to have to do that on skates that are so old and worn out they should be in the garbage, my feet still hurt and that was like three days ago.
Greetings my fellow yelpers. As you can see I like skating....Well as for rinks to go to this is the grown-n-sexy rink lol. Reason I say that is they have a pretty good session on sunday nights thats basically for the older crowd. DJ plays all the latest jams some oldie but goodies also. overall if your a skater i'd check this rink out if i were you.
It kind of smells a bit. But I love it.
The rink is HUGE and the floor is actually a pretty good quality. I've skated at many places and this rink by far is the nicest to skate on.
First, they lost their live music permit. Now, it seems the people who own the building are not renewing the lease for SJS and will be tearing it down, so you better get your kicks while you can.
Also, come see your Silicon Valley Roller Girls enjoy their last season at SJS--we have home bouts there August 8, September 26, and November 14!
1 Previous Review: Show all »
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9/9/2008
This rink is much more spacious than Redwood Roller Rink. Even though it doesn't look like it's been… Read more »
I wish SJPD didn't unrightfully shut this place down!! I'm not much of a rollerskater, or a roller skater at all for that matter haha, but my band used to play here pretty frequently and for a couple of years this was THE place to see live bands in an all ages setting. Sure, the room was huge so the acoustics suffered a bit, and yes, it does kind of smell, but the shows here had a certain flair about them that were really exciting. When you played a bigger show you would be surrounded by people on all sides of you, pushed against the railing of the rink, because of the weird location of the stage. It was definitely a lot of fun though, and the place was just starting to get some pretty big bands - Bayside, Finch, Scary Kids Scaring Kids, Daphne Loves Derby, Secondhand Serenade, 3OH!3, among others.
Damn you SJPD!!
I take my daughter to this skating rink on the weekends and she loves to skate. She is 3 and is learning very well. She loves the lights, the glow in the dark trinkets, the candy machines (when they work) and having a really fun time.
What I don't like is the trashy music they play for the young people there. Sometimes when the song is really raunchy like "Me so horny" by 2 live crew, I draw the line and complain.
My child does not need to hear this nor does anyone else's child. My daughter does not need to feel like she needs to rip her clothes off to be accepted my some guys she doesn't even know. I think more parents need to stand up and speak out against this type of music because what are we teaching our sons and daughters? That this is the way we are supposed to act? Especially at such a young age?
What I do like is their 10AM learning session for children on Saturday mornings where the music is age appropriate, when I can make it at that time. If not, I have to go during regular session where the music is questionable, even for the older children.
I go here because it is close to my house and it is cheaper than the other places around. They let my daughter skate for free and once when I left my cell phone there, they were kind enough to give it back.
They also play games like red light, green light, hokey pokey and do some kind of interactive dance. We love this and it's really fun.
They really do need to fix their walls in the back as they are practically falling apart and it is really nasty to look at when the lights are on.
Also on their website they advertise a jumpy for the kids. I have been there several times and am always told it is unavailable. Their food is way overpriced and half the time they don't have what I want in stock so I just don't buy anymore.
All in all, if I do complain the DJ apologises and does make the music PG. The people are nice and accommodating as much as they can be. Mostly teenagers work here so I can see why the music may be raunchy but still, the management should uphold a higher standard for our youth.
Hmmmm...
I used to rollerskate A LOT as a kid, I did the 4-wheel drive and then I did the inline. And then I stopped.
And then, tonight it was on.
Seemingly, the place is just the same as I remembered it... I think that the space is a great place for a party, but other than that - it looks like it's still from the 70's-80's.
I'm sad because judging by the crowd, it wouldn't have been appropriate to where the daisy dukes I wanted to... but it still managed well. The weekends aren't filled with kiddies... and that's good. But it's an awesome throwback, if you are willing to go there!
Word of the wise, they have inlines, but there are no brakes on there. So, if you can't manage skating in general, I'd stick with the four wheel drive...
You wouldn't want to fall on your House of Dereon jeans, would you?
one word ... Yuk! San Jose Skate is very dirty, the skates do not look clean and the personel is very unfriendly. If you like to roller skate, Cal-Skate in Milpitas is a lot nicer roller rink.
One good thing ... the music.
This deserves @ least 3 stars because it still exists.
Extra star for the amazing bands it has had play. Its awesome to see them in a non club type environment.
I take my niece out for a "special day" for her birthday each year. Letting her pick what we do means being open to experiences I'd probably not have otherwise. When my brother told me my niece loves skating and has been to SJ Skate, I went with it. I figured it had to be better than crawling around in another jungle gym place like the one we went to a couple years ago. But let's be clear, my expectations were super low for this outing.
We went to the 1 - 3pm family skate, which I assumed would help us avoid the teenage make-out scene, something I'm not ready to face with my eight year old niece. You have a choice of regular skates or in line for a couple bucks more.
We had a blast!! The place is not clean, new or sparkly. It's dark, kinda rundown and totally took me back to my youth. My fearless, ever falling, laughing, and getting back up again niece was at her hilarious best on skates. The music was current, fun to skate to hip hop/pop except for a blip when they played "TNT" (who requested that??). There were a couple birthday parties going on, which made it lively but not overly crowded.
At the end of the session my niece said, "We should do this more often!" Ummm...let's not get crazy, maybe not "often", but I could actually do this again.
I used to go to this place when I was a kid and then later when it would be rented out for "club x" at night when I was in high school and thought I was really cool.
Now that I know better, I took my monsters here because they LOVE roller skating. Since this is literally the only game in town, they have no idea how awful it is.
The place is dirty. The skates are old and one pair had a wheel fly off when my 10 year old was skating. (That's awesome, guys. Please don't break my child's limbs with your crap equipment. ) The staff is not terribly helpful and MORE THAN ONCE, I got the distinct whiff of weed when I was at the skate counter trying to get a pair of skates that were either not four sizes too big or not torn and falling apart. I'm not kidding...TORN AND FALLING APART. We waited at the refreshment counter for like 20 minutes with absolutely no staff in site until we finally just grabbed some chips and left the money on the counter.
If someone out there has the gumption, open a NEW skate rink with skates from this century and you will clean up. This place is a dive and not in a good way.
Oh my God, I have found the portal back to the 1970's! This must be why you have to wait to be buzzed into the place, they're assessing your fitness for time travel. The second I entered San Jose Skate I could hear Donna Summers in my head, "The last dance, the last chance for love..." Disco balls and funky lights cast flicks of color onto the rink, odd snowflake-like fixtures glitter from the walls. This place was a crack up! Even the rollerskates issued to my daughter looked older than she is.
On the downside, the place is in serious need of an overhaul but, that would require bringing it into present day which means making it look like a house in foreclosure or a Pottery Barn Kids----- whatever present day theme you choose it won't be nearly as fun! Perhaps they could simply air out the place (what's up with the stale smell in there?) and vacum the floor at least!
Went skating last night for a friend's birthday party expecting sort of a bizarre experience. My definition of bizarre was something like going bowling - not something I do very often, but is generally pretty fun once you get past the timewarp factor. San Jose Skate was far more in the line of bizarre than any of us were expecting.
We arrived at about 9 on Saturday night at SJS and found the place looking fairly dark, with a bunch of young teenage kids hanging out in front. We walked into the front lobby and were immediately hit in the face with the smell of old, nasty shoes. Trepidation increased. We paid our $9pp for admission, then opened the doors to the rink.
What met our eyes and ears shook us to the core. A highschool death metal band was raging on a makeshift stage in front of about 50 dirty teenagers. All of my friends are around 30. This was obviously going to be a very major trip into bizarro land. We picked up our skates, all of which were just about completely worn out, and headed for the rink. Generally the skating was ok, though I'd highly recommending bringing your own skates if you go. The ones we all rented had little or no support, and smelled of ass-most-foul.
Three or four highschool bands played while we were there - they were all pretty bad, but one wasn't as bad as the others. The last band, Fiore, had pretty cool t-shirts, so we got one for the birthday girl - I know she'll treasure it. The kids selling the shirts thought we were awesome for buying a shirt... so I guess that's a plus of being surrounded by 16 year olds.
The last band finished up at about 10:30, so we took off our damp, nasty skates an headed for the door. Exiting into the lobby someone commented on how fresh the air smelled. Mind you we had commented much to the contrary upon first entering the lobby earlier in the night. Lots of kids making out in front as we walked out.
I've heard there's actually good 80s and 90s DJ music on some nights... I might even consider going back if the music was better - maybe that would scare away some of the kids. If you bring your own skates and maybe some purel, you might find this place to be OK. It'd be a lot cooler if someone invested a bit in refurbing the place, getting some newer skates, and generally sanitizing the place!
On the outside, this place looks like it's closed and the ivy will soon be growing over the walls and doors like a dilapidated house. Inside, it has petrified gum on the carpet, leftover from the 1970s, or perhaps, when I threw my juicy fruit on the floor when I went skating here in elementary school. Back then, it was Aloha Roller Palace.
Anyway, it could use a complete overhaul, but it's one of the only skating places left. And when my daughter was turning 5, she wanted a skating birthday party. I was pleasantly surprised. For a birthday party, they let you order pizza that they bring in from Mountain Mike's next door. You can bring your own cake, goodie bags, etc. They give you a few tables and you get skates for all the kids and one accompanying adult. They provide skate instructors and they play some games like red light/green light and the infamous hokey pokey.
My daughter is turning 7 this year and she wants her party here for the 3rd year in a row. Many of her friends now have their parties here after going to hers. That says something.
I have to take off 1 star for the run-down nature of the place and another for the messy owner divorce that resulted in half the skates disappearing. No joke! But if you can overlook the ambiance, the kids have a blast, and that's what truly counts.
My good friend from high school turned 27 and requested we go roller skating here...but we didn't go with the cool retro themed skating like in Jessica Simpson's video, but went to the Saturday Family session at 3:30 pm. For $7 we skated for 2 hours amongst 7 year olds and a couple of regulars twirling around in the middle of the rink. We didn't want to spend another $2.50 for inline skates, so went with the old-school quads...actually, they were just OLD...and SMELLY. They don't spray the skates the way bowling shoes are disinfected after use.
This must cause the stench that's been building up in the rink for decades I'm sure. When you walk into the lobby to pay for your ticket, you're already getting a preview of what's to come. But once you get buzzed through those double doors, you feel like you're smelling every stinky foot that's ever walked through those doors. Some of my favorite comments from my friends were, "it smells like we're in the '70s" and "I feel like I walked into a big shoe!" The rink definitely has potential and I loved the nostalgic feeling I got. The kids looked like they were having fun, so hopefully the place will see some improvements.
They have live music on Saturdays until 10 or so, then after that an "Adult" session which ends at 1 am. I must say I'm quite curious as to the type of crowd that goes roller skating on a Sat night, but not quite curious enough to actually go back anytime soon.
Let me just say this...Thank You San Jose Skate for allowing SVRG to have their home bouts at your rink!!!!
I am an SVRG fan and everytime I go to a home bout (I am from SF), I always feel welcomed and at-home when I go to San Jose Skate. The staff is friendly and everyone is always themselves. The music is always great.
It may have been a little dirty, and a little outdated, and maybe even could be updated; but the place hasn't changed in years and if it did, I would be unimpressed. There is something about the smell of an old roller rink that brings me back in time...it's a good feeling.
Again, thank you San Jose Skate for creating a friendly, safe, and fun environment for me to watch those crazy SVRG girls fight their bouts!
It's just what we expected for Sunday afternoon skating. The place smells, the skates are old (but didn't they seem old even 15 years ago when it was more appropriate for any of us to be donning roller skates rather than hitting the bar?), little assholes weave on the rink and make people nervously fall over... it's just what we wanted.
Feel the burn.
If I was feeling just a tad more nostalgic I'd give it 5, cause this brought back 1983 for me. $6 for entry and rental is certainly cheaper than a time machine (and less damaging a la Napoleon Dynamite).
Okay, so here's the good part...I'm from Tucson, AZ and I swear this place was a clone of Skate Country West, the rink I frequented constantly through junior high. So, I'm flying around the rink and great memories are flooding back...couple skating with Andy Green, YMCA on wheels, early 80's fashion (oh wait, nothing good about that, I forgot). Love the smell of cotton candy which occasionally overrides the funky feet odor. Love that they'll take requests...Dancing Queen by ABBA is an absolute must.
The downside....dirty, terrible lighting, dings in the rink floor that cause sudden skids and wrenched knees, petrified gum (think that's been mentioned already), kinda floors me that they choose fairly hardcore hip hop during the family skate when the average patron is 7.
All that to say....3 stars, but I'll be definitely coming back.
haha dude this place was the shit back in middle school. i remember all the kids in middle school would wanna go every friday night. i think i actually got my first boner here ROFLMAO!!! this hot chick (that was probably 2 years older than me at the time) asked me to dance with her out on the rink. she had like a pink tube top and a skirt on. and i was like 13 and she was like 15 so i got all turned on and shit and got off to her small boobies.. shit was bad ass . i felt like such a mac daddy that night .. godbless those days !! =/ LOL
