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Skate King
Rating Details »
- Hours:
Wed. 4:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Thu. 4:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Thu. 8:30 p.m. - 11:00 p.m.
Fri. 4:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Fri. 7:30 p.m. - 11:00 p.m.
Sat. 10:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
Sat. 1:00 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.
Sat. 6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.
Sat. 8:00 p.m. - 10:30 p.m.
Sun. 10:30 a.m. - 12:00 a.m.
Sun. 12:30 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
23 reviews for Skate King
My kids call this "the stink rink" that "smells like crayons" and is over by the "really good Mexican place where they were playing that stripper video on TV." All of this is true. Skate King is situated by...mumble mumble...off the such-and-such outlying freeway cloverleaf in HuhWhuh? Washington. I have been there three times and still have to GPS it. It's in one of those strip-mall type places that make me feel unreasonably depressed.
And yes, there is a Mexican taqueria which is actually really good, and gave me flashbacks to living in the Mission District in San Francisco. When we ate there, some Shakira video showing her in a nude opaque body stocking was playing on every television screen (the song was about a wolfman/woman or something aggressively stupid, and the video would have been infinitely better if she really were naked, rather than Barbie-naked, which is to say, naked but not anatomically correct...which was disturbing and transfixing in its not-okay-ness. This prompted Nico, my older son to ask, "If you're a singer, why would you wanna be a stripper? Isn't it better to be a singer than a stripper? And if you DO wanna be a stripper, why not just be a stripper?") All good questions. Wrong review though.
Back to Skate King. You go in and the smell is baaaaaaad. "Crayons" is actually accurate, but perhaps kind. But, as I told them, you get used to it--suck it up! Then you walk in and it's got it all: loud carpet, dingy everything, seedy snack bar with stumbling bumbling skaters, clumsy as foundling giraffes, and "Huh naaaame is Rio and she DANCES on the saaaaand" (on a good day) and perhaps something by Dan Fogelberg (like maybe the one where he gets all sexual discussing a racehorse) on a bad day.
It is, in short, a time capsule place, something unchanged from decades past, which is nothing more and nothing less than it purports to be. We've been there several times, but on this last one, my intrepid younger son, Maximo, creamed it big time and really hurt his shoulder. I mean, he was really hurting--pale and clammy. When I asked for a bag of ice, one of the attendants came over immediately to check on us (there are always visible on-the-floor safety peeps--you can tell them by their one-skate-up nonchalance, casual backward grapevining panache, and, on occasion, the comet of lavender pixie dust that blossoms up behind them as they bust their semi-Olympic moves...and also sometimes they bark, "Don't hang on the WALLL PLEEEEAAASE" as they pass.)
In this case, though, the guy was very concerned, and hailed the owner, who was also very maternal and sweet and said, "We're going to call the paramedics. It's no charge to you and it's standard procedure for us." Well, cool! That set my mind at ease. The paramedics got there fast and gave us their opinions on the injury, which aligned with my own, and the owner followed up throughout the whole affair. This impressed me; I forgave the bad smell. These are good people.
Sure, Skate King smells like crayons. It's a relic, but I'm happy it's around. In that perverse, egocentric way of parents,, I want to inflict my own childhood memories on future generations--particularly those under my direct supervision. And hey, we live in a grey, rainy state. Rollerskating is 30% less cold than ice skating (and its practitioners haven't stigmatized it anywhere near as much); it's cheaper than the movies, and it's indoor calisthenics for Healthy Family Fun. So smile wide and...breathe through your mouth, for godsakes.
staaaaaaaanky and sooo dirty! The years of grubby children, spilled sodas, and dirt all teamed up to offend my nose when I walked in. Ultimately, while you're there, you totally adjust to the smell so you can instead enjoy flying through the air on the skating rink (while trying to avoid darting children who are waaaay better at skating than you). Just remember that stank will rub off on you. If you're going out to meet other people after skating here, they will smell Skate King on you... they will tell you you stink. just sayin'. ya might want to shower right after :)
All in all, if you want to skate, you might as well come here since there aren't a ton of roller skating rink options. They still do old school skating games that I remember from my preschool days which are kind of fun.
There were some things that I could done without:
1. the stench
2. the skeezy skate king who asks to see your ring 'just so he can hold your hand'
3. in their prize section they have a big toy crown. Don't even bother asking to buy it (I wanted to get it for the bday girl) unless you want some sass. Apparently 'without the crown, there wouldn't be a 'King' in 'Skate King'
4. the crazy long line to get in
5. if you come for a birthday party, they have a separate entrance for you... but only once. So if all your party isn't there, you might want to wait. We didn't know this, and a bunch of us went in early to prepare to surprise the bday girl. But when the birthday girl arrived, they wouldn't let her in through the party entrance.... she had to wait in the loooong line behind all the pre-teens and their parents...sux.
Yeah... There is both tremendous joy and tremendous sadness layered into the history of this place as evidenced by the dirty, smell, and grime that coats every square inch of it.
I want to enjoy it, but I can't. Partly because "grandpa" seems so sketchy--he seems to want to "help" all the pretty young girls. Partly because the smell is overpowering... Yeah...
Lots of folks were having fun and enjoying things, but it just wasn't my scene and I couldn't bring myself to enjoy it ironically. I'm pretty sure I'll never be back.
Still trying to get the smell out.
Jordache Jeans! Feathered Hair! Journey!
Are you freaking kidding me? Its as if this place we're shut down in the 1980s by the Feds, only to open in 2009, completely unchanged. That being said, I'm reasonably sure no cleaning products have been used in the place since the 1980s. Its nasty. The carpet is third world.
But honestly it took me all of 5 seconds to get past that, because I was instantly taken back 30 years to roller skating as a kid. It was fantastic. Disco balls! Doing the Hokey Pokey! Video Games! Seriously, even if you have no interest in skating, its worth going to this place just for the kitsch value. They have a giant roller skate powered by a VW engine in this place people!!!!!!!!!
I brought my own roller blades, and I would go that route if you have them. Their only requirement is that they are reasonably clean. They do have both roller blades and traditional skates for rental. The actually skating surface is in good smooth condition.
Jebus, I'm actually giddy. Giddy!
P.S. Absolute blast for the kids.
This place is just gross! Can for a party and could not believe the vomit stench walking in. The whole place smells like vomit, the carpet is completely trashed, the nasty man who hands out the skates does ask to hold your hand (as mentioned by someone already) and he's just like a nasty carnie from some really icky carnival traveling across town. The DJ we had today would not shut up which prevented the kids from skating - so that they could play a stupid game. Don't go here. Want to skate - go to the Kighland Ice Arena in Shoreline and do it on the ice. Besides being hard to find, you will wait forever in line, pay way too much and all to breathe in the worst possible smells outside a pigpen. Ick - stay away!
OK!
First off, I just want to introduce myself to everyone I'm DJ Mike and I'm a new DJ at skate king. I DJ 4 nights a week, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights. I have been a DJ for many years and have a great passion in what I do. I love skate king just as much as the next person. When I DJ at a new place I like to do my homework and find out about the company, why people love going and what can we do to make it better. Now with that being said. I have been DJing there for a little over a month now, reading all of your comments, complaints , concerns I see what things you all like about the place and things u hate about it.
I don't blame you at all for your concerns. I want to make skate king a better place for everyone. I know people hate the carpets, the smell is bad I know, I have to breath it everyday, the skates are worn out among many other things. Now with all these problems, we the staff at skate king know this. Thats one thing that we talk about everyday, even today when I DJ ed for a school. After we clocked out for the day we sat outside talking about what this place needs. We want more attendance, as a DJ i play a lot of everything, cuz i know one of all your major complaints and even my managers says is that the DJ's before me would play whatever they want and play mostly rap, thats why I was hired on bcuz i play everything. I play as many of your music requests as I can find. I try to be the best MC for you and interact as best as I can to make it fun for all ages. I'm even giving out free passes now during the games to increase moral and attendance.
As for the carpets, I have spoken with my boss about that. He said he is trying to get the owners to change it. So in the mean time, my mom gave me a steam cleaner to take to work. We are using that as often as we can. I also vacuum as much as I can after each session cuz those carpets are nasty I know. I'm also gona buy some carpet powder that I can put on the carpets to make it smell a lot better. I'm telling you all this so you know that your thought and comments don't go unheard. I love this place so much I'm not gona give up on it. I want to replace that carpet sadly but i dont think the owners are gona do it. So I want to try and do a fundraiser and replace the carpets. I know carpet is not that expansive. I also want to raise money to get all new skates or a least replacement parts. I know what your all thinking, Your thinking dang finally someone is trying to fix this place, even my boss has called me the promoting guru.lol I'm also planing to do more themes, new games and make events better then before. So with all this being said, if any of you have a facebook, we have a brand new group on their to do networking, promoting, advertising and just being able to talk with our staff and talk about ideas to make skate king better then ever before and to continue its great legacy.
Here is the link to our new Facebook group, Please join
http://www.facebook.co....
I just want to let you all know, that i love Djing there. I want to fix this place and I need all your help and support. If We can get enough people to respond to the facebook group, I can send a petition to the owners to fix the place.
Thanks for all time and understand!
and i hope to see you all at the rink this weekend!
Regards
DJ Mike
PS. for those of you ladies who dont like Warren aka Grandpa touching your hand when he tells you the ring joke, I'll let him know to tone it down when I go into work on Thursday.lol
We went to Skate King this weekend with the kids. What a blast from the past! Oh my, nothing has been updated at all. (except maybe the sound system) Good music, old uncomfortable skates, lots of memories. Even the picture of the King Dome brought back memories. Good times...
I hadn't been roller skating since I was a wee thing and I'm so glad I got the bug to go try it, because it was great! There's nothing like the feel of the slighly stale wind in your hair as you're gliding gracefully around the rink, or falling gracelessly to the floor when you get too cocky and realize you've not QUITE got the hang of it.
The staff was friendly and the regulars are a hoot. I enjoyed all the friendly tips I got to help keep me off my hind parts and the music was a blast. I'd truly forgotten how fun this can be, and it made me feel so wholesome!!
This is exactly the way I envision a roller skating rink being.
Grungy and a little rundown complete with odd orange carpeting, plastic disco balls, a DJ booth, and old, used skates that make you glad you brought your own pair of socks.
Despite all this, it's really fun. For reals. Go with a group, drag your boyfriend, host a party. It's silly, ridiculous, and downright *awesome.*
It's not the cleanest place. It's not the nicest smelling place. It looks like a warehouse from the outside and it's kind of dark and yellow inside. But do not fear; it's a gem. Don't be afraid to look dumb and it'll be much more enjoyable, I promise. Don't take it so seriously. Face it, we all know no one looks cool in roller skates and everybody falls sometimes. Top 40's music on adult (18+) nights for $7.50. Public skating for all ages is $6.50. They have pizza, hot dogs, hamburgers, chips, popcorn, nachos, ice cream, and my favorite -- chillee willees!
You can also reserve the place for a private party or take lessons. Something different to do and nice lighthearted fun for the young at heart :)
suit up and feel like you're 10 again (although you're body definetly is not and the soreness may kick in days later) .
what to do on a rainy, cold seattle day? go roller skating!!! this place is out of the 80s and smells like it too. so don't get grossed out by the smell or that it looks a little bent around the edges but come to skate! or host one of your kids parties.
they have different skate nights so i would recommend you check their website for the schedule. i was there during the day on saturday and it was $5.00 admission, $1.50 for rollerskate rental, $4 for rollerblade rental. plus. my friends and i were the only few adults not accompanied by a child.
i did enjoy the music. they played journey, they played backstreet boys, they played will smith - what else can you ask for?
but it really is just a fun past time. the DJ is also the skate cop and nicely helped me up when i fell. although i almost brought him down with me since i'm not his usual 10 year old, i appreciated the help.
I did accurately calculate how long it's been since I've been on skates, half my time on earth. The latter half of my life had seen no roller skating, that is until Thursday.
It does come right back to you, well..to some of us, and wow, so much fun.
I had no idea that the skate craze didn't actually end for some people. The adults only crowd was pretty much a bunch of break dancing, electric sliding, fancy footing folks ........and us.
This rink has seen better days. It's hayday was probably the last time Don was on skates (let's just say I may or may not have learned to walk yet)
The inner rink lanes have visible warps in them.
But for the few scant bucks it costs to get some skates, this is a worthy way to have some fun and get some action.
Every time I lapped around a yelper, seems they were back to sitting down. The idea is to go around more than once before taking a 5 minute break, guys.
I honestly can't wait to go again! My only sadness is my own skates, my white ones with pink wheels that I custom painted with all the logos for bands I listened to at the time (junior high) are lost somewhere in mom's garage.
Riss and I couldn't even calculate how long it'd been since we'd been on roller skates. And unlike Riss, who looked like she'd never stopped skating at all - I was the first, second, and only Yelper to fall down all night. Oh well - at least I got a good workout!
There is an "eau de skating rink", sort of like a bowling alley but you don't even notice it once you're past the skate check-in area.
The foyer narrows into a short enclosed space where you purchase your tickets. The cashier (the first of many women I saw with colored streaks in their hair) gave me two tickets, red and white. Then I passed through the door and had to show my red ticket to a guy before getting past to the skate counter, where that guy wanted to see my white ticket. Why is the security so tight at this place? Is there some after-hours action involving a secret knock, loose men, & high stakes poker that I'm unaware of?
We skate up and wobble back towards the rink. The layout in this place is weirdly designed to make you take as many risks with your life on skates as possible. Why is the change machine just after the entrance vs near the arcade games wayyyy in the back? Why are the lockers so far away from the skate counter? These things probably don't bug regulars but for n00bs it's odd.
Speaking of the regulars: Awe. Some. Dude. There was a guy doing yoga-type stretches. Don and I witness a trio doing some sort of synchronized line dance. I even survived an encounter with the Skate King Lothario whom I noticed talking up lots of random ladies all over the rink. There was lots of trick skating and dancing and skate nerds having a great time. We even spied a girl wearing white high heels with formal knee length shorts for no apparent reason whatsoever. And a couple of members of the Rat City Roller girls were representin'.
Once you've been to one over-priced snack bar you've been to them all. My popcorn was fine, hot dog burned, chilly-willy (some sort of faux icee) was serviceable.
I'd definitely come here again to skate, oogle the regulars, and play Addams Family pinball for hours.
Whenever I think of skating I always think of that Jessica Simpson song "Public Affair" since the music video takes place at a skating rink after all (and is hilarious). Before a few Yelpers went skating we met up at Angelo's and were talking about how we all think of this song (except Don who had never heard of it before) and we tried to find it on youtube on our phones with no luck. For some reason the search function on phones always pops up with one of those random videos that feature two Asian dudes singing a female singer's song. Anyways, with numerous people trying to find the song we still couldn't and I was kind of disappointed. I wanted to hear the song and watch the video to get in the mood.
Don (and anyone else) can watch the video now: http://www.youtube.com... It's freaking awesome. I promise.
I digress, because this is supposed to be about that skating rink place we went to. I don't even remember what it's called and I'm too lazy to scroll up a teeny, tiny, itty bitty bit to look at the name, but I think I had fun. The thought of skating is way more fun than the actual act of skating in my opinion since I pretty much suck at it. I used to be good at skating when I was a little kid, but 9 years without stepping foot on a rink didn't improve my abilities any. Thankfully I didn't fall down.
I kind of wish I was the main dude in the Jessica Simpson video who arrives with Maria Menounos but leaves with Jessica Simpson. Except if I really was him I would have left with Eva Longoria. I also wish I was him because he seemed to be good at skating.
If any of you are looking for a good, informative review on the rink, I apologize since I still haven't produced one. I'm feeling scatter brained at the moment. Sorry.
It's a skating rink. It's just like all the ones I've ever been to. It seemed reasonably priced I guess. They have snacks. They have beverages. They have skates. They have music. They also have expert skaters who are kind of b!tchy and will try and run you over. Bill Gates had his birthday here. It's a skating rink. Don't expect too little or too much. I liked that it was "Adults" (aka 18 or older) only on Thursday nights. Even though I wouldn't normally mind running into or over a little kid I didn't especially feel like seriously injuring one tonight, so yay. I had fun though and I think you will too.
I basically grew up here on Fridays and Sundays from 1997-2002.
I've also been to most of the other rinks in the state (and rinks in Oregon and New York, etc.) and can say that as far as skating rinks go, Skate King is in the top 5%.
There are specialty rinks, like TLC in Kent and Roxy in NYC that cater specifically to adults and have better music... But Skate King will provide you a better experience than many of the rinks in the region if you're more of an average skater than a skilled skate-dancer.
The floor is always clean and they re-laminate it annually.
Others have remarked about the smell... I always think it smells like cotton candy and feet, but unless you have a canine's sense of smell I don't think it's that bothersome. You'll find the same at most rinks in my experience, especially nowadays.
Where to start???
I remember field trips here in grade school. They were very fun.. up until age 15 hit and I had my first serious boyfriend. Lookout Skate King. At 15 yrs old, I would get good grades in school and do all of my chores in order to come here on a Friday night from 8pm-12am. The memories of holding hands when the song Tootsie Roll, and all of the good songs from back in 1995, I can rmeember the feeling and the smell of Skate King. We'd play foosball together and I'd start arguments with girls who even looked at my boyfriend. LOL Around 11:30pm, we'd go outside for the last 30 min and have kissing contests against my sister and her boyfriend, we'd dress the same in matching starter jackets as our b/f's. All of this sounds like something textbook from The Wonder Years, except I look better than Winnie Cooper
Yes the funk does immediately hit you as you enter the place, but once through the inner door it quickly dissipates and you are welcomed back to the 80s. The decor is tacky, but perfect. Eat before you get here. Thursday's "Adults Only" night is lots of fun and for $6 plus $1.50 skate rental, you can't beat it for 3 1/2 hours of entertainment. There's a group of talented regulars who all know each other and are great to watch! I had a good time and will be back...oh, and it is one heck of a good workout too.
A dive? Sure. A hell of a lot of fun? Absolutely. Ignore the carpet which was not-so-fresh the last time I skated (1984 or so), the music which hasn't changed much either, the original tables, arcade game machines, and even the same exact rental roller skates (now called quads to distinguish them from the roller blades which they also rent), and have a great time.
We went here yesterday for one of my daughter's classmate's birthday party, and we all had a really good time. The gal who ran the party for us was great, and clearly enjoys doing it. The kids all had fun, even though most of them were pretty unsteady on skates, and a few of the grown-ups, including me, got out and skated too and had way more fun than we would admit to having. The price of the premier package was pretty fair, the kids had plenty of (junk) food to eat (soda, pizza, popcorn, cake, and ice cream cups), and the goody bags distributed at the end were a hit.
They have rental skates for almost every size, down to toddler 7, which fit a 2-year old in our party. Wear good socks though; these skates are at least 20 years old and don't have much padding left, if they ever had any. And just don't think about it too much -- you do have to turn off your cootie sensor to have fun here.
I have no shame; I was psyched to win a free admission coupon by being the first to recognize a Janet Jackson song. You know, I LIKE the mix of dance/disco/thumpy pop that they play at the roller rink, though I was amused that nobody recognized the next contest song's singer as Hillary Duff.
I skated at least once a week from 1980-1984, and after an hour on skates, I was back to somewhat wobbly but still effective crossovers. Didn't try skating backwards but I might even remember how to do that. I was glad to not fall down, even helping my 7 year old skate.
They haven't had any major problems during their King County health inspections all the way back to 1985; I think mostly it seems so uck because of the old carpet. They serve DiGiorno pizza, so it's better than average greasy snack bar fare. If you want to be even happier about food, eat at Wibbley's Burgers just across the parking lot before you go (they close at 8 during the week, at 4 on Saturday, and they're not open on Sunday): http://www.yelp.com/bi...
Restrooms were adequate and not disgusting, thank goodness. And they don't allow smoking or gum chewing in the facility, which also helps.
The times listed for business times are the public skating sessions; a few of them have specific rules, like the first Saturday session is for under-10s and their parents only. Birthday parties, private parties, and skating lessons all take place outside these public skating times.
They accept credit/debit cards for admission but tack on a 50-cent fee. The snack bar only takes cash, so you're better off bringing cash for the whole deal. The most expensive session admission and skate rental's only going to set you back $7 ($10 if you get inline skates) so plan ahead.
The only reason I don't give this place five and a half stars is the smell. Jesus Christ. You'd think that after twenty years or so, the advent of Febreeze would have encouraged them to at least pretend that some part of you wasn't going to contract ringworm just by thinking about the place. But how can you help it?? You grew up in the King County area and a good portion of your concept of fun hinges around learning what the Hokey Pokey was all about at this place and going to Godfather's to play Frogger. Because you are Thirty Million Thousand Years Old like me. God Damnit.
Screw it. I love rollerskating and driving all the way to Everett is not worth it, because a) you have to drive home and b) there is no Chucky Cheese anywhere in Everett to trip balls on. Excuse me. I just ran out of Depends and I think I may of shat myself with nostalgia.
If frozen in the late 70s or early 80s this place could really rock. Unfortunately, it's frozen in the late 80s, including a collection of food that will send even the healthiest person looking for some Pepto.
I feel like a bit of a bastard for saying this, but the best part about coming here is watching the kids fall flat on their faces and cry for their moms while the guy with the mullet skates around in total indifference.
The snowball, four corners, the disco lights...field trips, birthday parties, and it looks like they still haven't changed the carpets!
The original. THE BEST! Never change, Skate King! NEVER CHANGE!
Skate King has not changed at all since the first time I came here in the mid-to-late-eighties, with the exception that they got rid of the Rampage arcade game. That game was cool. The place still smells like lysol, ABC gum, popcorn, and a zillion funky feet. It looks the same everywhere, and they haven't cleaned the bathroom since 1987 either. But Skate King is cool. It has the feeling of a time tunnel to a lost era. The old dude (Warren, a.k.a. "Grandpa") that used to lead the hokey-pokey and rolled the giant dice still works there, behind the skate counter. He will not remember you, but he will be nice to you. If you are a nice girl, he will tell you the same joke he tells all the girls (I'll let him tell you...). The food is the same too. Tombstone pizza, flat & syrupy soda, large pretzels, candy. Aaack. This takes me back to every birthday party I ever went to in elementary school. Go on adult night to avoid breaking your neck (hopefully), 8:30-11pm on Thursday nights. There is also a funk night saturday from 8pm to 10:30.
Also, the lockers will take your money, but they won't give you a key. Find something else to do with your stuff unless you want to pay a dollar every time you want to access your locker.
I always have a hella lot of fun skating, I like coming here for Adult skate, and Open skate, cheaper than the bar. I haven't eaten here, but I don't come here to eat, I come here to eat and skate the quite crappy but entertaining music selection!
classic skating rink. what's not to love? the stink!!! please use some lemon flavored mr. clean and call out the carpet man!!!! this place reeks!
