Pinocchio’s a hit with the younger set – that’s no lie

Pinocchio’s Pizza Playhouse in Houma has tasty pizza and other foods, plus exciting games for kids, but why name the restaurant after the little Italian boy made of wood?

Co-owner Shea Bourgeois said Pinocchio was chosen because of pizza’s association with Italy.

But there’s nothing “old country” about the playhouse, which features an adjacent 5,000-square-foot, two-story building devoted to Lazer Tag.

And Pinocchio’s is just as well known for its stable of costumed characters that comes out to entertain the kids.

Shea’s husband Errol Bourgeois was in real estate 12 years ago when he decided to open Pinocchio’s because he believed there was a market in Houma for that style of restaurant, Shea said.

“It’s a safe place to take the kids,” she said.

The playhouse has a stage that children dance on with the characters, kids’ karaoke available anytime, a two-story indoor playground, and a big spin wheel on the stage for handing out prizes.

“There’s high energy and excitement,” Bourgeois said.

Downstairs is for dining and the stage area; upstairs has numerous arcade games flashing their lights for kids, including several Skee-Ball-style games; Dino Spin; Wonder Wheel; the Simpsons Kooky Carnival; kids’ hoop shooting; Wheel of Fortune; Colorama; air hockey, and the classic shoot-the-teeth-out-of-the-clown’s-mouth game.

Tokens cost a quarter and games require one token to play.

The first floor has a small children’s play area with an Ernie and Bert fire engine, a plastic tree that can be explored inside, and a Kermit the Frog seesaw.

Pinocchio’s clientele stretches from Morgan City to Thibodaux and Galliano. The playhouse mainly attracts kids who are in the 2- to 8-year-old range, but 1 year olds also show up, according to Bouregois, and sometimes older teens will come in just to do something offbeat.

Excitement always happens when the costumed characters interact with the kids. The playhouse has 12 characters; not surprisingly, Pinocchio is among them. Others include the friendly lion, furry red monster, adventure girl, and the gooney bird.

On the menu, pizza is the main draw, especially for kids. Their adult companions tend to order the turnovers as well, among them calzones and stromboli. Pinocchio’s also has poboys, salads, and appetizers. All the food items are made fresh on the premises.

The restaurant handles around 25 to 35 kids’ parties a month. Packages include pizza and soft drinks, plus game tokens and/or Lazer Tag sessions.

Pinocchio’s reaches out to area schools with two programs.

Schools have an open invitation to participate in Lil’ Pizza Chefs, Bourgeois said. Students go in the kitchen to roll their own dough and top their own pizzas while wearing little chef hats.

The Tokens for Grades program gives out free game tokens and Lazer Tag sessions to kids with good report cards. Bourgeois said younger kids take the tokens; older ones tend to choose the Lazer Tag.

The 10-minute Lazer Tag sessions include three minutes for dressing and a briefing. Kids carry phasers and wear lighted vests carrying exotic names like Apollo and Excalibur.

The Lazer Tag room is black-lighted and filled with dividers to hide behind. Ramps lead to the second level.

While high-energy music plays, kids pair off into blue and red teams and begin zapping their phasers at one another.

When a “hit” is made, the light on the vest goes off briefly. Scores are kept on a board to keep a tally.

“We’re about family fun,” Bourgeois said about Pinocchio’s. “Kids play with adults, but it’s geared for kids.”