The Clay Room — Kid-friendly Shops in Toronto, Ontario

What parents say

• Olga Yu

  2025-11-14

  I decided to organize my child’s birthday celebration at The Clay Room after researching opportunities for painting and creative activities suitable for children. Prior to booking, I reviewed the information available on the business’s official website, which clearly stated that private rooms are available for birthday parties and that payment of a deposit is required before the booking can be confirmed. Subsequently, I attended the premises in person and spoke with an employee to confirm the available space and conditions for hosting the event. I specifically inquired about the location of the room to be used for the party. The owner thereafter sent to me general information that was identical to what had already been published on the website, with no indication that the designated party room would be located in the basement or on a different level of the premises. Relying on this information, I paid the required deposit. The owner assured me that the deposit would be fully refunded following final payment for the party. On the date of the birthday event, upon my arrival at The Clay Room, an employee directed me to the basement area where the party was allegedly prepared. The condition of the space was unacceptable. The room had no windows, emitted a strong odor of mold, lacked proper ventilation and adequate lighting, and had a washroom situated approximately three feet from the area designated for the children to paint, eat, and celebrate (photos #1 and #2). The table provided for food was a small piece of plywood attached to the wall and located directly in the passageway between the stairs and the main area (photo #3). At that point, I reasonably refused to proceed with the event under such conditions and requested to speak with the owner. Two employees, one of whom appeared to be approximately 17 years old, attempted to argue that no alternative arrangements could be made and that previous parties had been held in the same basement space. Given the unsanitary and unsafe conditions, I could not allow the children to remain in a moldy, enclosed environment without windows or proper air circulation. I requested that the event be moved to a more appropriate area within the premises. The employees were unable to assist and appeared inexperienced and unauthorized to make any decisions. One of them contacted the owner by telephone. Upon joining the call, the owner immediately accused me of disregarding information allegedly sent to me, claiming that both the email and the website specified the party would take place in the basement. The owner further insisted that there was no mold and that no previous complaints had been made regarding that space. However, neither the website nor any correspondence from the owner contained any mention of the basement as the designated party location. When I proposed alternative solutions—such as allowing the children to remain on the main floor, where space was available and only one other person was present, or shortening the event duration to accommodate the change—the owner refused all reasonable accommodations. Consequently, I declined to proceed with the full birthday party and instead agreed to allow the children to simply paint selected items individually, without serving food or cake on site. The children selected items of their choice, and I paid an amount approximately half of what was originally quoted for the birthday package. Contrary to the owner’s earlier assurance, my deposit was not fully refunded. Without my authorization, the owner retained approximately half of the deposit amount. The experience was negatively affected by the owner’s lack of professionalism, misrepresentation of material facts, and failure to provide a safe and suitable environment for a children’s birthday event. I do not recommend anyone to arrange birthday party at this place.

• Melody Cao

  2024-8-8

  A cute spot for painting pottery! It has some really cool pottery items and lots of colors, brushes, and some tools. The fine line tool wasn't really fine (thin), but it's okay. The service was good, although the lady who helped us seemed a little annoyed or stressed for some reason. There's nothing too special about this place, but it gets the pottery painting job done well. Would come here again for a fun activity with friends!

• Anna G

  We used to come to The Clay Room when my kids were babies to make sweet gifts for grandparents (tiny footprints on mugs and plates!). Recently, we came back to celebrate my 13-year-old’s birthday with her 10 friends, and it was just as wholesome and fun as we remembered! We had a private room downstairs — simple but perfect for what we needed. We put on our own music, and our teacher, Anastasia, was absolutely wonderful — calm, patient, and clear with her instructions. She kept things moving so the girls had plenty of time to finish their pieces. For my daughter, it was especially important to have both the building and painting experience — a great creative mix for older kids! My younger son was there too and needed a bit more attention, and Anastasia was so kind and patient with him. It was the perfect mix of creativity, fun, and great energy. Highly recommend!

• Jess

  2024-9-9

  I really enjoyed my experience here! Highly recommend trying at least once! Instructions are easy to follow, the staff are very helpful and friendly, and there are a lot of options in terms of ceramic pieces and paint colours. The studio has enough equipment to accommodate everyone. The space has about 4 communal tables that can accommodate up to ~ 6-8 people. How pricing works is that you select your pottery piece (price listed on the shelf) and the “studio fee” is a separate flat fee which is what the studio charges for using their facilities. One thing to keep in mind about pricing is that the studio fee will be charged per pottery item, which means if you want to paint 2 pottery items, you will be charged 2 studio fees. There is an additional discount for students as well.

• 100k

  Had a great experience at the clay room. Lots of pieces to choose from and everything is reasonably priced. Owner was so nice as well. We had to leave early and she allowed us to purchase paint to finish our pieces at home. Would definitely recommend.