Fun Things To Do in Westerville With Kids!

My daughter and I recently spent an entire DAY exploring beautiful Westerville, Ohio and had so much fun. We shopped, learned about Westerville’s history, admired public art, and ate our way through the city.

We started our morning with a latte (for me) and an iced chai (for her) from Java Central. I’m totally in love with their gorgeous patio. It’s the perfect spot to sip your drink slowly, read a book or just enjoy the fresh air. My little one really loves chai tea, but Java Central also features kid-friendly options like steamers, Italian sodas, and all sorts of baked goods, sandwiches, and muffins.

After grabbing our drinks, we walked down to Schneider’s Bakery. My husband grew up in Westerville, and a stop for Saturday morning donuts was a favorite childhood memory. In addition to donuts, Schneider’s Bakery also features muffins, cookies, all sorts of cakes and even pies! They have been in business for over 64 years!

After scarfing down a donut, we decided to head over to the Westerville Farmers Market. The market runs from May 21st – October 8, every Saturday between 9am and 12pm. It’s located behind Westerville City Hall at 21 South State Street. I was surprised at how affordable the prices were at this market compared to many of the others that I’ve been to.

I just love visiting farmers’ markets and sampling fresh fruit and produce and watching my little one talk to farmers and local artisans. I was also thrilled to see all the activities the market had set up for kids, including a “pot your own plant” station! We spent a long time playing all the outdoor games, listening to live music, and sampling all the goodies.

If you like to shop, you’re in luck because Uptown Westerville has so many unique shops. We stopped into several shops including:

Ohio Art Market

The Ohio Art Market is one of my favorite spots in Westerville. There’s so much to see, including handcrafted jewelry, clothing, home decor, skin care and ceramics. We love supporting local and there’s always something unique to find here.

A Gal Named Cinda Lou

My little one was OBSESSED with this cute store. A Gal Named Cinda Lou is a HIDDEN GEM, full of curated goodies. You’ll find funny and sarcastic gifts, vintage items, upcycled pieces, local artisan pieces, and so much more. Honestly, I won’t be able to do it justice, so you just need to stop in. Owned by the Bennati family, it’s a true FAMILY business. Named after Debbie Bennati’s grandmother, and featuring Jim Bennati’s impressive record collection in the back, with their daughter Julie’s artwork and upcycled treasures for sale in the shop. Debbie was a teacher for decades, and the way she took my little one and showed her around the shop was just adorable.

Megan Lee Designs Shop & Studio

Megan Lee Designs specializes in hand printed t-shirts, totes, onesies, tea towels and more. They can also do custom orders. Every piece features original artwork and is screen-printed by hand!

Birdie Books

My little one is OBSESSED with reading. It’s her favorite thing ever. If your little one is like mine, you definitely have to stop into Birdie Books!

Westerville Florist

We were going to have a picnic for lunch so we thought it would be fun to pick up a little floral centerpiece to help set the scene at our picnic.

We stopped into the Westerville Florist and checked out their BYOB (build-your-own-bouquet) stand!

This ended up being one of the highlights of my little one’s day in Uptown Westerville. Candice, the owner, was just the sweetest, loveliest person and with her infinite patience, walked my little one through the process of selecting flowers, sizing stems, and properly filling a vase.

Some of our other stops included Green Haven Living, a Twist on Olives, and Amish Originals. For a full list of all the wonderful shops in Uptown Westerville – check out this list!

While we walked around from shop to shop, we stopped and checked out all the historical plaques and learned about the history of the buildings. Westerville also has cool public art for you to enjoy!

Our whimsical tea party picnic!

We had worked up an appetite at this point and my girly-girl LOVES tea parties and it a was gorgeous day out so we picked up an “afternoon tea” from Asterisk Supper Club and headed to nearby Alum Creek Park North.

We decorated the picnic table with our gorgeous bouquet from Westerville Florist and a custom-printed picnic blanket and darling tea towels from Megan Lee Designs.

And the food! My entire family is IN LOVE with Asterisk Supper Club. My husband loves their “Uptown Old Fashioned” cocktail – which they smoke to order with cinnamon bark.

And their afternoon tea is whimsical and delightful. My friend recently had her baby shower at Asterisk Supper Club and we all loved sipping tea and eating little bites of heaven as we laughed and shared stories.

If you have a little one that loves tea parties, you have to add Asterisk Supper Club to your list!

If you call ahead, they will pack up your tea to go and you can head to one of the many parks in Westerville to enjoy it picnic-style.

We love Alum Creek Park North and it’s great for kids of all ages as their playground equipment is separated out by age group and even the tiniest little ones have plenty to play on! Another must-see is the new Storybook Trail at the Johnston-McVay Park. Working in partnership with the Westerville Public Library, Westerville Parks & Recreation brings stories to the park. The Storybook trail features 18 colorful storyboards featuring pages of children’s books.

Other fun parks to check out in Westerville:

And speaking of the Westerville Public Library, you should definitely stop in! You don’t need to be a resident of Westerville to get a library card, and they have so much to offer.

Inside the library is the Westerville History Museum and this FREE museum shares bits of Westerville history and also features a collection of rotating exhibits. When we stopped in, they had an exhibit of meals from around the world. We loved seeing the different foods (and portion sizes).

The children’s section of the Westerville Library is massive and the friendly librarians are always happy to suggest some great books.

The library also hosts many great events for all ages.

Other fun things to do in Westerville with kids:

4th Friday Festival – On the 4th Friday of each month from May through October, Uptown Westerville hosts a fun street festival. They have food trucks, pop ups, live entertainment and more.
Uptown Art & Clay – Take a “Creative Kids” class!
Westerville Golf – They have batting cages and miniature golf!

Hungry? Kid-friendly Options in Uptown Westerville:

In addition to the spots I listed above, some other kid-friendly spots to stop in for a treat or a meal include:

Whit’s Custard
Northstar Cafe
Dairy Queen
Shirley’s Popcorn
Dicarlo’s Pizza
FUSIAN (my little one had a BLAST making our own sushi rolls using their DIY sushi kit!)

FUSIAN will pack up everything you need (rice, seaweed, proteins, toppings, sauces, and even a sushi rolling mat!) along with easy-to-follow instructions.

We chose salmon and tuna for our sushi roll fillings, but FUSIAN has all sorts of options to choose from, and even things like peanut butter and jelly sushi for the pickiest eaters. I loved how interactive this meal was and everything was so fresh!

If you don’t feel like rolling the sushi, you can do what I did and create your own “sushi bowl” – I just added all my sushi ingredients into a big bowl, topped with sauce, and dug right in. So delicious!

We had a total BLAST spending our day in Westerville.

This post was written in partnership with Visit Westerville. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

For more information on all things Westerville, Ohio, be sure to check out their site https://www.visitwesterville.org, follow them on Instagram or Facebook!

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