Played on November 10, 2023
Reviewed by the Pink Putter
In November 2023, I knew I was going to be in the Los Angeles area for the 32nd annual International Society of Caricature Artists (ISCA) conference. I also knew that the Family Guy Experience Giggity Golf would be happening during this time and had a short window, as it is only scheduled from September 27th – December 31st, 2023. Because I’m on the board of ISCA, the week of the con is always a crazy time commitment, so I wanted to make sure to play a round at this pop-up course before the ISCA festivities began. I started by roping in former ISCA President Christopher Tamlyn, followed by convincing our ISCAcon32 Guest of Honor, Jeff Ranjo, to join us. If you don’t know Jeff, he is an incredible caricature artist, character designer and story board artist who has worked for Disney, Sony and Netflix, having worked on well known films such as Hercules, Moana, Frozen, Emperor’s New Groove, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, and many others. And as Jeff likes to say, he is Olaf’s daddy! One of many things Jeff is known for is having created the lovable snowman from Frozen. I was honored to have Jeff join us for a round of putting.
Rating
About the event, from their website:
GIGGITY GIGGITY, welcome to the Family Guy Experience! You’ll enter into a real-life version of The Drunken Clam, fully equipped with a Family Guy themed cocktail menu! Next, try your hand at the immersive 9-hole mini golf course, a one-of-a-kind indoor/outdoor mini golfing experience fully dedicated to the Griffins. Work up an appetite? You’ll have the opportunity to order from Peter’s “Eat My Junk” food truck, equipped with a Family Guy themed menu for bites!
Have you ever dreamed of sitting in the Griffin’s living room or walking down Spooner Street? Now is your chance!
Diehard Family Guy fan? Test your knowledge of the show throughout this experience (and maybe unlock a mystery hole)!
GA Ticket includes 9 holes of Giggity Golf and availability to all additional locations (the Drunken Clam & Eat My Junk food Truck) as well as other photo moments and activities!
Peter Griffin VIP Ticket Add On includes 9 holes of Giggity Golf, a welcome drink at The Drunken Clam, your selection of a food item at The Eat My Junk Food Truck (both discounted for purchase in advance) as well as other photo moments and activities!
From our experience, we’ve found pop-up mini golf course experiences with popular IP like this one to be expensive, look really cool, but fall short on the game play and overall experience. Giggity Golf was no exception. At $27/person and only 8 real, playable holes (with a 9th “joke” hole), that’s almost $3.38 per hole, which is one of the priciest courses we’ve played, up there with Swingers in NYC (review to come). The course began inside, and then after hole 4, moved to an outdoor patio area where holes 5-8 were located, along with a food truck and some picnic tables. The visuals of the course looked pretty good – there were some dimensional obstacles, lots of 2D character cutouts and some interactive elements such as the living room couch and Quahog news photo ops, switch triggered lights on hole 2 and a moving “windmill” helicopter blade on hole 6. I also appreciated some little details such as QR codes at each hole that led to clips from the show as well as some production art adorning the walls. However, the game play was poorly designed to the point where certain holes became needlessly frustrating and unsatisfying while others were dare I say, too easy. My putting skills became irrelevant here and ultimately luck won out for the winning position of our round. This inconsistency, paired with the price tag, leaves me to give Giggity Golf a par rating.
613 Imperial St, Los Angeles, 90021
Pros
Unique pop-up experience, perfect for Family Guy fans
When we went, it wasn’t too crowded so we got to take our time and enjoy the experience
Fun details such as production art and QR codes at every hole
Cute photo ops
Cons
Poorly designed game play teetered from frustrating to too easy from hole to hole
Expensive experience for just 8 holes
Nerdy Notes
- 8 holes, par 21 (par 118 with 9th joke hole)
- rubber covered putter, no flags in holes
- final hole (hole 8) collects balls
- Open September 27th – December 31st, 2023
- Wednesday (only until October 18th): 3:00 PM – 10:00 PM
Thursday: 3:00 PM – 10:00 PM
Friday: 2:00 PM – 12:00 AM
Saturday: 12:00 PM – 12:00 AM
Sunday: 12:00 PM – 10:00 PM - Prices start at $27/person
- Food truck and drinks on site
Our friends over at O-Street Mini Golf also played Giggity Golf! Check out their video of the experience.
