The HUB at Berens Park

Why has no one ever mentioned this place to me?!? Thank goodness I found a Groupon. There is a playground, a spray park, batting cages, mini-​golf, and a concession stand. You could spend an entire day here!
The family went on a Sunday to use our Groupon. We did the mini-​golf which was just fine. The course doesn’t really have a theme but there are lots of butterfly plants and lots of butterflies. We also visited the batting cages. My five year old had a blast.
It seems you can also rent out the space for a picnic. There was a large church congregation having a picnic that day. They also have sports fields for football and whatnot.

This review is for the HUB and Berens Park itself.
This park appeals to me because of the many activities available. Everything here looks immaculate and well-​kept. The last time I was here, the park district folks were working hard cleaning up the mulch around the trees. The lawns and fields are tidy and none of the garbage cans were close to overflowing (which is sometimes the case at other parks in the area that will remain nameless). There are even sand volleyball courts if you feel like serving/​setting/​spiking.
There’s a ⁹⁄₁₀ mile paved path around the park. And a nice playground that is not part of the HUB. There’s also a high sledding hill that hard core folks use for running drills (I’m tired just watching them!) Tons of parking on the East and West side of the park.
The HUB is great. Batting cages, mini golf, playground, splash pad and concessions. The folks working here are pretty nice and if you’re an Elmhurst resident, the prices for the activities are about a buck less than for non-​residents.
I love the HUB because I can get my running done with the sidekick (the path is jogging stroller friendly), stop for playtime at the playground and then both of us can cool off in the splash pad. I guess you have to get to the splash pad right at opening if you want one of the beach chairs. And I’m sure the chairs under the awning are the most coveted. Pizza or hot dogs from the concession for lunch and then it’s pretty much nap time for me… er I mean my sidekick. Summer fun in Elmhurst!

The Hub at Baron Park reeled me in with a Groupon deal and I’m totally sunk for them now. They have a normal deal of $ 14 for lunch, batting cages tokens and miniature golf which is a pretty darn good meal in my opinion. My Groupon deal was $ 14 for all of that for two people — 12 batting cage tokens (12 pitches with each token) which is normally $ 1 per token or $ 5 for 6 tokens. 2 hot dog combos with chips and drinks normally $ 4 each, and two rounds of mini golf which is a $ 10 value.
My friend and I went on Tuesday when it was 100 degrees out so we were really feeling the heat but I had so much fun! It was fantastic to have it all right there in one place plus their concession stand had a decent variety of drink choices and a few flavors of Dippin Dots. When we were ready for our hot dogs, we sat in a nice shaded picnic table area. All the young guys & girls working at the Hub were helpful & friendly and didn’t have the lackadaisical attitude sometimes displayed by teens in their summer jobs.
The Hub has a spray pool but we didn’t go in there — it was filled with kids & their weekday babysitters. The batting cages were great — 4 cages with different speeds of softball & baseball pitches. Please note, I own at softball. :) The mini golf was a fun time but not the fanciest mini golf I’ve ever been to, pretty plain. I think they could amp it up just a tad to make for a bit more fun! All in all, I had a great time at The Hub and wouldn’t hesitate to go back!

As I slowly approach my dirty 30^th birthday next year, I’m gonna take every opportunity I can to squeeze every ounce of useful energy out of my body and trick it into thinking I can still move like a kid. On a recent trip to The Hub, I did just that… for about a half hour.
The ensuing two days of recovery time I needed after some power swings in the batting cages, were totally worth it. Had I been an Elmhurst resident, on a Friday afternoon after 3pm I could have rinsed the soreness away in the splash park that attracts little kiddies and moms alike. Or relaxed with some mini golf or acted a show off on the playground.
But I’m a Lombardian, and even so, I still make the 15 minute drive to the Hub because the facilities are pretty new, well-​maintained, and the kids working behind the counter are really nice. Normally, I call everyone-​even some people my age– «kids.» But as I near the dirty 30, I can accurately refer to these park district workers as kids and not feel bad about it.
Last time here, I had to wait out a rain delay to be able to head back to the cages. When I did get in, the pitching machine was throwing wonky stuff. The worker at the counter noticed, and as I returned my bat, offered me a few complimentary tokens for my next time back. Excellent gesture, especially because he knows I’ll be back. Waaaayyyyy back. Just like my next pretend home run.