For kids & parents, Treehouse hits heights: Good food, safe play & smart ideas. What's not to like?

If you find yourself this holiday weekend with a houseful of energetic young tots and hungry parents, a trip to The Little Treehouse, in Chestnut Hill, will fill some hours with play and feed the crew with organic healthy options for a reasonable bill.

Think a Chuck E. Cheese's, slow food, Please Touch Museum mash-up. This concept was the brainchild of owner Rachel Williams. As a mom of three little ones, she wanted a place with the community of a Starbucks but an environment that was tolerant of the behavior of the 5-and-under set, as well as clean and safe. Healthy food choices and tasty options for the adults were also a must.

Hand sanitizing is required on entry, and there is a fun foot-operated hand shower station for more thorough wipe-ups. The toys are mostly expensive wood items, and they are cleaned regularly with a natural cleaning product, Mrs. Meyer's.

An adult needs to supervise children in the play area, but if you go with a group, you can rotate that obligation so that even the grown-ups get some fun time.

Play price is $8.50 for first child in a family; half price for siblings thereafter. A 10-visit card valid for a year is also available for $55.

After 5 p.m. there is no play charge, only the cost of the a la carte meal, and the Wii and downstairs tumble room (generally reserved for parties and classes) are available.

The Little Treehouse is, thankfully, BYOB. Let's be honest, even the best parent is a little frayed by the end of the day and looks forward to that glass of adult juice. It's a nice touch that the wine glasses that are provided are good design and quality. There's also Wi-Fi and outlets for computer access that are out of reach of small fingers.

I assembled a tasting panel that included a 17-month-old member of the target audience, who was quite taken with the experience. The young man's parents, with an eye to safety, also approved.

The chef is Rob Gary, who also works at the Capital Grille. On our visit, The Cheese Plate ($12) included a chèvre, smoked Gouda and Brie with bread and a lovely fig jam as accent.

But, if we are teaching our children right, the cheese should be served at room temperature and not stone cold, as it was presented. We don't want the next generation to be fromage-impaired.

The adults particularly enjoyed the Bianca Pizza ($11), a blend of Grana Padano, Locatelli, mozzarella and Fontina cheeses melted on top of a pleasantly chewy dough. A drizzle of aromatic herb oil awakens the appetite.

The Tomato Mozzarella Salad ($9) was the disappointment of the evening. I mistakenly assumed that the tomatoes and mozzarella would come with some salad greens, but what we wound up with were unripened tomatoes and chewy mozzarella.

I've never been a fan of Claudio's fresh mozzarella, so that could be personal preference, but some slow-roasted plum tomatoes would have had more flavor instead of the paltry out-of-season tomatoes.

I had a case of order-envy as I watched a delicious-looking salad of baby greens, Gorgonzola and pine nuts ($7) being delivered to the table across the way.

I give high marks to the Three Little Pigs Panini ($9). This mix of prosciutto, sopressata and ham sported a touch of some salty olive tapenade balanced with some sweet red pepper.

And both the kid and adults liked the flavor blend of the Smoked Turkey Panini ($9) with a flavorful Lancaster Cheddar and pesto garnished with arugula. Both paninis were made with crusty whole-grain bread.

The kids menu is $8 for an entrée, side and beverage. It's a "one from column A; one from column B" kind of arrangement, with six surefire, childproof options such as mac and cheese, turkey sandwich or baby carrots and ranch dressing. Even the fussy eater or the most controlling parent will find something to please.

All that play is sure to work up an appetite for dessert. The Little Treehouse rises to the occasion with locally produced Uncle Dave's ice cream.

The S'mores Sundae ($6) was enough to feed an entire Girl Scout troop.

The sugar rush with the marshmallows and crushed graham crackers could keep adults and kids awake into the wee hours - which is not necessarily a complaint.

The tasting favorite was the Brownie Sundae ($8), two generous scoops of the Uncle's vanilla ice cream on top of a chewy brownie and slathered in fudge sauce and whipped cream. Makes you feel like a kid again.

Look for an expanded ice-cream menu in a soon-to-be realized outdoor play area, and a wheelchair-accessible ramp.

Throughout the play day, healthy snacks such as organic yogurt, bagels, fruit and cheese are available.

As the parent of grown children, I wish I'd had something like this for a family-meal experience, so I'll give this review three sippy cups. Or to paraphrase Goldilocks, there's something "just right" for everyone.