Slime Time — Houston’s Sloomoo Institute Brings All the Gooey Fun of Your Wildest Childhood Dreams

When you step into Houston’s Sloomoo Institute, it’s best to leave your adult self at the door. This wildly imaginative, multisensory, immersive slime museum (yes, slime museum — you read that right) opened its latest site at Marq-E Entertainment Center. The massive 23,000-square-foot space features more than a dozen interactive exhibits themed around the gooey substance, including a giant slingshot, Nickelodeon-style slime falls and a DIY bar where you can make your own slime.

It’s a world of play. And it’s not just for kids.

“We’ve had so many adults come to us, from 90-year-old grandparents saying, ‘I have rediscovered my youth,’ to parents saying, ‘We want to come back for date night,’ or ‘I needed this more than my child,’ ”  Sloomoo co-founder Karen Robinovitz tells PaperCity.

Robinovitz and her business partner Sara Schiller are adamant that Sloomoo is for people of all ages and backgrounds. After going through individual experiences with grief and loss, both women found joy in reconnecting with their inner child through playing with slime. Robinovitz, a former journalist for WWD, The New York Times and Harper’s Bazaar, joined forces with businesswoman Schiller to launch Sloomoo in 2019. What began as a popup in Manhattan’s SoHo grew into a fun-focused chain with slime museums in Chicago and Atlanta and new ones coming to Los Angeles, Denver and more.

The new Houston iteration of Sloomoo (derived from replacing the vowels in “slime” with “oo”) showcases some of the most popular attractions from the other locations and introduces two new activations. Dozens of vats of slime — each with a different tantalizing combination of color, sense and textures — are placed throughout the museum, guiding visitors from one exhibit to the next. 

Engineered by Method Design, these activations are not just innovative but accessible. 

“Inclusivity is the foundation of what Sloomoo Institute is all about,” Schiller says. “It was important for us from day one to create spaces that people of all ages and abilities could enjoy.”

Every aspect of the experience was thoughtfully considered. The vats are wheelchair accessible and come with a stepping stool for young children. Visit times are staggered by 15 minutes to ensure the space is never overcrowded. Noise-cancelling headphones are available upon request. Sensory hours, with lowered volumes and limited capacity, are held once a month for those with heightened sensitivities. 

Inclusive career opportunities are an important aspect of Sloomoo’s mission as well. The co-founders are committed to creating a workforce in which at least 10 percent of the employees identify as neurodiverse, at retail and corporate levels, by 2025. 

“I believe it makes for a better working environment for everyone when you include team members who represent neurodiversity,” Schiller says. 

Sloomoo also recognizes the importance of health and safety, especially in such a hands-on environment. Handwashing stations and wipes are placed at every exhibit. The slime vats are inspected regularly and replaced every couple hours to ensure freshness. The discarded slime is responsibly disposed of — many elements, such as Elmer’s glue, are biodegradable — and the co-founders are in the process of launching the first recycling program for slime. 

But let’s get to the fun stuff. Here’s what you can expect at Houston’s own Sloomoo.

Sloomoo Cove

You can play with Kinetic Sand Doons in an infinity room where the walls and ceilings are made of mirrors. Black light illuminates glow-in-the-dark stalagmites and stalactites, as well as vats of the sandy, magnetic substance. A 3-D tracking wall, designed by Isabelle Duverger and Laia Cabrera, allows visitors to project themselves onto the wall and have a sand fight.

Slimey Fossils

On a large painted table, milled out of wood and designed by Michael Porten, you’ll find carvings of fun symbols and shapes. Press and remove a glob of slime into the carvings for a fun imprint. Specially made for H-Town, the table features some Houston-geared iconography such as a sheriff’s badge, cowboy boots and the Lone Star State itself. 

DIY Slime Bar

At the DIY slime bar, every ticket holder gets to make their own FREE slime to take home (retail value $18). Choose from 40 colors, 60 fragrances and more than 100 charms to create your own tantalizing concoction.

First, select a texture for your slime base. Perhaps you want something crunchy? Or fluffy? Then head to the Vibes scent bar to explore fragrances from pumpkin pie to linens to dirt. Scent is closely linked to memory, so find what speaks to your nose the most. Then pick a color made from ground makeup pigments. 

Finally, add three charms. The icons include animals, food, Sloomoo characters and more. 

Sloomoo Falls

Open only to Enhanced Experience ticket holders, this exhibit features slime raining down on visitors. Don’t worry — ponchos are provided to each potential victim. In case it does get on your hair or skin, Sloomoo slime is gluten-free, dairy-free and nut-free (though NOT edible). Slime comes out of most clothing with white vinegar and hot water. 

Synthesoothers

Calling all ASMR lovers. . . The Synthesoozers feature six vats of slime with a variety of textures and thicknesses. Each vat is placed under a speaker that is playing a soothing, tingly ASMR audio from Pei Pei Chung. Watch out — one of them is slime farts. 

FrooFroo’s Feels

This is a brand-new exhibit exclusive to Houston. With the help of a friend, visitors are blindfolded and led along a sensory touch wall full of satisfying textures and curious shapes. This is a chance to sse how powerful your other senses become when you shut off your sight. 

Sloomoo Lake & Sloomoo Pond

Step barefoot (after sanitizing, of course) into an enormous “pond” filled with slime — more than 500 gallons. Then, test your wits in a brand-new obstacle course with an overhead installation of dangling pool noodles. 

Sloomoo Institute Houston is located at Marq-E Entertainment Center at 7620 Katy Freeway, Suite 360. Reservation are required. General admission is $39, Enhanced Experience tickets cost $69. Kids under two are free. Learn more here. 

Sloomoo Houston is open from noon to 7 pm Mondays, noon to 6 pm Thursdays, noon to 7 pm Fridays, 9 am to 8 pm Saturdays and 10 am to 6 pm Sundays. Sensory hours are held on the third Thursday of each month from 10 am to 11 am.