Gamers in New Haven are in for a throwback surprise this month: a board game cafe.
Elm City Games, set to open Feb. 20, allow patrons to eat, drink and choose from 500 to 600 different board games to play.
"The basic idea with the game café is to create a space where people can get together and play games in a cool and welcoming environment," Elm City Games owner Matt Loter said.
Wednesday nights, for example, is the perfect time to meet up with friends for the New Haven County Board Game Meetup from 6:30 to close.
Whether someone is an experienced or inexperienced gamer, Elm City Games employees will help them find a game best suited for their needs from the gaming library.
"We are organized around having a lot of events to get people together, a huge game library, and staff to help teach games or make suggestions on what to try," Loter said.
Loter said the library consists of hundreds of games and it will continue to grow. He even said certain board games will be available for purchase.
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"On the retail side, we'll have a smaller but highly curated set of games, some of which will always be in stock and others which will be rotated in and out," added Loter.
All-day passes at the cafe are $5 per person and memberships will be available after opening day.
As stated in their page, the price for how much game time in the café will cost is no more than $5 per person for an all-day pass, and prices for memberships are still in the works.
Membership will have quick access to vault games and a quick library checkout, according to cafe's website.
The café has partnered with the Happiness Lab to bring coffee, drinks, and sandwiches from Meat & Co. to the gamers. Patrons are allowed to bring their own alcohol.
Elm City Games is located in 756 Chapel Street in New Haven and is set to be open Monday-Thursday 12 to 10 p.m., Friday 12 to 12 p.m., Saturday 10 to 12 p.m., and Sunday 10 to 8 p.m.
For more information on the grand opening, go here.
