Tabletop Cafe: A Review

This past New year's Day (Happy New Year's everyone), my three eldest daughters (aged 7, 10, and 11) went to the original Tabletop Cafe in Edmonton, Alberta.  We stayed for a few hours, each had a cold beverage, and played some games.

We decided on trying out some games we had seen featured on Wil Wheaton's Tabletop.  The games were Sushi Go and Smash Up.

Atmosphere

We were greeted in a very nice way by the two young men (in their 20's I am guessing) who took our names, made small talk and let us know how the Tabletop Cafe worked.

The atmosphere of Tabletop Cafe was quite "home"y.  There were about eight or nine tables in the cafe that looked as though they could have come from the average family's dining room.  Some of the tables were more suited to sitting four players around them and others could easily fit 6 or even eight players.  There were also a number of couches in the cafe.

How it Works

At the Tabletop Cafe, it costs $5 per person ($2.50 for kids) and you can stay as long as you like and play any of the plethora of games that you want.  There are so many games they need a menu for the games.  The games are very well organized into the type of game that you want to play (co-operative, two player, and intro or heavy).  The organization of the games is such a positive.  As a newer gamer, I know that I can walk in there, find a game with an "intro" sticker on it and I am not going to get so confused by the game that I will have a bad time as a result.  As well, the employees are willing to help you play any of the games.  I did not test our their ability to assist, but I suspect they would have been spot on to help.

Once you have a game, you are free to play any of the games for as long as you like.  I would really recommend making a reservation.  We arrived at around 3:30 pm, but by 5:00 pm it was getting quite busy.  When I tweeted earlier in the week asking whether reservations were needed for a Tuesday night, it was highly recommended that I do so.

There are numerous food and beverage choices.  I thought the options were quite sufficient for the type of establishment (you are really not going for the food), but did find them a bit expensive.  I suspect that part of the cost of playing is built into the food and beverage pricing, which I can understand.

Tabletop Cafe has a significant number of games that can be purchased, as well.  We ended up buying both games that we tried.

Overall Impression

What a great way to spend a few hours with my kids.  The staff was friendly and helpful.  This is the type of place that I want my kids to experience so that when they are older they have a safe place to hang out, spend some time with friends, and be safe.  The experience was fun and we will definitely be back!