Remember after school when you would hang out at your friends house playing games? Locking yourselves in a room or basement, tirelessly playing rematch after rematch or slogging through a particularly grueling round of
Settlers of Catan while a parent would interject every once in a while to leave you snacks and drinks?
Well Played Board Game Cafe hopes to bring back that memory—just without your mom telling you it's time to come home at the end of the night.
While Well Played is the official board game cafe to come to Asheville, the concept is by no means new. Cafes that provide games and libations have made themselves a staple overseas in Europe and Asia for some time now, and even though a bar with some card games is far from uncommon, these special board game cafes center mainly on getting people playing together.
Well Played will do just that. A $5 flat fee will give you all-day access to the cafe's
Game Library: a collection of more than 500 games that range from the easy, quick jaunts like
Guess Who and
Candyland to the more time-consuming endeavors of
Ticket to Ride and the infamous
Monopoly. If you were planning on stopping in for a quick drink, the cafe will also offer free "breadstick games," quick bar games to keep you playing even when you're on a time limit.
The bar will serve local beer and wine while you play, as well as a full
coffee program and glass bottle soft drinks. The food will give your nostalgia for snack time an adult twist with grilled cheese made with your choice of mac & cheese, bacon, or pimento, a charcuterie board that resembles that beloved 90s classic, Lunchables, various handpies, and a "Snack Flight" of favorites like goldfish and M&Ms to munch.
Well Played opens on Saturday, March 25th at 58 Wall St. in Downtown Asheville.