Philadelphia’s First Board Game Cafe Opens In Fairmount

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PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – Who doesn’t love a good board game?

Philadelphia’s first board game cafe opened Oct. 26th. It is located on the corner of 17th and Fairmount Avenue.

Matt Hendricks is the owner of Thirsty Dice and says the idea of the café is to bring customers together to unwind and enjoy themselves.

“The idea is that sitting down to unplug and have an authentic, good time is what’s important so we want to support all kinds of guest who are looking to reconnect,” said Hendricks.

For a small fee, customers will have access to 800 games.

“You’re welcome to take anything off the shelf or have one of our gametenders on staff make a recommendation or teach your how to play,” said Hendricks.

Customers can choose from a wide variety of classic games including Monopoly, Scrabble, Battleship. If you’re looking for more of a party game, the café has games including Taboo, Apples to Apples, and Cards Against Humanity. For strategists, the café has Catan, Splendor, Pandemic, and Ticket to Ride.

Children’s games are offered as well.

The café will serve coffee from Herman’s in South Philly, but also cater to those who enjoy an alcoholic drink while paying games.

Children can sip on a milkshake made with Basset’s ice cream, while parents can choose a milkshake from the “boozy” menu. Non-alcoholic beverages are available as well.

Hendricks says the café will offer a food menu from Reading Terminal Market icon, Rebecca Foxman.

“Like the game collection, we are trying to curate classic comfort shareables for our guests,” said Hendricks. “Equally important, we have a variety of vegan, vegetarian, and gluten free options. From snack bowls, to French bread pizzas, to upscale mac & cheese, we hope to offer guests a broad variety of dishes which go great with gaming.”

Hendricks says he started hearing about board game cafes in Korea over 10 years ago. He visited the first board game cafe to open in North America in Toronto, Canada while on a trip for his 10th wedding anniversary.

His decision to open ThristyDice in Philadelphia came as he thought about what he wanted to be when he grew up.

“The more I thought about what I wanted to be when I grew up, the more I thought about having a board game café in Philly,” said Hendricks.

He hopes his café will help people get excited about reconnecting with family and friends.