You enter to win a game or two and you leave gaining friends for life.
That’s the hope of the owners of Cards and Coasters, a new board game café that is now open in downtown Orillia.
Jessica Minler and her husband Darren Minler always connected better with people over board games.
“As we grew older and got busier with full-time jobs and everything, we kind of outgrew our games,” said Jessica, who owns the café, which she runs with Darren. “Getting together with friends was the only time we would play the games.”
Those are the nights you remember: getting together with friends, she said.
“Now, you can come out to the café , make memories, play games and then go back to your home and not have to worry about cleaning up,” said Jessica, with a smile.
They used to play with friends at the MVP store, which was sold a couple years ago and is now open on Atherley Road under new ownership.
“For me, it was a community to belong to,” said Darren. “It was something I knew I was going to do after work and my parents knew I wasn't getting up to no good. They were more willing to support this.”
He said he made lifelong friends playing games with other people.
“It was always a way to test my intellect and keep myself sharp,” added Darren. “It was a good way to meet people. I find board games have a community-based atmosphere and we wanted to bring that to Orillia.”
The two wanted to revive the gaming traditions that had brought them together and helped find a group with which they could belong.
“Orillia needs something to give kids to do something in town,” said Jessica. “It gives them a better option.
“A lot of Georgian College and Lakehead University students rent rooms in this area, and this gives them something inexpensive to do,” she added. “You can get a coffee for under $3 and buy a game for $5 (per person) to play and you can stay here as long as you want.”
A lot of people who come in here live with roommates and they don't want to entertain in a small apartment, Darren said, so they can all come here and hang out.
To make their board game café the equivalent of a Toronto café, Darren said they’ve applied for a liquor licence to be able to sell beer, coolers, ciders and some wine.
“All the other board game cafés have a liquor licence,” he said. “And I think a beer goes well with a game and sets the tone.
“It's not a bar where things could get crazy and out of control,” he said, adding they’re aiming to make it a place where families can hang out, and the parents can have a drink while their kids play board games.
“We're aiming for a comfortable and cozy atmosphere, a place that people don't want to leave,” said Jessica. “We made the tables and the benches ourselves. I painted the ceilings and the walls — It's all homemade, and we've put our heart and soul into it.”
The café at 31 Mississaga St. W. opened on Dec. 20, but the two haven’t yet thrown together an official opening event. But they’ve had a good response so far, said Darren.
“People are excited because it's typically a big city trend,” said Darren. “It's mostly centralized in cities where they have bigger universities and better transit. But people are really excited about it. They're happy they can replicate that Snakes and Lattes (a Toronto board game café) experience here."
Their café offers a variety of games from contemporary new age ones to the classics, such as Risk, Monopoly, and Scrabble. Some of them have come from the Minlers' personal collection and others have been welcome donations.
Jessica said at some point they’re planning on using the basement space to host movie nights as well as become sanctioned to hold tournaments for games, such as Dungeons and Dragons and Magic the Gathering.
“We're also going to do game days where people can come over and play euchre or Catan for the day,” she said. “We're trying to bring more of a community so people who don't know many people around can come by and make friends who play the same games.”
The gaming industry has never been stronger, said Darren.
“It has the highest growth in the toy industry,” he explained. “Back in the day, only bigger companies were building games because they could afford it. But with the Internet and crowd-funding campaigns, you'll see a lot of small businesses making games.”
What’s makes them different from other places where kids gather is that Cards and Coasters sells hot beverages and finger food, said Darren.
