Plans to bring game board venue to downtown area
Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.
And hopefully successful, too, for Kati Baker. The 27-year-old Morgantown resident is hopeful of opening The Tabletop Parlor, Morgantown’s first board game café by mid-June in a still undisclosed location on Walnut Street.
“My partner and me went to Toronto and visited a board game café,” said Baker, when asked where she got the idea. “The crowd was diverse and it was really chill.”
Baker, who works as the outreach coordinator for NASA WV Space Grant, is a self-admitted board game enthusiast who regularly hosts game night for friends in her South Park home. She said Tabletop Parlor will offer coffee from Quantum Bean and baked goods from Love,LC. No alcohol will be served, she added.
“People tend to be more social when they have something to do other than drink,” said Baker, adding she has a tentative opening date of June 16.
Tabletop will be a two-floor café. The first floor will hold 12 to 15 tables that can seat anywhere from four to six people each.
For a fee of $7 per person, players can choose to play a board game from the 200-plus inventory Baker will have on hand. The selection will include favorites such as Monopoly, Clue, Scrabble and Connect Four. All games will be new, but donations of used board games will be accepted as long as the games are in good shape and have all of its pieces.
“The $7 lets you play all day,” said Baker, adding board game cafes typically charge $5 to $9 a person.
“We split it down the middle,” said Baker, adding the closest board game café to Morgantown is in Pittsburgh.
The basement of Tabletop Parlor will be used as event space, she said.
“Book clubs and nonprofits have already reached out to us about the space,” she added.
Baker said she hopes to launch a Kickstarter campaign later this month to raise funds to purchase the business and purchase game inventory.
“We’re trying to hit families and young professionals with this business,” she said.
While Tabletop will be the first board game café for Morgantown, the number of board game cafes nationwide is growing, especially as people look for ways to unplug. According to reportlinker.com, the market for board games is expected to grow 10% between 2018 and 2024.
Tabletop will be closed on Mondays and open from 2-10 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday and from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday through Sunday.
