Hi!

I checked out Snakes and Lattes 600 Bloor W. and WOW is it wicked!

The place is a nice cafe that comfortably seats ~25 people and is lined with a wall with several shelves stuffed with games from Carsiconne, Small World to card games like Uno and I even saw Operation! XD

The owners are very nice, friendly and Francophone! I forget the owner fella's name but I chatted with him and he showed me some games that would be of interest to my kids so much respect for that. We also talked about the "no Computer/no WiFi" philosophy and it basically boils down to: "I want you to enjoy a social game and not plug your face into work here." Very cool.

The Barista Gio(sp?) is a really cool down to earth type and we chatted for a bit and he was very encouraging to get gamers into the caf. I ordered a Chai with soy frothy topping thingy which set me back $4 and it was okay, but gave me a chance to settle in and check out their goods and environ.

The place was packed since it was opening night and several games were on the go. It is wheelchair accessible, but the washrooms are located on the lower level. Didn't see one on the main floor but I could be wrong.

Closest major landmark is the giant flashy Honest Ed's and it's within a short distance to the Bathurst station so very accessible by TTC. Their hours and Google map location here.

They don't have an LLBO standing yet but that may soon come to pass.

Anyways, I really enjoyed the vibe there and the openess of the gaming space and staff there. So yeah, if you have a chance check it out, you guys!

Cya,

ron(Grievous)


Edit: Oh yeah, I forgot: It costs $5 per person to play the boardgames there, but you the fee covers the whole duration of your stay. More cost, yeah. But you get to play as long as you like, any game you like, and, the Ownership gets a little something in return for it. It's all good, I'd say.

Yeah that place sounds amazing. If they have the Classic Dungeon! board game, I might be spending a lot of time there reliving my childhood introduction to fantasy gaming.

I'm just totally impressed with the 1500 boardgames. It's an awesome concept!

@ Matthew Harper: Yeah I don't know if they had that one in particular, but I did see some boxes with "Dungeon" something or other.

@ Desiree: Yeah, it's like walking into a gaming store and being able to open them up and check out the games. Each and Every Single One if you have the time or desire. XD

Oh yeah, btw, you can play any game there but there is a $5 fee to play the games as long as you stay there. It seems reasonable to me, but IDK, what do you boardgamers think?

I spent a decent portion of my day Monday at Snakes & Lattes and thought it was incredible! It's exactly what I've been hoping we'd be able to find somewhere in the city... a comfortable space where we can go and game anytime... with tables adequate for boardgames, good lighting, and food available at a reasonable price!

Add to that the passion that the owner has for boardgames and I'm sold 100%. He was knowledgable about their collection of 1500+ games, a large percentage of which are euro/strategy games, helpful when new gamers entered the cafe and he was even willing to teach rules!

I love that very few people entered the cafe and sat down with only the people they came with to play amoungst themselves. Everyone was friendly, the groups were changing up quite often, and it seems like an excellent way to introduce even more people to boardgames!

The majority of the cafe has square tables that can be joined or separated to make spaces for 4-6 player games, able to accommodate a total of maybe 30 people. In addition to this, they have comfortable seating areas at the front and the back of the cafe set-up wonderfully for party games like Pictionary or Cranium.

The $5 fee is more than fair for a few hours of access to this incredible game collection! They also have delicious sandwiches and milkshakes for very reasonable prices. This will be a great hang-out for gamers and I definitely recommend stopping by at some point to check it out if you can.

And it's right by my house *squee*

This cafe is right by my old work.. Why couldn't they have opened there a couple years ago? T_T

I heard about this on the CBC this morning and I definitely plan to check it out. It might be a nice change of venue on occasion for the Wednesday meetup. Though, so people might not like that it's not free, though I think it would be nice to support his business and game in a clean space.

I had been wondering how he monitors the games, so that they don't get damaged or loose components. I would think that would become an issue if you are loaning out games to the customers.

1500+ seems like a huge amount. That is amazing. I'll for sure be checking it out, even though I don't drink coffee.

I've been seeing a lot of press for this place as well and am interested in checking it out.

However I just started a strict month long diet and going to restaurants and cafes will be a little problematic until October. Do they have their menu posted online? Can I get tea there and a healthy (for varying values of healthy) meal?

@Eric: I don't see an menu on their "site." More of a placeholder than anything. They do have a Facebook link tho.

They're open on holiday Monday, so I may head out there and chill out. I like it there :]