Draughts is a

board game café A board game café is a type of café in which patrons play board and card games while being served food and drink. Customers usually pay an entry fee or rent a table in order to access a large library of games and instruction from the staff on ho ...

business based in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, and the first board game café in the city. As of October 2022, the business owns two cafés, one in Hackney and one in

Waterloo Waterloo most commonly refers to: * Battle of Waterloo, a battle on 18 June 1815 in which Napoleon met his final defeat * Waterloo, Belgium, where the battle took place. Waterloo may also refer to: Other places Antarctica *King George Island (S ...

. The establishment serves

craft beer Craft beer is a beer that has been made by craft breweries. They produce smaller amounts of beer, typically less than large breweries, and are often independently owned. Such breweries are generally perceived and marketed as having an emphasis o ...

s as well as coffee and snacks. A library of

board games Board games are tabletop games that typically use . These pieces are moved or placed on a pre-marked board (playing surface) and often include elements of table, card, role-playing, and miniatures games as well. Many board games feature a comp ...

are available at both venues, and customers may also buy games from the café. Its clientele includes board game hobbyists as well as families, young professionals, and couples. Draughts hires staff with hospitality experience to serve drinks and teach customers how to play the games.

History

The business was first founded under a railway arch in

Haggerston Haggerston is a locale in East London, England, centred approximately on Great Cambridge Street (now renamed Queensbridge Road). It is within the London Borough of Hackney and is considered to be a part of London's East End. It is about 3.1 mi ...

, Hackney by Nick Curci and Toby Hamand in 2014, aiming to stock 500 board games on its premises. The creation of the cafe was funded by bank and government loans, as well as a

Kickstarter Kickstarter is an American public benefit corporation based in Brooklyn, New York, that maintains a global crowdfunding platform focused on creativity. The company's stated mission is to "help bring creative projects to life". As of July 2021, ...

campaign. It initially charged a flat rate of £5 for a full day, with a reduced fee of £3.50 for members. It followed

Thirsty Meeples Thirst is the craving for potable fluids, resulting in the basic instinct of animals to drink. It is an essential mechanism involved in fluid balance. It arises from a lack of fluids or an increase in the concentration of certain osmolites, such ...

, the first board game café to open in the UK, and was inspired by the Canadian board game café

Snakes and Lattes Snakes & Lattes is a board game café chain headquartered in Toronto, Canada, with three venues in the city and five US venues. The chain is often cited as the main inspiration for other board game cafés in the western world. It is sometimes inco ...

. The Waterloo café opened in 2018, located underneath another railway arch on

Leake Street Leake Street (also known as the Banksy Tunnel) is a road tunnel in Lambeth, London where graffiti is tolerated regardless of the fact that it is against the law. The street is about 300 metres long, runs off York Road, Lambeth, York Road and u ...

. At this time, the Hackney location was host to over 800 board games. In October 2019, the Hackney café moved from under a railway arch in Haggerston to a building on

Kingsland Road Kingsland Road is the name given to an East London stretch of the A10 road within the London Borough of Hackney in England. The A10 was originally a Roman Road better known as Ermine Street or sometimes the Old North Road. The name ''Kingslan ...

Dalston Dalston () is an area of East London, in the London Borough of Hackney. It is northeast of Charing Cross. Dalston began as a hamlet on either side of Dalston Lane, and as the area urbanised the term also came to apply to surrounding areas includ ...

, a venue that was twice the size of the previous establishment, able to house 180 guests and over 1000 games. The entry fee for non-members had been changed to allow four hours of gaming, instead of a full day.

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Draughts Board game cafés Organisations based in the London Borough of Hackney Coffeehouses and cafés in the United Kingdom 2014 establishments in the United Kingdom British companies established in 2014