Some bars are just made for long (read: tipsy) games of Scrabble, chess or Uno
There are bars that are good for serious wine swilling, bars that are good for getting all hot and sweaty on the d-floor, and some bars that make you just want to hang out with your mates for hours, play games and have a few drinks. Try out various libations with different amusements (Connect Four with beers? Chess with Martinis?), and you might just find your winning combinations.
There’s a whole cupboard of board games waiting for you at Brunswick Street’s speakeasy. It’s the kind of place where you’d happily while away a Sunday afternoon in a shabby, low-lit booth, with a chessboard and cocktails made just the way the bartenders like them.
If you've ever wanted to live in New York, 29th Apartment is probably the closest thing to it in Melbourne. The NY apartment-themed cocktail bar and music venue is located right in the middle of Fitzroy Street in St Kilda. Head over to claim a spot near the exposed brick wall, split a bottle of red with your mates and play a few rounds of board games. While you're waiting for a go on the giant Jenga board, take advantage of the cheap drink deals like the two-for-one cocktail special on Saturdays and the $5 house drinks on Wednesdays.
Despite the name, Good Heavens isn’t a pearl-clutching kind of place. From the moment the doors open, local suits and bar hunters with their fingers on the pulse start staking their claim on the precious rooftop real estate above Fancy Hank's. Fight for a spot or simply laugh and observe as they lord over Bourke Street while Hawaiian shirt-clad staff shake up vintage tipples at the central island bar. There are board games and card games available for you to play while you sip.
Out in Huntingdale, this nerdy-but-cool hangout spot comes well stocked not only with drinks (read: a very decent whiskey and gin selection), but also a plethora of computer and board games and permission to BYO food from the great dining spots up the street. Whether you get your Guitar Hero on or K.O. some half-lion-looking creature in Tekken 8, fun times are sure to abound at this local fave, buoyed along by groovy-looking cocktails, of course. Find out more at the website.
There are more than a few drawcards at this comfy games 'n' drinks oasis in the CBD. First, it's got all your nostalgic classics on the shelves – from Catan and Scrabble to Werewolf. Second, if you whip out $25 you get a drink and three hours of board game play. Thirdly, a case of the nibbles won't last long here. The yummy Taiwanese cuisine on offer includes dumplings, bao and a selection of rice and noodle dishes to keep your belly lined for the night ahead. And yes, the night will go ahead as there's karaoke, too. Check it out! More info is available at the website.
Joining Melbourne's gaming bar scene in mid-2022, Boardies is your new haven in Collingwood for liquor-fuelled hijinks and competitive play. There are parmas, pots, trivia nights, video game contests, plus a huge selection of board games that run the gamut from traditional family classics to viral newcomers. In short, it's got everything you need for a night of good, old-fashioned fun. Find out more at the website.
Pick from free-play or coin-operated arcade machines, stake out the Nintendo 64 or rest between fighting marathons on the comfy couches dotted around this cavernous, mainly underground space. Bartronica holds singles' nights and fiercely competitive tournaments (the most recent Mario Kart tournament was won on the final turn of the final race); top scores are immortalised (for one night) on the chalk board. There's even a beer garden that pretends it's in New York. Game on.
B. Lucky and Sons is one part bar, one part adults-only arcade where you can drink a spiked bubble tea while shooting aliens on a giant, two-person version of Space Invaders. The flashy-flashy outside continues inside but now it’s the games themselves lighting up the room. Take your pick from nostalgic faves like Dance Dance Revolution and Mario Kart, or try your luck at winning a prize from a claw machine or spinning wheel.
The first things to note about Archie Brothers is that it’s like stepping into a neon-hued vaudevillian dream. It’s a little bit Blade Runner if Blade Runner were PG-rated and extremely good looking on the ‘gram. The entire complex is decked out with nostalgia-inducing ways to entertain yourself, from arcade games to theme park rides. Challenge your mates to a round of Mario Kart or hit the road for real (sort of) with a turn on the Dodgem Cars. There’s a grand total of 67 arcade games to try out, as well as bowling and an interactive XD motion theatre.
'Total Eclipse of the Heart'. 'Rock Lobster'. 'Someone Like You'. 'Man! I Feel Like a Woman!'. What do these songs have in common? They're all A-grade songs – weapons, if you will – that will help you absolutely slay your next karaoke set and leave your fellow singers gasping. We've chosen our favourite places to let loose, mic in hand, from private rooms to public bars.
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