Well Played
| Address: | 58 Wall St, Asheville, NC 28801, USA |
| Phone: | +1 828-232-7375 |
| Site: | wellplayedasheville.com |
| Rating: | 5 |
| Working: | 2–10PM 2–10PM 2–10PM 2PM–1AM 2PM–1AM 11AM–1AM 11AM–1AM |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 13
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Will Smith
For those that dont know, board gaming cafes and bars are a growing international rage. Well Played is Ashevilles local version of the international experience. True to most experiences in Asheville, these folks do a great job in the hosting department. First of all, the cafe offers a large and diverse library of board games that are laid out in an easy to understand system - on the left are "classic" games (think Uno, Chess, etc...) that ease into casual games (simple to learn, quick to play) that grow in complexity until they reach the far right and are marked with red dots (several hours to play, 1-2 hours to learn how to play). If any of that stresses you, just know that they have a Game Master on staff whose knows all the games and is there to help answer any questions you may have. The staff is also constantly training on games and can be called on in a pinch. As for the general review, the staff is super friendly, the space is open and airy, and they serve light café fare and have a few beers on tap. The space is very family friendly, offering a wholesome space for folks to go out and get a little face to face time in while exploring downtown Asheville. A day pass runs 5$ and allows visitors to come and go as they please. That means you can get coffee and a card game in, dine at your favorite dinner space, and return for a rematch after. The only downside I see is the food and beverage selection is a bit sparse and could do with a bit of upscaling, but given that the café is still very new, I imagine those aspects will tighten up over time.
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B. Leaphart
This is a wonderful establishment that all ages can enjoy. They offer a variety of board games, card games, snacks, and drinks. This is a great place for middle school and high school kids to hang out. In Charleston, SC where we live, on the weekends kids become "mall rats". They get dropped off by their moms to smoke cigarettes, walk around the mall aimlessly for hours terrorizing the shoppers. The staff was very courteous, helpful and helped to provide several hours of enjoyment for us. I taught my boyfriend how to play chess here. There is tasteful music playing in the background that ranged from jazz, swing, to more contemporary music. Please oh please oh please someone with money come to Charleston and open up a second location of "Well Played". We need to get some hoodlums off our streets and transform mall rats into studious chess players.
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Thomas Miller
Man I hope this place sticks around. Game library is huge. Very friendly gaming spot with surprisingly reasonably priced snacks. (These are not tapas, mind you, but rather basic munchies.). Expect to pay a good markup on beer though. My wife and I have started coming here to test run games we are thinking about buying. Theres a flat $5 fee to have a table per person, which seems fair. We grabbed a table for 3+ hrs with a few snack scattered in and they were totally cool with that. Very good time. Bring the family for game night! Bring a board game newbie to try a great game!
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Amber Whittemore
Loved the concept of this place! Great selection, and the staff was very informed and helpful. $5 was a great price. My only critique: when its late (or <3 hours until closing), the staff should avoid saying that the $5 fee is for "all day". My group heard this and almost turned away because it made us feel like we werent getting a great deal. I actually say another couple turn away because they said theyd rather come back tomorrow to get the full benefit. Maybe say that the $5 is just a "gaming fee"? Luckily, we still agreed that $5 was worth the 2-3 hours, so it worked out!
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Chisami C
Fun place, I definitely love the concept and plan to go back. It feels cheap for a day of entertainment and the atmosphere is nice. Staff was very friendly but a little funny in some spots. Got our order slightly incorrect (wrong milkshake flavor) and took awhile to get us seated and I had to actually remind them to charge us for the entry fee, but otherwise was friendly and helpful especially regarding the games. We also came late so they let us know we could be back the next day to get our full days worth, so thats neat. Im happy its here.
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Krys Earles
Cute new place. Their selection of boats games is amazing, good clean environment. I hope they expand their menu as there is only individual portions on it and its not possible to buy a large plate of anything to share with friends, but the things on said menu were good. Will revise with 5 stars when we can share food as a group. For $5 it is worth it to play a high quality game or two that you might never buy yourself but is worth playing for sure!
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Mark Wonnacott
This might be one of the coolest places Ive ever been. The food and drink options are fine, but thats really not the story here. That would be the library of games and the staff who know how they all work. After drinking all day, my partner and I were still able to learn and have fun with a whole slew of new games with the help of the friendly, patient game master. The atmosphere is fun and friendly, and I cant wait to go back.
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Gabby C
Ive been dying to come here since opening day, and it did not disappoint! The pub food was a great, the staff was very friendly and attentive, the game selection was pretty good, and the space is epic. It never felt too crowded or too loud, despite being pretty busy. I came with a group for a going away party, and we all had a blast. Will definitely be coming back!
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Jeremy Duncan
Very good experience overall. Attentive staff, interesting menu items, and a good selection of games. Cant beat $5 for a day of gaming, either. A little poorly lit, and a bit loud at times because of bare cinderblock walls. Having a list/database of available games for guests to peruse with player counts and core mechanics would be very helpful.
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Katherine Maddux
This is my new favorite place to hang out in Asheville! The staff is friendly and attentive, the food is delicious (try the pimento grilled cheese!), and the board game selection is stellar. The game master helped us pick out games for our table of 8 people - and we loved every selection. I cant recommend Well Played enough - check it out!
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David Price
Kind waiters and delicious food. The day pass for access to all board games is 5 dollars. The game master is able to help you in you have any questions about the games. If there are any issues it would be the price of the food. It is high quality but it still seems a little high.
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Joseph Cathey
400+ games and a great beer selection, what more could one want? We opted for a rousing game of Munchkins, but moved other games after a while rather than ruin friendships hah. Seriously, this play is a must go to for a fun night out with friends if you need to kill a couple hours.
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Ian Geis
We had lots of fun at the grand opening! The staff was super friendly and the game selection is incredible (think anything from Mouse Trap to Race for the Galaxy). We loved the snacks that were available and also the option to have an adult beverage. Overall a great time.
