By Eden Ramsay (@EdenRamsay)
Across the Board Game Café, 93 Albert Street (EDEN RAMSAY PHOTO)
Inside Across the Board Game Café (EDEN RAMSAY PHOTO)
Fancy a game? Travel to Across the Board Game Café and start playing.
The game-friendly environment is a great way to try many types of games and caters to table-top board game enthusiasts of any age. Recently opened up at 93 Albert Street, it offers people a place to sit down and play a board game with each other. For a $5 sitting fee, patrons have access to two, storage walls full of different table-top games. They are categorized by titles such as Strategy, Party, Children, The Classics, and The Hits. If you are interested in dining-in without playing a game, you do not have to pay the sitting fee. For those looking to purchase their own copy of a game, many are available for purchase.
A group playing a 3D version of Settles of Catan (EDEN RAMSAY PHOTO)
The place is brightly-lit, with sparkling glass chandeliers. When I visited the café it was packed with people enjoying many different types of games. One table of people played the classic Hasbro game, Operation. A large group of people were playing the popular, raunchy party game, Cards Against Humanity. Another table were busy trading resources in the settlement game, Settlers of Catan.
One of two storage walls full of games to try. (EDEN RAMSAY PHOTO)
Not only does Across the Board have a great game selection, their food seems to be just as good. The place serves up a delicious-sounding menu of sandwiches, salads, flatbreads, and snacks. They also have a great drink selection of smoothies, specialty coffee, Fort Garry and Half Pints beer on-tap, as well as an assortment of wine, pop, and juice.
I ordered a refresh-mint smoothie which contained blended spinach, apple juice, mint, cucumber, and pineapple. This green concoction stays true to its name and was a refreshing blend of fruit juices paired with vitamin-packed spinach, and the surprising ingredients of mint and cucumber. All of these mixed surprisingly well together to create a creamy-textured, fruity and minty-flavoured combination.
The Bahn Mi sandwich (EDEN RAMSAY PHOTO)
The Bahn Mi sandwich contained tender pulled pork with a smokey, tangy flavour in a large, fluffy whole wheat bun. This was paired with picked carrot, beet and daikon which added a zesty, refreshing crispiness to the sandwich that blended well with the tangy qualities of the pulled pork. Avocado was a nice ingredient to add a contrasting texture and flavour to the mix. These were topped with cilantro and a Sriracha mayo sauce, giving the sandwich a hint of heat and added flavour.
Beached Kale salad (EDEN RAMSAY PHOTO)
I also ordered a side of the Beached Kale salad. This one contained barley, an ingredient I have not seen in a salad before. It actually was a great addition and was well-cooked, and complimented the soft chickpeas in the salad. Creamy avocado was a nice contrast against the sweetness of chopped strawberries. The fresh kale was topped with a lemon poppy seed dressing which added a light, tangy flavour to the salad while letting the flavours of the other ingredients to shine through. Toasted walnuts and sunflower seeds added a nice crunchy texture to the salad. Overall, a very nice combination of different textures and flavours to create an excellent, light-tasting salad that’s perfect for summertime.
Whether you travel to Across the Board Game Café for the food, or to throw some dice on a board with friends, you’ll leave feeling like a winner.
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Eden Ramsay is a Creative Communications student at Red River College. She has a Bachelor of Fine Arts (Honours) from the University of Manitoba and majored in graphic design. She loves culture, design in its many forms, and exploring the world around her.
