Board game cafe continues to 'score big' in downtown Athens

ATHENS, Ga. - Sometimes in the game of life, you just have to roll the dice. So, after a lifetime of loving board games, the Kelly family of Athens decided to take a risk and fill their shelves with about a thousand of them.

Carrie and Tim Kelly are the owners of The Rook & Pawn, a board game café in Downtown Athens. It’s a place where fans can sip on coffee or beer and take on their friends in everything from classics like Monopoly to new favorites, including Wingspan.

"We had just had kids, and had experienced Athens in a bunch of different ways — as students and professionals — and we were kind of looking for a place that combined our young professional experience with our burgeoning family," says Tim Kelly of deciding to open the business.

But when the couple opened the doors to the café eight years ago, they had no clue how the board game industry was about to explode. According to the nonprofit trade organization The Toy Association, sales of board games and puzzles in the U.S. jumped 33% in 2020, becoming a go-to stay-at-home activity for families and friends during the pandemic.

"As families kind of hunkered down at home together, they sought ways to play and bring a little fun in their lives," says toy trend specialist Jennifer Lynch. "And games specifically was a way that they could do so, even if they were doing so virtually with families."

Sales have leveled off a bit since then, of course, but experts say the actual "play patterns" of sitting down with board games seem to have taken hold and continue post-pandemic. For the Kellys, a big trend in the years since 2020 is seeing customers skip past some of the basic games and go for those with higher levels of difficulty.

"It’s been neat to see them venture up the wall more and sort of take the time," says Tim Kelly. "They’re not scared anymore to open up a rulebook and sit down and take five or 10 minutes and work through it."

The Rook & Pawn is located at 294 West Washington Street, Suite 300, in Athens. For more information on the café, click here.