1461744_183019598562452_932684334_nTwo alumnae of the University of Maryland will be opening a 3000 sq. ft. game cafe at The Varsity, an off-campus student housing and retail space in College Park, Maryland. Board and Brew will be set up as a coffeehouse, with an hourly fee for the first three hours of gaming. The game cafe will have between 500-100 board games from family game night classics like Hungry Hungry Hippos to more current games like Through the Ages and Blokus. Ben Epstien, one of the partners behind the venture said, “I think part of the reason we came out with [the cafe concept] is there are plenty of places that are gaming shops … but they’re really just a game store that has some people come in and play games.” Board and Brew is hoping to fill a vacancy in the local entertainment scene by having the game cafe be more than just a game store, with weekly open mic events, singles events, and live entertainment in addition to game tournaments, leagues, and “learn to play” nights. Board and Brew is scheduled to open in late January.

For more information, visit the Diamondback’s coverage of the store and the partners’ informal announcement thread at Reddit.