RPG/D&D cafe suggestions


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GHammy26

Explorer
Wow hostility...

Look guys I was just getting ideas from you to do with products to sell, events to participate in and other things you'd want from an RPG store. I was going to let people play boardgames in the place as well as cards and RPGs etc.

I wasn't looking for financial advice, as lets face it, an actual financial advisor is probably better qualified and more experienced in this matter.

Hmm... It may be due to me not knowing a better name for it, but I meant 'cafe' as in to serve hot drinks, cakes, snacks etc. as I don't really want to look into the food regulations. (tearoom is possibly a better way of putting it)

Certainly not enough room for a proper kitchen in the premises I'm interested in and you don't really want to be having a full meal like a burger while you're fighting 'Theraxis Crackhammer the scourge of Magistris Prime' do you? You want something light and you can share like doritos or those small tubs of brownies you can get from ASDA.

'Gamerprinter' thanks for your experience, it's good to hear of someone with no experience starting something new and managing to keep it going for 25 years (seriously well done). 'ShadowAssassin' (can't believe I'm actually writing these like actual names) thanks for your input you brought up some good points about restrictions etc.

Anyway, we're all friends here so lets not get into 'dick waving' contests and just keep it with simple ideas please?

Thanks again for everyones comments!

G
 

I think you'll find that even your intention to supply hot drinks and snacks might fall foul of the hygiene inspector and require a licence and zoning permission. Call the local council and find out before you even go call that SBA.
 

gamerprinter

Mapper/Publisher
IME, every game shop offers hot/cold drinks, candy and chips. I wouldn't call that a "cafe", since the title of the thread regards a D&D cafe, my assumption was that you were talking about something more significant regarding food. Otherwise, I'd just call it a game shop and not attach "cafe" to the concept. So if my ideas were beyond your consideration, I apologize, but your title pointed in me in that direction. Since you're not talking a true cafe, then all the concerns regarding health inspections and kitchens have no part.

@ShadowAssassin, I don't dick wave, I only offer suggestions based on real life experience. If you're not talking based on experience, you're just talking out your rear as some stranger on an RPG board. I think straight forward advice based on experience is a good thing.

In the end we love our hobbies, and many people visiting this site often ask considerations regarding opening their own game shop. As mentioned on my first post in this thread, many game shops struggle to survive in this very niche industry of ours, and if one is looking to start a successful business with any serious investment, I personally wouldn't recommend opening a game shop - most don't survive, and consider that more and more close each year. Losing at any business venture is expensive.
 
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aramis erak

Legend
Honestly, half the shops without food suffer financial collapse just the same - I don't think there's a difference in the risk, with or without food sales, RPG shops are risky operations, no matter what other conditions are met.



In the US, a food health certification is like $50 and a 90 day class at the local community college (its no big deal), and most health inspections happen once at the start of operations and periodically, often several years apart. Again, you keep a clean kitchen and follow the health rules - its no big deal.



I don't know what the OP has experience with, but most people I know in both game shops and small restaurants have zero experience in retail and food service, but doesn't seem to stop the inexperienced from opening such businesses. And of course, it would be silly not to rent/lease/buy a building that doesn't already have an existing commercial kitchen, if you intended to open a game shop cafe. The cost of equipment, not to mention the grease ventilation and fire-suppression system would be too costly to install brand new for such an intended cafe. Of course there ought to be plenty of available properties that have an existing kitchen. The kitchen area needs only be a prep area, flat grill, a deep fryer, a freezer and refrigeration - it doesn't even have to be a separate room (though would be better if it were).

And perhaps, I am a "random stranger inhabiting a board", but I am also an experienced restaurant owner/operator, have run a graphic design studio and digital print shop for 20 years with some level of retail in my shop. Aside from the graphics schooling, I had no official training in food service nor retail, yet ran successful businesses for over 25 years. Maybe such options are too difficult for you, but IME, its no more challenging than anything else in life. In my case aside from some jobs held during and shortly after college, my entire life experience has been in self employment by running businesses, and I've never found that life over-challenging (I'd go as far as calling it work, but relatively easy work).



I'd consider anyone opening an RPG game shop alone to be the most risky proposition, doing so as a cafe, I'd consider much smarter and better investment than the former. Perhaps my comment is useless to you, but if you have half-a-brain, I'd think the value in my comment would be most welcome. Running retail and food service both involve work, keeping operations clean and efficient, but that's true with most things - it's not rocket science, though.
In the US it varies widely.

Alaska requires everyone working in a restaurant to have a food handler's cert - they're good for about 10 years, and the restaurant can, if it has certified trainers, do it in house (as McDonalds and Burger King usually do). Further, it's only a 2 hour course. The health inspections are annual if passed, every two months until pass if in the marginal, and next week if failed - and a second consecutive fail is an immediate end of business. The requirements for the kitchen include what kind of kitchen is acceptable for what level of status (restaurants differ from bars, snack bars and fast food restaurants). A snack bar, for example, has far fewer kitchen requirements in terms of counter space, but is only allowed to do "heat-n-eat" and sandwich assembly; anything that requires actual cooking isn't allowed - no deep fryer, no stew from scratch.

In any case, as I said before, find out the local health codes and make certain you understand them. They vary widely.
 

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