aramis erak
Legend
No nearby malls other than strip malls. Our malls- even in the bigger cities to which my community is a suburb- have been closing due to the loss of anchor stores. The closest one- in another city- doesn’t have public seating areas with table except at the food court. The next closest one is in a neighborhood that has gone so far downhill that my friends on the police force let me know they regularly post sharpshooters on the roof.
No Safeways, either. Though there are grocery stores with seating areas, the seats & tables in most of them are attached to the floors. Hardly ideal.
Basically, if I want to game off-premises anywhere nearby, room rental fees will be involved.
If they let you play for free, it's better than nothing. And there's no harm in asking. If you don't ask, you'll never know for sure.
And don't forget the libraries.
Churches might also be willing. I used to run a group at a Roman Catholic cathedral. I've played in a boardgaming group at a local methodist parish.