Turn Your Living Room into a Cozy Board Game Café in 5 Simple Steps

With a shift away from bar culture and a longing for connection, it’s not surprising that board game cafés are popping up across the country. These third spaces offer a fun way to enjoy a relaxing night out, and if you love games, it’s the perfect spot to try out new ones before you add them to your collection.

This fun night out offers a lot of inspiration for a cozy night in. Recreating a board game café at home doesn’t just mean serving a traditional coffee shop menu: Try theming the night around your favorite game, or invite guests to bring their own for an array of options.

Whether you’re planning a family night or a gathering with friends, these five tips will help you bring the coziness of a café to any room in your home.

1. Work with Your Space

You don’t need a lot of room for an at-home board game café—just a little creativity. In a lot of ways, small spaces can help reinforce that cozy feeling. First, focus on laying out the room in a comfortable, functional arrangement.

If you’re creating a café set-up in your living room, work around your large furniture pieces, like your couch or coffee table. Folding tables and chairs offer extra seating and table space—plus, they’re easy to move and can be packed away at the end of the night. And while they might not seem like the coziest choice, a few simple touches can make them comfy for guests. “If you’re working with folding chairs, soft throw blankets go a long way,” says Olivia Pollock, etiquette and hosting expert at Evite.

Make sure you have enough space to walk between tables and behind chairs. And if you’re playing a game like Uno or Scrabble, where players have cards or tiles to hide, keep that in mind and make sure everyone has enough space at the table. As the host, you may also want to set up food and drinks in an area where players won’t see each other’s cards if they get a mid-round refill.

2. Prioritize Coziness

Lighting is key in creating a cozy atmosphere. Get a light cover to soften any overhead lights, or swap out your usual light bulbs for some that produce a warmer glow. You can also set up ambient lighting throughout the room without turning on overhead lights at all. “Cordless table lamps, taper candles, or string lights instantly soften a space and give it that warm and cozy glow,” Pollock says.

Place extra pillows and cushions on hard chairs to make them more comfortable. You can also skip the card table entirely and create a setup around a low coffee table for a more intimate setting. Pollock recommends adding floor cushions or ottomans for more seating.

And don’t forget about comforting scents, which help recreate the warm feel of a board game café at home. You can even rely on the evening’s menu to help fill your home with sweet smells. “Pull a loaf of pumpkin bread out of the oven just before your guests arrive, or make your life a touch easier by lighting a cozy candle,” Pollock says. “I recommend vanilla or sandalwood.”

3. Choose Games Based on Your Guest List

Think about your guests’ personalities and preferences when deciding which games to play and the food and drinks to serve. A family-friendly game night with kids will have a different look than an adults-only gathering.

“For families, I always recommend games that are easy to grasp and encourage teamwork,” Pollock says. “Pair those with kid-friendly, easy-to-grab snacks and a more colorful, interactive setup.”

For a family night, you can really lean into the relaxed, informal aspects of a board game café. Clearing space on a comfy rug and setting up cushions on the floor for everyone to sit on can be especially helpful in a small space, and it gives kids more freedom to move without navigating around extra tables and chairs. Have fun with food and drinks, too—a family game night gives you the perfect excuse to set up a Candyland-inspired candy bar.

Adult game night is the time to break out more involved games. “For adults, you can lean into longer games with strategy, especially since so many classics are trending again,” Pollock says. “We’re seeing a huge resurgence of nostalgic classics: Scrabble is up 53%, Mahjong up 46%, and chess up 7% year over year. Pair the games of your youth with elevated touches, like a charcuterie board or themed cocktails.”

4. Keep the Atmosphere Light and Fun

As a host, you’re responsible for setting the tone of game night. If you’re hosting a group of friends that takes gaming seriously and enjoys more intense strategy, it’s OK to encourage everyone’s competitive side. But remember, game night is meant to be fun for everyone—so if you notice guests starting to get a little too invested, it may be time to switch gears.

“Remind your guests that the night is about connection, not competition,” Pollock says. “You can motivate attendees to take themselves a little less seriously by offering prizes to the guests who come in both first and last place. Team-style play or mixing in something lighthearted between more intense rounds can also help keep the energy fun and playful.”

5. Add Small Touches

Not everything has to follow the game night theme to achieve the board game café ambiance. But a few small additions can make the event more memorable and fun and may even make your job as host easier.

“The tiniest details really elevate the night and give guests something to remember,” Pollock says. “A chalkboard ‘game menu’ for the evening, themed snacks—think checkerboard cheese plates or word-tile cookies, or even a cute, customized game piece gift.”

Minimize clean-up with tablecloths or other coverings over counters and snack areas. You can also use kraft paper to label foods: Use a marker to write out the name of each dish or drink, and call out with potential allergens. When the night is over, you can simply toss the paper out. Bonus tip: Tie your treats into the theme with build-your-own snack bars that separate foods based on the colors of players’ game pieces (like bowls of different colored M&Ms or sour gummies).

“Most importantly, set yourself up so you’re not stuck hosting in the background,” Pollock says. “Prep ahead, then be part of the fun. Guests care more about you joining in and having fun than another round of appetizers.”