The magic of gathering: Hobby cafes are the new breed of third spaces

There’s something about places with no judgment and all the time for play

In the afternoon, Whimsy Game Cafe looks like your average cafe—some tables sparingly occupied by small groups catching up or having simple snacks. Once early evening hits, around the time when office workers clock out or students are finally free, the place comes alive.

There are friends calling out to each other, sliding into the tables, and reaching out for the shelves lined up with board games. There are the “kalaro,” fellow enthusiasts who meet up for their designated gaming day of the week.

The same goes for SideQuest, which is tucked in Estancia Mall in Pasig. Throngs of hobbyists come in, the demographics a mix of people because some days are devoted to specific hobbies, while other days are for typical board game play.

These are just two of many cafes that have become third spaces in the metro for hobbyists. Rather than being a niche scene, hobbies such as tabletop games, board games, collectible card games, and even pottery or bracelet-making have become the common denominator of hobby groups in the local scene.

A shared space for shared hobbies

When Juli Febiar started Whimsy Game Cafe, her focus was on the “board game part” and not much on the cafe side of things. Until now, she sees the cafe as a complement to the bigger picture of a shared hobby space.

“We’re players ourselves, and we know exactly what people want because that’s also what we want—a space to play for sometimes up to eight hours, without judgment about the time or the noise we can make,” she tells radar in an interview.

Situated in the spacious Greenfield District, Whimsy Game Cafe is crafted with tables that can be combined Tetris-style to accommodate a variety of board games and their specific sizes. It also has a mezzanine for tournament nights for specific games. Everything is tailored to the player by players themselves.

The Hobbies: In SideQuest, hobbyists can enjoy their hobby or maybe find a new one on an interesting corner or shelf in the space.

Loyalty and love start with listening

For Courtney Sayson, SideQuest was not the first name or idea when starting a hobby cafe. But even after dabbling with different business ideas—including a milk tea franchise that allowed her to secure their current location in Estancia Mall—she knew that she wanted to have a cafe space that allowed fun and hobbies to flourish.

“We didn’t limit ourselves just to card games and board games. My mom started tapping different communities, like art communities, and now, they host events and workshops here monthly,” says Courtney.

SideQuest became a cafe that holds its doors open to any kind of hobby. Those who have been with them when they first opened under a different name still sometimes go through their doors and settle in at one of the tables to indulge in the hobby.

“Maybe one of the reasons why some people stay loyal to the hobby and even our space is we always listen to them,” shares Courtney. A significant community contribution is even situated in front of their space: the name SideQuest itself.

Courtney recalls: “Someone in our community suggested the name ‘SideQuest,’ and the rationale is it’s an action word: let’s do a side quest before going home. This means playing a game or meeting up with friends.”

Juli echoes the same sentiment, remembering the time when a simple conversation about Pokemon gyms from Whimsy Game Cafe goers turned their space into an official Pokemon gym.

She says, “Some Pokemon players asked if we wanted to be a gym because they’ll help. They went to the store and played almost every other day to [show] The Pokemon Company that there was a demand. After just two or three weeks, we were accepted as an official gym.”

Table tops and third spaces: When community builds the hobby

At the heart of it, the tabletop gaming community sees the physical space and the face-to-face interaction as a foundation for the community. Juli remembers her stint of selling game dice prior to running Whimsy. She would go to places armed only with her stock of dice and a backpack, and sell them to players who, back then, would occupy coffee shops. 

When the pandemic hit, Juli was ready to hang up the gloves and stop the business. “People should be paying for food or other essentials to survive. Why are you buying Php3,000 worth of dice from me?” she asks. And yet she smiles fondly at the memory, having realized the answer from fellow gamers and customers.

“But the community persists. Even if you lock people in a room (like in the pandemic), we crave that connection. And things like my dice hold memories—when I roll a 20, I’d be reminded of those fun moments.”

Socials serve stability in trying times

Having a community or even a companion in these times really hits differently. Social support and a stable community provide the stable ground for some of the coping interventions Filipinos used during the pandemic.

In research in Mental Health and Social Inclusion, social support plays a vital role for well-being, especially in a collectivist culture like the Philippines. This helps people have more resilience and use more adaptive coping involving their social circles, which in turn lessens the risk of depressive symptoms.

Thus, in the board game space, having a physical third space to stay or a sidequest to accomplish before turning in for the night definitely serves as a big driver of the experience.

Whether the hobby is in demand or in the works, it all starts with having a few people gathering together and looking for a space, and someone else welcoming them with a ready table and good company for hours on end.

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