Have you seen our green flags? I don’t mean our team mentality or how we try to be better tomorrow than we were today, though those are pretty great! I mean our literal green flags that you can put on your table. The idea is, if you’re open to having someone you don’t know sit with you—so you can make new game friends, so you can play bigger games, etc.—ask for one of our green flags! And if you ever see one on a table, know that you are welcome to sit there yourself!

It’s a version of Community Game Night for whenever you come to Free Parking. Of course you often are here with your partner or a friend you haven’t seen in a while, but sometimes, maybe you want to expand your horizons. As great as our 2-player game selection is, maybe you want to play Happy Bee (see below) or Hues and Cues and you need more people for it to go well. And as delightful as your friends and family are, maybe you want to meet some new folks. The green flags are a cheery way to say, “Come on over, friend!”

I wonder what that looks like in your life out in the world? How do you show people you’re safe and fun and approachable? Even if it’s awkward?

Friends, keep cool, keep heart, and keep playing.

Alice C., board game librarian

Play Happy Bee!

In Happy Bee, players simultaneously select cards and play them face-down. When the cards are revealed, players with the majority of a color take the matching square score card. The number of cards played changes each round (depicted on the white card in the photo above). Here’s the spicy bit: before a new round starts, players pass the cards left in their hands to the next player, then add the cards they played to the cards they’ve been handed by their neighbor. Your hand changes every round, and what you play to the table is both about what you want to win and what you want to keep from passing on. It’s a tight, odd little game for 3-6.

New cocktail menu is out!

We’re updating our menus, both food and drink, so get ready for an onslaught of the new, delicious items!

Last week, we spotlighted the Sky Team, this week, the Happy Bee! Made with Sazerac rye, triple sec, lemon juice, and honey and garnished with orange peel, it’s fresh and approachable. A delightful accompaniment to a game of its namesake with friends or new, green flag friends!