Playdate Bay Area

I absolutely love playdate! I am not much of a club person. I usually only go out when I am out of town. Playdate is not an average club, in fact it’s much better. The crowd is morenupscale thanthe average club especially considering the concept is playing games in a club atmosphere. I love the idea of reliving my childhood with alcohol!

So this really isn’t a dance club but can be considered an alternative to one. Its a night of old school games, DJs and adult beverages. Monopoly, UNO, Spades, Scrabble, Jenga, Connect Four etc. Whats really cool is that they had a monster sized Jenga, which becomes very entertaining when people have imbibed a bit too much. There were about 300 – 400 there and the entry fee is $ 10 in advance and $ 15 at the door. Sometimes they throw them in Oakland and sometimes in San Francisco. The concept is brilliant. I think the execution can be improved, however. One holding it in the Oakland Marriott was a downside. The event was in a huge well lit, ballroom and the open space took away from the nightclub feel. In the beginning, when people were dancing and playing games it seemed like a very nice event. Then the board games stopped and the group games, like Twister, Musical Chairs and Simon Says began. Here is where the evening took a turn for the worst IMO. First it was impossible for the group to participate in these activities. Therefore, they shouldn’t have stopped the music and the boardgames. Then, some of the games became R rated… so much so that some people just didnt’ want to put themselves out there like that. It eventually became evident that this wasn’t the best place for a more mature crowd to spend an entire evening. The skinny? Great concept but depends on execution. My recommendation is to try it out do determine if it is your scene. If it is you will have a fantastic time.