Local board game nights draw in new and returning competitors
Newbury Park is home to many businesses that cater a variety of activities for locals, including game nights. Game nights serve as a place for friends and families to join together and enjoy time in the community. Whether it is playing various board games, or group trivia, people are always willing to participate and meet new people.
Boney Mountain Pizza Co., a local pizza restaurant, hosts their own game nights with trivia. William Terry, owner and regular trivia participant, has hosted trivia nights for several years. “[Trivia nights are] rooted in the idea that games and friendly competition help to bring us together as a community,” Terry said. These trivia nights are free to all participants with the winners earning up to 30 dollars. With advertising on social media and throughout the restaurant, the trivia nights bring in many new and returning participants each week to join in on the excitement.
Boney Mountain Pizza Co. trivia night regular attendee, Lenia Wentworth, has been enjoying mind challenging Tuesday nights for over three years. Wentworth usually participates alongside her team or friends and neighbors. “I wanted something fun to do on a Tuesday night,” Wentworth said. From word puzzles to song trivia, Boney Mountain Pizza Co. trivia nights has something for everyone.
Grace McMann, a manager at Chaka Boba, also hosts a game night every Tuesday. While the initial goal was to bring in more customers, the concept has grown into a fun event for customers of all ages. “There’s a few people who come regularly. It’s open to everybody, so anyone could just grab [a board game] and play,” McMann said. As she works to expand the game nights, McMann plans on creating themed nights and raffle nights where winners get a prize. “One time we had a themed game night and we had blue drinks. We made a blueberry shake. We got Mountain Dew, Baja Blast, stuff like that, so we might do more themed ones, and I think that would maybe draw more people,” McMann said.
As these events continue to grow, Boney Mountain Tavern and Chaka Boba hope to inspire other businesses to host their own. “There is a great familiarity among our groups and the joy from beating one another each week is palpable across the restaurant. We have rivalries, running jokes and celebrate victories and defeats by new and returning teams alike,” Terry said.
