Geek Retreat
A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of travelling to rainy Glasgow city! After doing all the usual Scottish things (tried haggis, yuck, saw men in kilts and heard bagpipes) it was time for me to take to the city properly! Naturally, the rain started to bucket down, so in my search for somewhere dry and warm, I came across the most incredible coffee shop I’ve ever been to; Geek Retreat.
Geek Retreat is a café, comic shop, gaming area and general nerd hangout area right in the middle of Glasgow city! I was extremely nervous about making my way down the staircase, but as I walked into the shop, I can honestly say I’ve never felt more welcome in a coffee shop. The staff greeted my with bubbly smiles, and after struggling with the poor waitress due to my not being able to understand a Scottish accent, I finally ordered myself a hot chocolate and grabbed a table.
I was so surprised at the atmosphere of the room. Normally these places will have their cliques and groups, but there was almost none of that here! After swapping friend codes for Pokémon X and Y, devouring some delicious cookies and playing a couple of board games, I realized that this is exactly the kind of place us geeks and nerds need. As well as selling comics and graphics, Geek Retreat sell some amazing hand-crafted merchandise, clothing and accessories made by talented folks around Glasgow.
There was a corner displaying art from customers, and the icing on the cake; board games. A brilliant system, all you have to do is put down a £5 deposit with your purchase of a drink or food, and you can play any of their board games for as long as you like! This includes games like Munchkin, The Walking Dead board game and even Magic: the Gathering card decks! When you’re done, you get your £5 back!
As I mentioned above, places like these can be off-putting due to cliques, which can often be unintentionally supported by the staff and owners, but the staff in Geek Retreat make you feel at home. Apart from the accent barrier (Scottish people talk funny), they were so easy to chat to! I felt comfortable and didn’t feel out of place in the slightest! This is the point I really want to enforce about Geek Retreat; everyone is welcome!
One of my favourite things about the shop is that it’s a basement. It gives a sense of security. I think if it was just a regular, walk-in area, there’d be a lot of people walking in to ridicule those playing board games or RPGs, which is unfortunately how ‘regular’ people view us. As you walk in the door, there’s a board displaying the various events they are running that week. The variety of things happening there was incredible. Warhammer RPG nights, Brony meetups, cosplay events and so much more. No matter what your interest, there’s a place for you here. Let’s all just move to Glasgow and live there. Packing my bags now.
Bye, Dublin.
Be sure to follow their page on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GeekRetreatUK
