Board Game Restaurant Opening Friday In Ardmore

ARDMORE, PA — The Main Line's ever-growing food scene is set to welcome a newcomer with a twist Friday.

Twenty One Pips Game Room and Kitchen will open its doors Friday, offering dining and board game fun.

Located in the heart of Ardmore at 24 Cricket Ave., the new dining-board game concept will feature locally sourced sharable menu items, pub-style entrées, a curated wine, beer, and whiskey program, seasonal craft cocktails, and of course board games.

The enormous Twenty One Pips game library will feature more than 600 games.

Guests will be met by full-time gametenders who will help them explore games based on themes and interests ranging from strategy-based like Catan, party games like Blank Slate, or family-friendly like Dixit – and of course, the entire catalog of nostalgic classics like Guess Who, Trivial Pursuit, Yahtzee and Jenga.

Library passes, which are $5 for two hours, grants access to all games.

Twenty One Pips will be open from 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 11:30 a.m. to midnight Fridays, 11 a.m. to midnight Saturdays, and 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sundays.

Additionally, the new spot will offer grab-and-go coffee and pastries will be available from 7 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturdays, and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sundays.

The beverage program will feature a signature blend of locally roasted coffee created by Philadelphia’s own Herman’s Coffee.

Twenty One Pips features 5,000 square feet of space, with seating for about 170 people.

It also has a mezzanine for private dining.

Inside the new concept, guests will find unique and intricate black and white hand-drawn murals incorporating iconic game-themed imagery like Pac-Man Ghosts and Monopoly pieces mingled with game phrases, words, and quotes done by artist Natalie Hope McDonald.

There also are two vintage skeeball machines, a 3-D Atari Pong Table, and a retro arcade video game library for up to four players.

The name is fitting to the concept as Twenty One Pips refers to the number of dots, which are called pips, on a six-sided die.

Twenty One Pips is the brainchild of the same people who launched Thirst Dice, Philadelphia's first dining-board game concept.

"We are excited to join the Main Line community and help guests explore how easy and enjoyable it can be to connect while playing games and sharing a great meal," Matt Hendricks, owner of Twenty One Pips, said. "Twenty One Pips is a neighborhood spot to meet friends after work, enjoy cocktails, or entertain your family while sipping on a great glass of wine and nibbling on locally sourced cheese and charcuterie – what could be better?"

Menu items include half smoked and roasted Cornish chicken, cheese french fries with crab and Old Bay sauce, macaroni and cheese, eggplant fritters, various flatbread pizzas, and a burger.

Kids can much on chicken tenders, kids' sized burgers, and a kid's cheese pizza.

For the sweeter side of things, look for cast iron brookies and an espresso semifreddo.

And if you're looking to have a drink while gaming, cocktails include the Professor Plum, made with gin, lemon, butterfly pea tea syrup, plum sake, and elderflower tonic; the Game Changer with cucumber-infused tequila, mezcal, jalapeño agave, orange liqueur, lime, and bitters, and the Carrie the Team with citron vodka, cranberry liqueur, mandarin orange liqueur and lime.

These are in addition to wines, whiskeys, and local craft beers from purveyors such as Hatfield nano-brewery Imprint Beer Co. and Lansdale distillery Boardroom Spirits.

Learn more about Twenty One Pips here.