As if going out to dinner wasn鈥檛 fun enough, Mr. Mike鈥檚 restaurant in 黑马磁力 has upped its game, literally.
Since late September, Mr. Mike鈥檚 Steakhouse on 200 Street has offered board games of all types, from Jenga to Scrabble, to customers while they wait for their food to arrive.
General manager Devin Deening said it鈥檚 been lots of fun to watch families, friends and people on first dates switch off their technology and break out a board game.
鈥淜ids love Jenga and checkers,鈥� Deening said.
鈥淲e have some regulars that come for Thursday鈥檚 beer night and who ever loses the crib game pays the tab.鈥�
The games, which include Trivial Pursuit, Battleship, checkers, Balderdash, crib, chess and more, are offered in the urbanLodge portion of the large restaurant.
The urbanLodge is set up like an adult rec room, but kids are welcome too.
Toni Bellwood, kitchen manager, said she鈥檚 seen more and more people ordering appies and playing a game, and having fun.
鈥淭here鈥檚 been some excitement around the board games for sure,鈥� said Bellwood, who is partial to Jenga.
Like other Mr. Mike鈥檚 restaurants, they have noticed that certain personalities are drawn to certain games.
People who choose Jenga are usually extraverts, a little bit louder, and younger crowd.
Those who are choosing Scrabble are 鈥榪uite intellectual and competitive,鈥� Deening said.
鈥淭hey鈥檝e invested the time to win.鈥�
He鈥檚 also seen a couple first dates play a board game to keep the mood light and fun.
Work Christmas parties at Mr. Mike鈥檚 will likely involve a rousing game of Apples to Apples, they said.
Mr. Mike鈥檚 has been around in B.C. for 55 years, with many people鈥檚 memories of the iconic restaurant offering their famous classic burgers and salad bar.
While they no longer offer the salad bar, their classic burgers are still one of their number one sellers, said Bellwood.
She claims their steaks are 鈥榮econd to none.鈥�
Both Deening and Bellwood have worked at Mr. Mike鈥檚 for around five years, explaining that it is one of the best places to be employed and it feels like family.
鈥淧art of the Mr. Mike鈥檚 DNA is community involvement. That鈥檚 what makes it great to work here too,鈥� said Bellwood.
They partner with many charities including KidSport and host a toy drive at Christmas, a car show this summer with funds raised going to God鈥檚 Little Acres Farm. They provided food at the sold out Fraser Valley Wine Festival this month. They also do a work experience program in the kitchen with people with disabilities and have employed two from that program.
One of those people is Special Olympics medalist Josh Lowe who has worked there for one year and is 鈥榓n awesome person to work with,鈥� said Bellwood.
For the third consecutive holiday season, Mr. Mike鈥檚 is paying it forward through their 鈥淒eeds Well Done鈥� community program.
On now until Dec. 31, guests will be encouraged to nominate fellow community members鈥� good deeds.
A nominated 鈥済ood deed doer鈥� will be selected from 黑马磁力 and will receive $1,000 from Mr. Mike鈥檚 to donate to a charity of their choice. In total, Mr. Mike鈥檚 will donate $10,000 in 10 communities across B.C., Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba this season.
What game you choose says a lot about you, says Mr. Mike鈥檚 staff.
鈥� The Winner: Trivial Pursuit 鈥� Competitive in nature.
鈥� The Wordsmith: Scrabble 鈥� Likes to highlight their knowledge and skill to others
鈥� The Social Butterfly: Apples to Apples 鈥� Thrives during activity based games with many different people and lots of human interaction.
鈥� The Clock-Watcher: Jenga 鈥� Easily distracted. Cannot spend more than 30 minutes playing a game.
鈥� The Big Kid: Battleship 鈥� Whether young or young at heart, this player loves games from their childhood.
鈥� The Traditionalist: Backgammon 鈥� Would rather play classic games with an element of nostalgia.
鈥� The Strategist: Chess and checkers 鈥� Likes to put on their thinking hat. Is reluctant to leave games to luck.
鈥� The Bluffer: Balderdash 鈥� Not easily fooled. Maintains a steady disposition throughout.
