Peddlers//Parchment, a Brooklyn Escape Room — Attraction in New York

The day of the game arrived and I came there first. Mr. Beyderman, founder and owner of One Before Escape, directed me to stroll through the premises a.k.a art gallery. Paintings escorted me on both sides through the hallway to the party room where even more is the beauties hung in wait. The paintings were practically jumping out of their frames, each one eagerly telling its story of a tzaddik.

Once my friend arrived and we were all ready, Mr. Beyderman lead us into the first part of the Shpola Room, and explained to us it's story. It is based on the genealogical journey of Dr. Jeffrey Mark Paull. In his quest to discover his family tree, he found an incredibly rich history of ancestors made of leading Torah scholars, tzaddikim, and even royalty. One of the noble ancestors he found in his ancestry line is the Shpoler Zeide, who is featured in the Shpoler Room. The Shpoler Zeide was an early Chassidic master, renowned for his love of his fellow Jews. He would rush to defend them from bitter anti-semites, and stand up for them before heavenly judgment. Mr. Beyderman finished off with telling us what our objectives were in the first room of the game.

Our game began and we got cracking. The 60 minute countdown quietly appeared on a screen placed high on the wall. My friend and I took in our surroundings; ancient suitcases piled haphazardly one atop the other, a desk resting snug in the far corner, a cupboard stocked with venerable books. These items, as well as others, had been pointed out to us and we rushed to start. We scrambled to make sense on the clues and puzzles, and slowly but surely made some headway. At one point we sat stuck at a loss and begrudgingly, albeit unsurprisingly asked for a hint. The hint charmingly appeared typed out on the screen with the countdown timer. Yikes! Less than half of our allotted time was left. We redoubled our efforts and soon enough finished up the last puzzle. The door unlocked with a click. To the second room. Not to our escape as our shrinking egos were hoping for. We were ecstatic though, and sped around trying to figure what to do next. The second room felt like stepping into another dimension with antique looking items and prominent wooden furniture, combined with puzzles made of modern technology. Try hard as we could, (and with more hints, shhh!), the time ran out before we could escape. Mr. Beyderman joined us in the room and explained to us the puzzles we hadn't finished.

The style of the puzzles, although an unusual characteristic to mention, had been brewing in my mind. It really stood out as Mr. Beyderman was filling us in on what had remained unsolved. In the first escape room I had gone to, the puzzles, although mentally stimulating, were not especially creative. They were what you would expect in a mystery, such as fitting books in a bookcase to unlock a door. In the Shpoler Room, the type and style of puzzles were a refreshing splash of creativity that got our minds tingling. In fact, the entire idea of creating escape rooms around stories of tzaddikim is leading-edge in Jewish entertainment.

My friend and I walked out charged and excited and didn’t want to part ways just yet. However, with the dreary whether, chatting on a bench was not too appealing. We were pumped that One Before Escape is in the heart of a thriving Jewish community, so we had no issue finding a place to pop in for a drink or a bite. We took refuge in the Ice Cream House just a block away, enjoying the last few daylight hours. It is not very hard to guess that we plan on coming back for...

One Before Escape Room offered some of the most unique premises for their games, all related to their unique heritage. As an escape room enthusiast who has done 311 games, I loved the way this medium was used to tell an artistic and deeply personal story, something I have not seen done anywhere else. We did both rooms, and they were each very enjoyable, highly original experiences (although I vastly preferred the Rashi Room in terms of set and puzzle design). The puzzles were challenging, fair, and baked into both culture and the narrative, with the exception of a few puzzles in the Shpoler Zeide room that didn't quite mesh with the narrative. The set design for both games was excellent and made use of great old wooden furniture, as well as being deeply seeped in the story. In addition, our Game Master was incredibly kind and portioned the hints perfectly, giving us time to figure out the puzzle while making sure we wouldn't get too stuck on any one portion. In conclusion, I would highly recommend anyone interested in a unique, fun, and educational escape room try out this company. You will learn something new and have...

Loved this escape room. My family and I really enjoyed the adventure, and especially appreciated the Jewish theme. The staff was very helpful and the puzzles were very clever and ranged in difficulty. For some family members it was the first time, and they enjoyed it as well. I love that the puzzles really require teamwork and brainpower. We went on chol hamoed and it was pretty crowded, as there was a large group that came for the scavenger hunt at the same time as my group was starting. I would suggest that the different groups' starting times should be more staggered so that the store front doesn't get uncomfortably crowded on busier days. I look forward to coming again, and I hope that new rooms will be added...