Apotheosis Comics & Lounge — Local services in St. Louis

I play Magic (EDH) with a group every Wednesday. We started this scheduled game night at Moonbase Market, probably the best game shop I have ever frequented. Unfortunately they closed so we have been looking for a place to play to fill the void. We decided to give Apotheosis a try hearing they opened the upstairs for gaming. What we found was an "art gallery" with some tables and chairs in a pretty cramped space. It was a space we could game in but we also had to deal with random people poking in to look at stuff on the wall. But the space was usable and the drink selection downstairs was decent.

Skip to last night. We get there and are told there is a $50 per table surcharge (per hour which believe) which is reduced by group purchases. We are told this in a very uncomfortable way where the guy kept saying, we aren't strict on it, but it's $50 and one person could pay for the whole group, etc. I understand that a business needs to make money, but knowing some of my group can't cover surcharges and those of us that do buy stuff usually get 2-3 drinks each, I decided to see if the group wanted to go to Game Nite (our other game store) instead. As I was messaging the group, the guy working asked if we were from Moonbase. I said yes and he goes on to explain that not charging for people hanging out is why they closed. Having talked to the owner at length many times and having talked to the bar owners there many times, I know this is incorrect.

The disrespectful tone he used towards our beloved Moonbase, talking down to us treating us like freeloaders, and expecting $50 for a non private room where we are guaranteed to be interrupted multiple times by people looking at non-gaming/non-nerd related art on the walls all pushed us away. We are a group of people who play Magic. This shop can't figure out what it wants to be. We have been told they want people playing games, but the space they set aside for that they decide to also use for coffee shop art and tack on rental fees while deciding they can't be bothered to carry magic singles or even become Wizards affiliated to run tournaments. When I asked about that, he said if I, a customer, looked up all the information on how to proceed and gave it to him, he'd consider it.

TL:DR, the shop can't be bothered to cater to groups they claim to want using their space, over charges for minimal amenities, tries to double dip in paid playing space by hanging art and calling it a gallery, and at least one worker (owner?) talks down to his potential customers while badmouthing other game stores (even...

Like many people, I also had issues with customer service, as well as getting an update on the status of my order.

I placed an order, and after a week and a half of no movement, I decided to contact the shop to see what was going on. I reached out through their contact form on the website, as well as by email multiple times, but did not receive a response. I then decided to contact them via Instagram before calling my credit card company to dispute the charge due to undelivered goods.

Someone finally answered me and asked if I was an “eBayer,” which I found odd because I had already explained who I was and provided an order number. After re-explaining my situation, I was told he would check with his staff to see what was going on with my order and would ship it that day, no matter the cost.

Did he ship it? Of course not. I followed up with him two days later, and he responded, “Didn’t I message you on eBay about this?”

At that point, I realized I was not getting the book. I told him that if it wasn’t sent before the weekend, I would file a complaint with my credit card company. Two days later, after contacting him again and informing him that I had reached out to my credit card company, I immediately received an email saying my order was canceled.

Do not waste your time buying online from this shop. It is not worth the stress. I can’t speak to buying from the actual store location, but the owner is clearly not capable of handling online orders and should consider shutting down...

Wow! I am and have been a comic geek / nerd for many, many years and one of my favorite things to do is seek out comic book stores when visiting a new town. I was amazed when I walked into Apotheosis! Martin and his team are friendlier and more knowledgeable than ANY OTHERS I have found ,in any other comic store I have visited in the United States …. and that is about 50 stores in about 25 states! Oh the store is not huge, it actually is rather small, but they have a nice selection of new comic books and compilations and a limited selection of back issues. However a nice feature is you can sit and enjoy an adult beverage while pursuing books. Martin also did mention he is opening a gaming area upstairs in the near future! The nicest part of the visit was very personable nature of the entire staff as I left the store after about an hour feeling as if I had made three...