Loading Bar — Restaurant in London

I'm so torn by Loading Bar. I was a huge fan when they were in Soho and remained pretty loyal even now when they are less conveniently located in Stoke Newington.

I love the concept. I love board games, I love gaming. I don't even mind the prices - the drinks are definitely on the pricier side but when you consider the gaming is thrown in for free, it's actually a good deal.

However, I think Loading Bar are just missing a few key things =/

The main issue for me is with bookings. I've booked a table on three separate occasions. Each and every time we've been assigned a table with capacity for about half the number of people we've booked for. "Sure, we'll book you a table for 10 people". Arrive and you've got a table that barely fits 4 people around it, and only has two wonky stalls.

I had my birthday party here at the beginning of September. I booked for 20 of us. I booked for 20 of us in JULY. Seriously, like 2 1/2 months notice. I had specifically booked the rear area of the downstairs. I even pre-booked 20 welcome shots for my party guests. Loading knew it was for a party, knew we had at least 20 coming, knew I had booked it with them for months in advance. But they gave us 2 very tiny tables, in the middle of the downstairs, with capacity for barely 8 people.

Luckily, knowing they were likely to do this, we had arrived early and managed to nab the area we had intended. All seemed well. The woman from loading bar came down, was super friendly, saw we had moved, was fine with it, was really lovely. At then, at 5:50 came to tell us that the table by the wii in the section we had claimed was actually booked for 6pm. It's like, seriously??? you couldn't tell us this like 2 hours ago??? before we set up here and started playing games?? Not to mention that I had booked this area 2 1/2 months ago????

In all fairness, she did put up a new table that we all set up around. So it was pretty fine and we did have an enjoyable night in the end. Just a lot of stress that we shouldn't have had to deal with.

In the end, we had about 25 of us, all drinking and gaming heavily. Dealing with Loading bar has left a bit of a sour taste in my mouth though.

I do wish James and the loading bar guys all the best. I really want it to work out for them.

Another point is that the board games are in desperate need of some TLC. There are sooo many missing pieces. Obviously board games in a bar with drinking is always a little risky. but there are some really easy measures that they could take to mitigate this risk. Like putting the pieces in grip seal bags, so that the pieces aren't loose in the box. And sleeving up he cards in the games that have them. Sure it takes a little effort, but you can get 100 sleeves for £1.59 for ebay - find a few volunteers, give them a few drinks and you could have the games tidied up and protected in one afternoons work. Also, the lack of coasters is mindboggling. You can get packs of thousands of cardboard bar coasters for a couple of quid at any wholesaler. Or your drinks suppliers will usually give them to you for free. Zip bags, Sleeves and coasters, really wouldn't cost a lot but really would help people look after the games. (james, if you read this, i'm seriously up for getting together some of my mates for an afternoon to sort out your board games and give them the TLC they need. You supply the bits and a few drinks, I'll supply...

Bolstered by regular events (think Overwatch League and Prepare to Try of Dark Souls fame), the mind boggles at how this place has grown since I first visited 3 years ago.

A niche gaming bar no longer, instead we have a gamer's haven heaving with regulars every Friday and Saturday night (I can only vouch for these two as I have not visited on other days recently). Granted, all this success does come at a price and you should probably turn up early to avoid disappointment and reserve a place to sit and play.

Nevertheless, the cocktail menu remains excellent and there is a serviceable selection of beers both on tap and more crafty bottled brews available in the fridge. If you are feeling peckish however, I believe the place still allows you to bring your own food in and there are plenty of places to try nearby (especially of the kebabish variety).

Given this place's popularity a lot of the board and card games available are quite well-used and there is no guarantee that you will have the full complement of pieces in a box. However, this can easily be remedied with a piece of paper and a pencil to make your own tokens if required.

Having recently returned from a trip to Austin, Texas in the good old US of A I managed to sample the offerings of the board gaming scene across the pond. While Scenario does not (yet?) offer custom-made gaming tables, immaculately kept board games, and table service, it does what it does do well and is definitely...

My and my mates switched recently from Meltdown to Loading and it's becoming the bar of choice for our gaming needs. Although it's not an esports bar, and big part of it is dedicated to board games, so meltdown is still the goto place for tournaments, however it's superior in other areas, including: you can booking a table, this is a great feature, and you are guaranteed get seats and table big enough for all the hardware. The is a very helpfull dedicated staff member in the downstairs area who tailores to all your gaming needs. The bar staff are more experienced, very friendly and helpful. The low lighting and downstairs bit is very helpful in enyoing gaming as it's never too bright for your screen. The main, and possible dealbreaker for some might be the wifi. It's good, decent speed however quite often the ping goes dead and you get disconnection from games brieflt, which is a real shame for a gaming bar without QoS and proper firewall to prioritise games ports. All in all a good place to chill,...