Victory Point Cafe — Restaurant in Berkeley

A fun and surprisingly chilled out place (4/5 green stars) I was a little hesitant to come here to be honest. I imagined us spending the afternoon being chastised by uptight staff members for breaking rules that we didn’t know about. Or being looked down on by our over-achieving neighbors for our lack of prowess in playing board games. Neither of these fears was realized. We stayed up staying there for something like 6 hours (!), sustaining ourselves on a wide variety of coffee drinks, beer, pastries, kettle corn, pretzels, and wasabi snack bowls. The $5 per person charge doesn’t seem like such a big deal considering that we had fun discovering so many new games. Favorites were a magnetic tabletop “football” game called Klask, a strategy game called Sheriff of Nottingham that involves a lot of bluffing, and a very simple but hilarious card game called Spot It!

I’m also giving them 4/5 “green stars” for social and environmental impact, based on these reasons: • Trying out different board games at VP is a great way of pre-vetting games before purchasing. That way, you can avoid buying a game that you end up only playing twice. (Or never buy and only play at VP!) • I was surprised by the quality of most of the food offered – they’ve generally gone with good suppliers. • For example: Clover milk, Guittard chocolate, and Numi tea. • Good selection of local craft beer and wine (with pretty sustainable choices like Sierra beer and Donati wine). • Their coffee supplier is Artis. When I reviewed Artis a couple of years ago I wasn’t convinced that they had much interest in sustainability. Perhaps they have improved a bit - they do now sell some certified (fair trade, organic) coffee. • Waste minimization: all food and drinks were served in ceramic / glass. • Also, I like that a server came around before closing and offered their remaining pastries for $1 each : ) • I don’t remember details on everything (e.g., snack bowls) – I’ll have to go back for more research! Interested in writing green star reviews? If...

Title: Disappointing Experience with Coffee Quality

Rating: ⭐

I've been a regular customer at for quite some time now, and it's disheartening to have my once-positive perception of the establishment tarnished by a recent experience. The main issue revolves around the quality of the coffee, which has always been a highlight for me until now.

The barista responsible for preparing my coffee seemed inexperienced and lacked the necessary skills to make a simple cup. My usual order, which I've enjoyed in the past, was drowned in an excessive amount of foam. It was almost as if I had ordered a cappuccino instead of my usual choice. This not only altered the taste of the coffee but also left me questioning the competency of the staff.

I approached the counter to express my dissatisfaction, hoping for a solution or perhaps a remake of my drink. Unfortunately, the response I received was lackluster, and it seemed as though my concern was not taken seriously. The barista showed little interest in addressing the issue and offered no apology for the oversight.

While I have enjoyed the atmosphere and other aspects of Marcos Scott de Carvalho in the past, this recent experience has left a sour taste in my mouth—quite literally. It's disappointing to see a decline in the attention to detail and customer service that I once valued. I hope that the management takes note of these concerns and takes steps to ensure that the quality of the coffee and customer satisfaction are prioritized moving forward.

Sincerely, Marcos...

Went there with my dad and son over Winter break. We went on a Friday afternoon/evening. We went for the gaming experience first and the cafe experience second. I was very surprised when we got there how crowded it was with just cafe go'ers. We had to wait about 20 minutes for a table to open up that would fit the three of us. I don't know if that's typical. However they are not far from Cal so I would I imagine they get a lot of campus traffic when school is in session.

The game selection was outstanding. Lots of different sections with different kinds of games. Party games, puzzle games, strategy games, you name it. Really enjoyed that. If you want access to the game library it's $8/person. If you're just there for the cafe you don't have to pay the library fee. Love all the decor as well. It all tied well into the gaming theme.

Most of the staff was super friendly. However at one point I was trying to point out an issue in the bathroom and tried to get a couple of the staff members attention from the end of the galley. They looked up from their phones but didn't walk down to the end of the galley to hear me. I had to walk all the way around to the register to really get them to pay attention. That was mildly disappointing in terms of the quality of their service. Other than that everyone else I interacted with was terrific.

Good menu with decent selection and variety. Tried two of the pizzas and a sandwich. Everything tasted very good. Would have liked to have seen a few more...