Zulu's Board Game Cafe — Restaurant in Bothell

Surprisingly I enjoyed this place. I would definitely go back to try other options.

FOOD: Pile of Po-Tay-Toes (pile of french fries, tator tots, or sweet potato fries, house seasoning, and two dipping sauce) $6: Got a pile of potatoes with Vampire Control (roasted garlic, lemon, and aioli) and Bugbear (fresh horseradish, sour cream, whole grain mustard). Who can say no to a pile of tots? Not sure what the house seasoning is but it good! The two sauces were okay, they were both pretty thick and coat the tots but i'm not sure if i'd order them again.

Dragongoat dip (roasted chili and garlic infused whipped goat cheese, smoked olive oil, aleppo chili, served with choice of seed crackers, fresh vegetables, tortilla chips, or pile of po-tay-toes) $8: This is a hummus looking dip but taste like goat cheese. Its thick and easy to spread. Would definitely order again but instead of the veggies and crackers, i'd probably get more tots!

Dragonborn burger (two smash burger patties, pepper jack cheese, fried onions, diced tomato, pickled fresno chili, chipotle BBQ, brioche bun, dipping sauce) $16: Great burger! crispy edges with great char flavor. The pickled fresno chili is probably one of the best bit! We had ordered it with tots but we got the fries by mistake and let me tell you, NEVER get the fries. They have the same seasoning as the tots but the fries were undercook and limp and really gross.

BEVERAGE: Viking Blod Mead (bottle $55 / 5 oz $14): The bottle was pretty cool looking and stuck to the theme of the restaurant. BUT the bottle was served cold and I never had cold mead before. I've had it warm and it was delicious. The mead wasnt bad but I think it would have been better if it was served heated.

RESTAURANT/INTERIOR: Very nice place. It is first and formost a game establishment. a few years ago, this was a really small "house" that had a lot of renovation and has expanded a great deal. The interior front is a game store front that you can buy paint sets/items and huge selection of board games. There are two rooms that are used for gaming but i'm not sure if there additional space in the back.

MENU: The menu is themed to fit the restaurant. I will say, I appreciate the time and effort they took to create the menu. Though I will say it doesn't help with the description. You have to reach the description to get an idea of what you're ordering.

STAFF: The staff is friendly and pretty on top of everything. The only thing I will say is that they arent 5-star customer service. The dragonborn burger was supposed to come with tots so when we mentioned it during the food drop off, the staff didnt event blink when we said it's okay and we'll just take it. I know most people would roll their eyes but usually restaurant would insist on making it right. It was more like...

I've been a part of the Zulu's Community for years. I was a customer for many years before my partner started working here, and we had been part of such a wonderful group of employees, patrons, and friends. I used to recommend Zulu's to everyone. We were here 3-5 days a week.

Starting about a year and a half ago, the owner just started firing people. At first it was people who had had some issues, but it still came out of the blue, and there hadn't been attempts to work through the issues. Every 1 to 2 months, they just call someone to a meeting and fire them. No one has had any meetings about their work status beforehand--management will say they have, but they are talking about general conversations about work place needs, usually not in private meetings, often not related to the employees work itself. There are no probationary periods. There are no work plans or discussions for "improvement." Just thinking your job is good and the next minute being fired.

Some employees haven't even been given reasons for being fired. Or they've been told "this just isn't really the kind of place you want to work anyway." Or have been told "You're a good employee" and when asked "then why are you firing me?" were met with silence.

Washington is an at-will employment state, so none of this was illegal. But the community at Zulu's has been ripped apart. So many staff used to care about taking care of customers, the store, each other. Hell, I had done free labor for them multiple times because I know it's hard to be a small business and I wanted to support the community. But the community is not there anymore. Yes, you can still go and eat a meal and play a Magic Pre-Release. But don't expect anything beyond mediocre customer service. Don't expect to find community here. Zulu's had absolutely no loyalty to any of its employees or customers. It's really sad because it used to feel like a family for so many. And now being there, so many of us just feel empty.

Good luck to the few good people still there. I hope you find a job where your bosses and coworkers actually care about you. Where you aren't anxious regularly that you could be fired for no reason. Where you are seen as a human instead of a cog in a...

Reducing rating from 5 stars to 4. Great board game cafe and local game store. However, the food and drink are very expensive for the portion sizes and quality of food. There are no food items for kids. We ordered the cheapest cheeseburger and had it made plain for our eight year old. Without the fixings, the burger was no bigger than a typical kids burger. However it cost $12! The "smash" patties are ridiculously lightweight, maybe a scant 1/4 lb before cooking. For burgers that START at $12 and charge $5 for an extra patty, this is practically a robbery. The bun and fixings are good, but the meat and cheese quality and portion is ridiculous for the cost. The meat and cheese are nothing special, and the patties are mercilessly overcooked, no moisture left in them at all. The plain cheeseburger wasn't eaten because it was inedibly dry without fixings and sauces. A plain burger should still be juicy enough to eat without having to wash it down with a drink after each bite. At $5 per patty that works out to somewhere between $15-$20/lb. I would expect high end juicy patties for that price. Not the sad, bland, and dry patties we got. The poor quality was masked by the fixings and buns in the burgers that weren't plain. But once we checked the patties and cheese, we realized that they were the same horrible quality for the price. Burgers that are $12-$20 should be excellent, NOT mediocre.

Strangely, the appetizers and sides WERE quite good and modestly priced.

TL;DR Entrees are overpriced and mediocre in both quality and portion. This is GLARINGLY true for the burgers! AVOID. Beverages are likewise overpriced, especially from the bar. Appetizers and sides are tasty and a good value.

Should you come to Zulu Games? Yes, but not to have a meal. Come to hang out and maybe play a game or two. Eat before you go, and enjoy the sides and appetizers while you are there. Save yourself some cash and stick to...