Ready for a fun game night with all your friends? Let us help with that.
The Rook Room is the Des Moines area’s most exciting pop-up that’s all about games. Whether you want to learn something new, be part of a tournament, or play-test the latest up-and-comer, we have you covered.
Join us Monday, May 24th as The Rook Room celebrates National Scavenger Hunt Day with Treasure Quest – a fun, free, magical scavenger hunt taking place across the realm (Des Moines metro) with tons of awesome prizes.
Updated: May 2021
Hello, friends! Things are looking better and we’re getting ready to play again.
While COVID-19 is still very much a concern, local, state, and national numbers for cases, hospitalizations, and deaths appear to be headed in the right direction.
So do the numbers for people who are completely vaccinated. That includes us! All Rook Room employees have been fully vaccinated and are past the two-week mark since our last vaccine appointment.
This week the CDC updated its guidance surrounding what kind of activities are safe for both fully vaccinated and unvaccinated individuals. We have and will continue to monitor all federal and state health agency news and recommendations and react accordingly.
Given the numbers as well as the new guidance from the CDC, we are once again planning for in-person events! We can’t wait to see all your wonderful faces again.
For now, events will have limited capacity and we will still be taking a number of extra steps to ensure the safety of our guests and staff including mandatory masks when not seated at a table, frequent cleaning of all surfaces, game cleaning, distancing, and more. We will continue to evaluate these measures and change them as the situation changes.
That said, get ready for all of your favorite events including Puzzlepalooza, Play Date, our How the Heck series, Word Nerds, and more (including some brand new events) starting in June. Visit our website, follow us on social media, and sign up for our newsletter to make sure you don’t miss a thing!
Game on and we can’t wait to see you! 💜
– Annelise and Tony
That’s a great question! The simple answer is they’re events with lots of thrilling games, drink specials, tournaments and much more that can happen at any number of exciting locations.
Imagine game night at your friend’s house, but you don’t have to worry about tidying up, making the snacks, stocking the fridge, or cleaning up afterward. Plus, no need to go buy expensive games because they’re all in our game library. All the fun and none of the stress!
While there are other places you could play games, what makes The Rook Room special is our mission to provide a uniquely memorable experience through a variety of one-of-a-kind touches you won’t find anywhere else.
Whether you’re into classic games from your childhood, hardcore strategy, puzzles, word games, role-playing games, card games, or anything else, we have an event for you. We do it all.
Here’s a quick look at what you can expect…
These pop-up board game events focus on specific games or genres. We choose games from our library and build an event around them.
From exclusive drinks to special snacks, discounts, prizes, merch, decor, and more, these events are one-of-a-kind that you won’t find anywhere else.
They’re more than an event, they’re an experience that we want to make sure you won’t forget!
We have hundreds of games and we want YOU to play them. We bring our entire library, and you bring your friends (or come ready to make new ones).
At our open gaming pop-ups, you can come and relax for a few hours, enjoy some drink specials, and play until your heart’s content!
Games can be complicated. Have you ever seen a 20-page rulebook when you open a box? We have. And The Rook Room’s How the Heck learn-to-play series is here to help.
Our game experts do the learning for you and break it down during our exciting “class” sessions. It’s kind of like school…but more fun with bonus drinks, snacks, prizes, and more.
Think you’ve got what it takes to be crowned the champ in your favorite game. Let’s see with an exciting Rook Room gaming tournament!
From board games to cards, role-playing, or even jigsaw puzzles, we host tournaments of all styles to find out who is the best in Des Moines.
Love Catan? We also work with the international Catan organization to host tournaments across Iowa to find the cream of the crop and send them to the national stage!
While we’re always brainstorming the next amazing event to tickle your fancy, some of our most popular event ideas have come from our wonderful fans.
If you’re passionate about a particular game or have an idea you think people will love, let us know! We’d love to work with you to make it happen.
What do you think of our idea? We’d love to get your feedback so we can build a board game bar you’ll love to come to again and again.
If you’re strapped for time, we have a convenient 1-minute (or less) survey we’d like you to take. It’s super quick and easy, we promise.
If you’re as pumped about this as we are and would like to provide some more detailed feedback, we have a longer survey you can take. Don’t worry, it still won’t take that long.
(Still Very Quick) Longer Survey
Oh, and one more thing. We’d love if you could share with your friends who might be interested.