Norita Cafe and Board Games – Sydney CBD, NSW
Board games + desserts + BFFs = I AM SO IN!
It was Simon‘s Birthday and he herded a group of food bloggers to celebrate this special occasion at Wagaya for dinner then chillax later at a cafe where you can drink, have desserts and play board games! Be very afraid, my inner-geekiness is going to spill all over this post (Don’t judge me…). And I am not alone… Helen (GrabYourFork) is my board games partner in crime. We play heaps of lexulous on facebook (similar to Scrabbles) running in the background while writing blog post late at night. But the game that really set both of us off has to be the Pictionary.
Norita Cafe and Board Games is the place where anyone can relive their childhood playing all different kinds of board games. It is hidden on the second level on Liverpool Street a stone throw away from 3 Wise Monkeys bar. We follow a fleet of stairs and soon found ourselves in a cosy cafe packed with groups of youngsters hanging around, playing board games with the sudden loud roar of laughter. We are soon seated at the table right next to the tall bookshelves which is neatly stacked with nothing but all different kinds of board games that you could imagine. Monopoly, Scrabbles, Go, Pictionary, Cluedo, Taboo, Chess, Jenga… you name it, is all there.
Two different menus are presented to us, one is the food menu and the other one of course, is the board games menu. On the food menu, it is mainly snack food, drinks, cakes and desserts. Since we have already had our dinner at Wagaya, so we decided to go with some drinks and few cakes to share. And the board games menu, it has an extensive list of games to choose from, range $1 to $2 per game per person. It is rather difficult to find a game that can be played by 9 people spread over two tables. Eventually we split into two groups, with Simon, Lex, Minh, Suze and Richard settled on Taboo, a game I am not familiar with, but me and Helen both faces suddenly lit up and suggested to Yas and Karen – It’s Pictionary time!
Oh boy, aren’t we the loudest in the cafe!?
Helen is laughing so hard with teary eyes and everyone is pretty much holding their stomachs, squirming and collapsing on the couch laughing our asses off! I am just glad that we didn’t knock down any food and drinks on the table that we’ve ordered.
From time to time, we have to take a break from the game and take a sip of our drinks or a nibble on the cakes to calm ourselves down and gather our souls back. I ordered the cookies and cream thick shake that comes with a Oreo cookie inside, Helen goes for the green tea thick shake, but the most interesting drink is Simon’s Misugaru milkshake, a traditional Korean drink which the waitress is having difficulty to describe what it taste like and even Simon had to google it on his phone and soon we found out it is actually made from roasted rice powder. It has a sweet malt flavour on first sip but soon turns into an intense smokiness that almost taste like charcoal. It is hard to describe the flavour, but Karen’s best description of the misugaru is – burned popcorns that you usually found at the bottom of the bowl.
I also ordered a blueberries cheesecake to share while Simon goes for the green tea and black sesame ice cream with azuki bean paste oh wafer cup, which is the tasty and safe option to go for when you can’t decide what to order. Lex’s dessert looks most impressive among them all, with banana slices on a bed of crunchy golden cornflakes, and tapioca pearls at the bottom I believe. The twin tower of chocolate wafer fingers are mockery leaning against a huge scoop of vanilla ice cream.
The food at Norita cafe is probably not something to rave about, but somehow we still managed to stay in the cafe and having a great time playing board games until its closing time. If Lawrence Leung can bring the ‘cool’ back to Rubik’s Cube, then being seen playing 80′s board games at Norita cafe might not be so bad after all.
Norita Cafe and Board Games Level 2, 77 Liverpool Street Sydney NSW 2000 Phone (02) 9267 3753 Opening hours: Mon to Thu 11am - Midnight Fri to Sat 11am - 2am
A Table For Two (ATFT) is Billy Law's food blog that features best eats in Sydney and around the world with drool-worthy food photography to salivate your appetite. I also throw in a smidgen of my food and travel photography for good measure. Billy Law also happened to be a contestant on MasterChef Australia 2011. 
Oh, a friend’s told me about this place! Nothing like some good clean fun and laughter =)
.-= mademoiselle délicieuse´s last blog ..It’s all about the feet, darling! =-.
Hehe I never knew I could laugh so hard at Pictionary! I’m up for Game 2 if you ever are
.-= Karen´s last blog ..Afternoon Tea: Sir Stamford, Circular Quay =-.
lol. Good times, and I’m so glad none of our *ahem* sketches made it into the post! You’ve also reminded me I need to start another game of Lexulous with you. Prepare to be whipped!
.-= Helen (grabyourfork)´s last blog ..Behind-the-scenes: Food photography shoot for Mad Mex =-.
was there any twister? you guys certainly hang out a lot. must be like a blogging paparazzi when all of you walk into a restaurant or cafe together with SLRs poised and ready to shoot anything that’s edible
.-= Simon Food Favourites´s last blog ..Plan B: Most blogged Wagyu Beef Burger in Sydney (21 Dec 2009) =-.
They have Risk! I think you’ll need longer than 2am to finish that dice-roll marathon.
I get so anxious with food around my board games, I lose focus and forget to win
.-= Mr Taste @ tastedbytwo´s last blog ..Recipe: Gingerbread Christmas Tree =-.
What a nostalgic place. Sounds like a lot of fun! Thanks for the post.
Sounds like great fun – pictionary is my favourite!!
Oh mann board games are da bombb!!
.-= FFichiban´s last blog ..Sydney Foodblogger Xmas Party ^^! – Hyde Park, Sydney =-.
Though I figured this would be a fun way to finish up a birthday outing I didn’t realise that it would be as fun as it was!
Great to have you there to share in the fun (and noise levels!)
I hadn’t heard of Norita before – and I love Pictionary too! Those desserts sure look delish…and here I am at work with no sweets…
.-= Leanne´s last blog ..Gothic Lolita clothing; Algonquins and Ann Vanilla; Alamode Markets; Plastikhaar wig =-.
LOL for one moment… I thought you were going to put up *that* photo of me and suze!
Ahh, good times. That was an awesome night
.-= Minh´s last blog ..Ripples, Milsons Point =-.
Yay I’m a sucker for board games! And green tea shakes! Not sure if I like the sound of a shake that tastes like burnt popcorn though…
.-= Steph´s last blog ..Gingerbread Igloo – Daring Bakers Dec 2009 =-.
wow not bad, i din know there’s board games cafe in Sydney too! i don’t trust the food serve at such cafes, so just board games and drinks
.-= ladyironchef´s last blog ..Twelve days in Sydney (Part 4): Once upon a Blue Mountain =-.
Helen drew a picture of Penis. I’ve got a proof. ;p
.-= Yas @ hungry.digital.elf´s last blog ..Quick visit to Neo Tokyo. =-.
What a great concept! I love boardgames!
oh I know a lot of people who would LOVE that place!
Possible venue for Sydney’s Geek Together Gatherings?