Geek Retreat: Burton’s Grand Opening
A cafe, a community, a home.
On February 5th Jermaine Yip opened the doors to the Burton-Upon-Trent Geek Retreat location. The opening was a massive success: queues of people lined the streets to be the first to enter the store, tables were packed full, and milkshakes aplenty were being served.
I thoroughly enjoyed my time. Despite how busy it was, there still remained a very relaxed atmosphere. Glancing around the room I could see plenty of card games being played, some folk kicking back on the sofa’s to utilise the store's Nintendo Switch, plenty of cosplayers – who all looked absolutely fantastic – enjoying a milkshake and a burger. It was like sitting inside of nerd heaven.
As for merchandise, there was plenty to buy. My wallet was crying when I left, but I had quite the haul of Pokemon cards in my backpack. They sell such a variety of geeky goodies that it was honestly very hard to choose – from D&D books, to cards, to board games, to plushies – if I were any richer I’d have bought it all.
There’s also a selection of free-to-play board games to choose from, which I’m rather excited about. I’ll be bringing my not-so-nerdy friends in for lunch and a few games very soon.
Geek Retreat also offers an array of treats for us gamers to nibble on as we play our games. All of the milkshakes are themed, and they’re all rather delicious. My two favourites are Chocolate Thunder, a delectable mix of Oreos, Nutella and chocolate ice cream, and The Flash, a mix of custard, ice cream and raspberry sauce. I’ll be ordering one every time I go in, they’re just that good.
They also serve burgers, fries, jacket potatoes and hot dogs. The burgers were quite popular yesterday, and for good reason. They’re not stingy with their cheese, and that makes my heart happy.
As for confectionery, there’s a lovely little display of American candy next to the till. Quite a novelty for us in England – they don’t sell much more than Reese’s and Pop-Tarts in the supermarkets. I was excited to see they had Swedish Fish, my guilty pleasure.
What I loved most was the sense of community. There was no judgement, no harassment – this was a place where you could be unapologetically nerdy. I’ve faced my fair share of bullying for my hobbies, from people who think they’re only for kids, to the judgemental who ridicule anyone who is different. I felt safe inside of the store. My confidence soared once I settled in, and I was allowed to be 100% myself. I think that’s the most important part. Everyone deserves somewhere they are welcome, and especially with recent times tearing us apart, it’s wonderful to see people like Mr. Yip who are trying so hard to bring us all together.
They’ve made a loyal customer out of me, and I’ll be back soon to (hopefully) win some Pokemon TCG games.
If anyone wants to know more about Geek Retreat, you can do so by visiting their Facebook page.
Thank you for reading.
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