Rook Room Game Lounge & Cafe

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The Rook Room Game Lounge & Cafe is your place to play in Des Moines featuring hundreds of board games, puzzles, TTRPGs, food, themed drinks, and one-of-a-kind gaming events and experiences.

In the immortal words of Paulette Parcelle as played by Jennifer Coolidge, "Oh my God, you look like the Fourth of July!...
04/07/2026

In the immortal words of Paulette Parcelle as played by Jennifer Coolidge, "Oh my God, you look like the Fourth of July! It makes me want a hot dog real bad."

The bad news: we're closed today for the holiday. The good news: you can channel your inner Paulette tomorrow and demolish a hot dog or two when the Rook Room Game Lounge & Cafe is back open for regular hours. Heck, you can even wash it down with our red, white, and blue-tastic BombPop-Tail, only available for a limited time.

Stay safe out there today, and make plans to join us soon for all of your gaming and tube-shaped-meat needs. 🌭

03/07/2026

Did you know our newly-added BombPop-Tail special non-alcoholic beverage comes with its own fireworks display? Each drink is topped with a scoop of Blue Razz Pop Rocks that explode when they hit the liquid. Perfect for a little 4th of July fun at your table! Don’t worry, our staff makes sure these are safe to drink before they get to you - no special safety goggles required. And for the adults in the room, you can spike it if you’d like. But this special won’t be around long so come and get it while you can only at the Rook Room Game Lounge & Cafe! 💥

Expand that friend group while learning and playing new games every week right here at the Rook Room Game Lounge & Cafe ...
02/07/2026

Expand that friend group while learning and playing new games every week right here at the Rook Room Game Lounge & Cafe with our Meet & Play Social Game Nights. Stop in, meet new people, and learn some new games with our amazing Rook Room staff. Every Thursday from 4 PM to 7 PM. And if you've been looking for a great excuse to join, now's the time – with our Summer Free Play Days, there's no PlayPass fee, and it's completely free to come on in and enjoy all night long. See you down here!

Letting y'all know we'll be closed for the holiday on Saturday, July 4th. Enjoy those grillouts and fireworks! We'll be ...
02/07/2026

Letting y'all know we'll be closed for the holiday on Saturday, July 4th. Enjoy those grillouts and fireworks! We'll be open regular hours all other days this weekend, so when you need a refreshing relax in the AC (and maybe a delicious hot dog or two), stop on in and see us!

We also have a great view of the Iowa Cubs fireworks, so stay late on Friday, July 3rd, and catch the show along with us.

Stay safe out there, and we'll see you soon! 🎆

Pride Month might be over, but as we like to say, we Play with Pride all year at the Rook Room! Including at our twice-m...
01/07/2026

Pride Month might be over, but as we like to say, we Play with Pride all year at the Rook Room! Including at our twice-monthly Prism Tabletop Club LGBTQ+ Game Night in collaboration with Capital City Pride. Your next chance to build friendships and community while playing games is coming up tonight – Wednesday, July 1st! Drop by at any time and let's Play with Pride at the Rook Room Game Lounge & Cafe.

P.S. If you didn't see our earlier post, our Summer Free Play Days Event means there's no PlayPass tonight – it's completely free to join and play all night!

Introducing Summer Free Play Days – running today, July 1, through August 31! Great news: this summer, we’re going PlayP...
01/07/2026

Introducing Summer Free Play Days – running today, July 1, through August 31! Great news: this summer, we’re going PlayPass-free Sunday through Thursday. That means no PlayPass fee five days a week – just walk in, grab a game off our wall, and play, eat, and drink. No time limits, no food or drink minimums, no cover. PlayPass will still apply Friday and Saturday after 4 PM.

Why the change? Accessibility is core to who we are. We want Rook Room Game Lounge & Cafe to be a true third space – for players, students, remote workers, clubs, organizations, and anyone looking for a place to gather, work, plan, or just hang out – without a fee getting in the way, especially during the summer when people have more time to get out and connect.

Maintaining our game library – which is what our PlayPass helps contribute to – isn’t cheap. Our games get well used and often need to be repaired or replaced (that's a good thing!). But taking on this cost for the summer is our investment in you and in this community.

Happy Summer Free Play Days, and we hope you’ll come out, fill up the tables, and make this space yours – as we built it to be. See you at the table!

EXCITING UPDATES to our TCG Tuesdays weekly event! Introducing Magic: The Gathering Casual Commander play PLUS you now g...
30/06/2026

EXCITING UPDATES to our TCG Tuesdays weekly event! Introducing Magic: The Gathering Casual Commander play PLUS you now get a free Magic booster pack with every purchase of our event-exclusive, themed Black Lotus drink (non-alcoholic, but can be made alcoholic). This event is free, all ages, and there is no PlayPass fee to come in and hang out on Tuesdays. So, whether you play MTG, Pokemon, Lorcana, or any other TCG, grab your decks and stop in to play, eat, drink, and banish boring – all night here at the Rook Room Game Lounge & Cafe!

This event is connected to the official MTG Companion app, so if you already have an account, we can get you checked in when you arrive. Don't have an account? No problem. You can still join in the fun.

We'll also have some additional giveaways tonight, so if you haven't been to a TCG Tuesday yet, tonight's the night!

"I'm sorry, [insert your name here]. I'm afraid I can't let you have a boring Monday night – you'd better head over to t...
29/06/2026

"I'm sorry, [insert your name here]. I'm afraid I can't let you have a boring Monday night – you'd better head over to the Rook Room Game Lounge & Cafe for Geek Who Drink Pub Quiz Trivia Night starting at 7 PM." Pretty sure that's how the quote goes from 2001: A Space Odyssey. If not, it's what it should be!

Join us tonight for a round on all of your favorite talking robots – one of 7 amazingly themed rounds of trivia to get your brain juices flowing. Grab your smartest friends and pop in from 7 PM to 9 PM for an evening filled with trivia, prizes, food, drinks, and your besties. It's free to play, so what are you waiting for? Banish your boring Monday and get those brainy booties down here!

Here's what's coming up this week at the Rook Room Game Lounge & Cafe! Note that we'll be closed on Saturday for the 4th...
29/06/2026

Here's what's coming up this week at the Rook Room Game Lounge & Cafe! Note that we'll be closed on Saturday for the 4th of July holiday. Here are some highlights to come and cool off with:

⚔ TCG Tuesday now featuring Casual Commander thanks to our official partnership with Wizards of the Coast. Snag a pack of Magic cards (while supplies last) with the purchase of one of our exclusive TCG Tuesday drinks.

🏳️‍🌈 Prism Tabletop Club LGBTQ+ Game Night in partnership with Capital City Pride. Join us and play with Pride!

👯‍♂️ Meet & Play Social Game Night. Your chance to meet up, make some new friends, and play some games guided by our staff.

It's gonna be a scorcher out there, so come in and enjoy our chilly air conditioning, refreshing drinks, and delicious bites. See you down here!

27/06/2026

Thank you, for the incredible night of pride, hope, celebration, reflection, and love at the gala. What a wonderful event filled with so many strong, dedicated people doing amazing work in ways big and small. We are beyond honored to be recognized for our small part in that as the Rook Room Game Lounge & Cafe seeks to create a welcoming, accepting, community-oriented third place for our friends and neighbors. There are so many who deserve to be recognized and we’re very thankful to accept this on behalf of everyone working hard to build community for LGBTQ+ folks and other marginalized people in Des Moines.

This team, along with our incredible staff, works hard to build that community every single day. Thank you to oneiowa and everyone who supports us in this in so many ways. We’re proud, we’re Prideful, and we’re dedicated to making our city - and Iowa as a whole - a welcoming, supportive place for all. ❤️🧡💛💚💙💜🩷🩵🤍🖤🤎

Address

IA

Opening Hours

Monday 16:00 - 22:00
Tuesday 16:00 - 22:00
Wednesday 16:00 - 22:00
Thursday 16:00 - 22:00
Friday 08:00 - 22:00
Saturday 08:00 - 22:00
Sunday 08:00 - 22:00

Telephone

+15152164191

Website

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