Geek Retreat café opens as a gaming hub in Newport

Geek Retreat – a café with a range of video games, board games, card games – opened on Commercial Street, near the Westgate Hotel, on Saturday.

“It’s primarily a tabletop gaming café,” said owner Liam Powell. “We provide a space for people to hang out with their friends and play games and make new friends too.

“We have reached out to local schools in the area to encourage hobbyists from a younger age. We play Pokémon, Yu-Gi-Oh! and Magic: The Gathering. It really helps them build key skills and develop social skills.

Owner Liam Powell has opened Geek Retreat in Newport.

“We run morning, afternoon and evening events every day – coffee and cards, chess clubs, and free after-school events.

“A lot of our stuff is free to play. You can just come in and sit down and play. We have a fair use policy, so all we ask is you make a purchase for every hour you’re here for.”

Geek Retreat has opened in Newport.

Mr Powell said the opening was around 18 months to two years in the making.

“Covid and the lockdown have delayed us,” he said. “There was a huge amount of work we needed to do. The franchise helped a huge amount.

“All in all it was a great process, it’s been really rewarding.

“And it’s great that the community has come out to support us. It just shows this is something the community needed.”

Mr Powell said he was keen to run events to give back to the community – such as first aid training.  

“We are community driven, and we know that without our community we wouldn’t survive, so we’re keen to give back where we can and engage with the community,” he said. “A first aid group are going to be coming in to teach first aid training for children.

“We’re really keen to use this space for things like that.”

Geek Retreat is open from 10am to 10pm Monday to Saturday, and 11am to 8pm on Sundays.