Top 10 Food Board Games

10. Diced Veggies

This is a pretty simple game. And a lot of them that I own really do fall into that category. But Dice Veggies is a board game where you are completing recipes. To do that, you need to slice off veggies from a big block of dice. But the rule is that the veggies can only be up to, I believe, 10 total on their pips. So you might want to try and get a bunch at once, but you can’t get the color you really need because the value is too high.

The big selling point on this game is the chopping off the dice. You get a cardboard cleaver that you use to make you cut. The rest of the game is pretty light, though they try and add in a little bit with some modifier cards that you can use or bonus cards. But I like the game for what it is. It’s a silly little filler or family weight style game that is easy to get to the table.

9. Coffee Rush

Next up for our food themed games we have Coffee Rush. This is one that I have been enjoying on BGA. And you can find my review here. Coffee Rush is another order fulfillment game, this one though works with an interesting central mechanism. You move around a central board to collect ingredients and how far you move is limited each turn. Plus how you move, at least at the start of the game, is limited as well.

But you unlock more that you can do. However, there is a cost to that, if you want to unlock more to do you need to spend points that you already have. And in a game where the points are tight, it’s a very good decision.

Plus, this game comes with amazing artwork and coffee/tea cups where you make you drink. Not just that, but the ingredients that you collect are 3D as well, not just cardboard tokens or wooden cubes. This is a great one for your coffee fanatics in your life.

8. Cafe Baras

But Coffee Rush isn’t my favorite of the coffee or tea themed board games. I like a few better than it including Cafe Baras. The theme is really what gets me for this game, you are capybaras running a coffee shop, get it, Cafe Baras?

This game is from the same company as Dice Veggies, but I like Cafe Baras better. There is a bit more going on as you gather in different menu items that are going to score you points. And you are grabbing them so that you can then grab customers and score them for points. Sometimes you just grab a customer to get more money to get more items for your menu. Other times you try and hold off so you can get them as repeat customers.

This is another pretty simple game. But with a theme that is a ton of fun and very good artwork, it’s a nice accessible game. It is going to feel like a set-up for people who don’t play too many games, but not so complex and not too much reading to learn and play the game.

7. A Nice Cuppa

A Nice Cuppa is one that I played on the Malts and Meeples YouTube. If I didn’t play at night time, I might have had a nice cuppa Earl Grey tea with it. But this is a solo game where you are seeing if you can get the steps of making a cup of tea in the right order. But that’s harder than you think because the actions available to you are limited. I could say more about this one, but if you want to learn more, please checkout the video down below.

6. Vegetable Stock

Vegetable Stock is one that I debated about putting on the list. It is less about eating food, but it is about food. In Vegetable Stock you are manipulating the vegetable stock market trying to grab as many points as you can. As you see, like Cafe Baras and Diced Veggies, it’s another play on words.

The game is simple and I really like it for that. You play out a few rounds of drafting cards with the first player switching each round to draft. To draft you deal out one more card than there is per player. The last card is used to adjust the market. Any veggie symbols push the value of that veggie higher. But if you get too high it is going to bust and go back down to one. So are you able to balance that or bust something early and get it pushed back up by the end of the game.

5. Matcha

Matcha is probably the least known game on the list, this or A Nice Cuppa since that is solo, but Matcha is a two player trick taking and set collection game. You gain resources by winning tricks. But it’s not a standard trick taking game. You don’t play out a card to a single trick. Instead you play out I believe it’s four tricks at once. And where you add cards and how tricks are won is determined by the spots the cards are played. It’s a clever and enjoyable trick taking game.

Now, I do want to add in a caveat here. I like this game a ton. However, the rules are not great for the game. I think that they are overwritten and because of that it causes a bit of confusion as you learn the game. So if it sounds interesting to you, see if there is a how play video out there to learn from, it’s going to be easier than the rules.

4. Point Salad

Now we are to one of two board games that I’m sure everyone assumed was going to be on the list. Point Salad is one of the most popular board games with a food theme. Now, I don’t actually own the regular version anymore. I own the Eevee version because it’s Eevee and the theme is more fun. But Point Salad is a great food game.

Point Salad is an open drafting food game. What do I mean by open drafting? In an open drafting game everyone sees the cards available to take. But it is does something clever. On the back of the cards is scoring. So on your turn you either take two vegetables form six to add to your tableau of veggies, or you take a single scoring card. If you take veggies the scoring cards on top of the deck flip down. And now those are gone from the game.

I love that push and pull of when you grab your scoring cards versus when you just grab veggies. Too many scoring cards are not enough veggies, you won’t score well. Too many veggies and not enough scoring cards, likely the same case. But there are ways to get around both, but you need it play out perfectly.

3. Fromage

Now we have the cheesiest game on the list, Fromage. Yes, this is a game all about cheese and it uses some awesome mechanisms as you play that I don’t see in many other games. It’s a worker placement game about making cheese. The more cheese you make the better you’ll do in the game. But let’s talk about the unique element of the game.

The main central element of the game is this big wheel, not of cheese but locations where you make your cheese. And that wheel turns each round of the game. Now each round you can use two workers on the board and then potentially your other one, or a couple of them, on your player board as you unlock things. But on the main board everything has a timer. That timer is how long it takes to get back your worker. It is easy to tell that timer though, because when you wedge of cheese worker is pointed back at you, you get it back.

That element is so clever in the game. And the game does a good job of scaling itself for player count. You swap out board parts for each wedge of the board. And, I forgot to mention this, the board is modular. Yes, there are only four modules that make up the whole wheel. But how those go together changes up what comes after each other. I’d love to see this in more board games.

2. Homebrewers

Next up a game that I love to champion. We have Homebrewers a game about homebrewing beer. I love beer and I love homebrewing beer, so it’s a game made for me. But I also love engine building and Homebrewers is a fun engine building game.

In this game you want to be the best homebrewer, not surprise there. So your goal is to be the best at brewing four different styles of beers to gain medals and points as Summerfest and Oktoberfest. But as you brew, you gain ingredients. These ingredients modify your beers. They might give you more money or raise up how good you are at brewing that beer faster or an adjacent beer.

One of the elements that I love at the end of the game is you have a bunch of wild beers. Since I love beer, I always think, would I drink that beer? The answer is basically always, yes, I’d drink it once. But sometimes the flavors are a bit out there.

1. Sushi Go Party!

Finally, at number one, we have Sushi Go Party. This is my favorite food themed game that is all about drafting the best meal possible. Everything is going to score you points, potentially, as you draft them. And most of it is pretty simple set collection. Sometimes, though, you get a card with a special power that is going to let you break the rules and swap what you are drafting.

One element that I love about Sushi Go Party is how you tailor it for your group. I make really mean drafting combinations sometimes. When I say that you score points, it’s possible to score negative points. Or I can make it really friendly so that everyone is getting a ton of points. That to me separates it from the base Sushi Go where the game is going to be the same every time. This is one that I really recommend people checkout just for a fun time.

Final Thoughts

Now, I am sure that people are noticing a few missing board games. Food Chain Magnate is a food themed game that just isn’t interesting to me. It’s too big and too much going on that I don’t want to learn it, play it and then need to play it a few more times. Also Vihnos or Viticulture are likely ones people might note as well. I am actually interested in playing both.

I did on my list have a few board games that I didn’t put on there. Fruit Picking is a fun one. I like the mancala style mechanism of the game. Cacao is a chocolate creation game, I guess you could call it, and it’s fun with it’s tile placement element to it. And Charcuterie is another one. I like Charcuterie, the game and the food style, but it’s a super light game that I’ll gladly play but probably am not that apt to pick myself.

What are your favorite board games with a food theme? And which is your favorite of the 10 Food Board Games I listed?

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Beat the 8 Ball

Beat the 8 Ball is a game of timing. In it you have an eight ball that is spinning down a funnel. Your goal is to beat that eight ball and get points. So when it starts spinning you just release your ball and beat it, not that hard. Well, it’s trickier because you need to release it after someone else does, or everyone else and beat the eight ball. If you don’t beat the eight ball you lose points. If you’re the first person to beat it, you get no points.

The gimmick of the game, this big setup of a contraption for releasing the players balls and the funnel for the eight ball is cool. And I like the scoring of the game because it does make there be pressure. There is a skill element or a recognition element to the game. The more you play, the more you’ll know when the eight ball is going to drop. The downside is that this game could go on for a long time. It didn’t take too long for us, but if people are riding that line too closely no one will hit 10 or -10 to end the game. Or at least it’ll take a while.

Diced Veggies

You’re using dice as veggies to complete recipes and score you points in Diced Veggies by Kids Table Board Games (KTBG). To get your veggies you are using a cleaver to cut them off of a block of veggies (dice) in the middle. That’s the gimmick of the game. With the added twist on how you can cut the veggies, mainly that you can’t have more than 10 pips worth on the dice you cut.

Other than that, it’s a pretty straight forward collection game to fulfill orders or recipes in this case. And the recipes are easier or harder and give you a varying number of points. Plus you can play “hype” cards which augment a recipe. So I might have to discard another die to get a bonus four points. Or if all the dice I use on a recipe are the same value it’ll give me more points per die on the card.

My one concern about this game is the longevity of it. That’s probably true for Beat the 8 Ball as well. The game is simple and I’m not sure that the strategy will massively change over time for Diced Veggies. The upside is, it’s really easy to teach, learn, and play.

Fun Facts

Finally a cooperative party game from Repos Productions. I’ve talked about them before because they made Just One and So Clover, to great cooperative party games. While those are more game, more strategy to them, Fun Facts is more like a fun ice breaker than a game. In Fun Facts you put down a number answer to a question, like how seductive are you 0 to 100. And each person on their turn is trying to add it to a row of everyone’s answers so it’s in the right order.

Then you score points for the lowest to highest and all of them in the right order between. And you play that out over eight rounds. The gimmick is the dry erase boards, which nice raised edges so it won’t slide and erase. It’s also that trying to know your fellow players and how they’d rate themselves.

It’s a fun game because the players control the fun. And it’s about the “You’d spend that much to go to a park with actual dinosaurs?”. Or “After that weird look you gave me I assumed I was more seductive than you.” Jokes around the table but also getting to know people. And I think it’ll work longer because a lot of is it controlled by the group of players versus the game.

Final Thoughts on the Board Games with a Gimmick

Sometimes a game has a great gimmick. And sometimes the gimmick is the game. For all of these board games, I do think that there is thought put into the game aspect of what is going on. And that makes it fun. Fun Facts has the least game, but it’s a fun party game. And it has as much game as most party games. The other two give you simple board games to play. And I think that might be a downside, they might be too simple in the long run. But I can say, after playing each game, I’ve had fun with each one.

Which of the board games sounds most fun to you?

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Top 10 Games to Demo at Gen Con

Let’s start out by cheating with two honorable mentions.

Honorable Mention:

Kinfire Delve – Kinfire is a game that I might pick up, it’s a big campaign game. Delve looks like a smaller game set in the same universe. But if it builds on that world in a fun away, even without being a campaign game, it is one that’s on my radar. And it’s still cooperative, so it might be more of a bite sized game.

The A.R.T. Project – Another cooperative game and another one that looks beautiful. I obviously like cooperative games, and I’m hoping that this one won’t be too complex. The idea of trying to figure out certain scenarios to stop an art thief, but again not be a campaign game, that sounds like a lot of fun. And with the look of the game, not a company I’m always drawn towards, but this game is.

Onto the main list.

10. Super Squad High

Let’s start out with the most important thing. There is a narrative dating mechanism. This is a high school for super heroes, of course there is going to be that. Plus it’s cooperative and it’s super heroes, and honestly, I don’t know what’s in this game not to love. Maybe the fact that secretly one of your classmates if the villains. But it doesn’t sound like a hidden traitor game, it sounds like one of the people you interact with through the game will be. So I hope I don’t end up dating them.

9. Spellbook

Phil Walker-Harding puts out good balances of interesting games, but not too complex games. This is fun that they are advertising there are 2100 different spell combinations. That means that the game is going to be and feel unique. And those spells are going to be unique and changing as the game goes on. Plus the whole main concept, feeding your familiar with the “materia” from the spells, that is interesting. Finally, you decide when you spit out those spells. Get an affect now, or you hold onto your spell and launch it later with more power.

8. Reign of Hades

Exploration, fighting monsters, dealing with whatever adventure is thrown at you? The only question is, why is this one not higher on the list for me? Honestly, it probably should be. It’s of course cooperative and hand management. I hope that it’ll be one that stands out as  unique and not too big, but one that I’m curious about as it’s a style of game I love.

7. Charcuterie

Build the best charcuteries board, that sounds fun. I do love a good charcuterie board. The downside I will want to eat charcuterie while playing Charcuterie. From the game side of things, it uses one of my favorite mechanisms. That being I split you choose, so I might want olives, but how do I make it so I give you something good enough that you’ll take it and leave me my olives? But I don’t want it to be too good so I make it harder on myself later on.

6. Diced Veggies

While I prefer charcuterie, this game also looks interesting and it looks simple. Honestly, this is one I’d have over looked except that the YouTube channel Thinker Themer were in on it. And I like what it looks like, you are cutting dice off of a big block of dice. Always need to cut at the edge and no more than 10 pips worth. So can you setup some good cuts so you get great turns and don’t leave anything great. All the while using those dice to fulfill cards for points. Simple, but sounds like a fun time.

5. Defenders of the Dictionary

Cooperative word game, like I said, I like cooperative games. And this one sounds very interesting. You are working together against some force in the game that is trying to stop you. And you do that by building words and working with each other. They do a good job of making it sound really fun, and if it’s a strong word game then I’m very curious. It also talks about it being grid based, so I’m not sure if you’re building up words or not? I think that just sounds unique.

4. Weirdwood Manor

This game sounds really interesting because it’s a horror themed game. But not just a horror themed game, one with a haunted or weird house. And the house, from what I can tell, rotates, so how it’s setup at the start of the game might not be how it ends. Maybe should be lower on the list, but I like a cooperative game, and when you have a weird horror theme, that makes me quite interested.

3. Horror on the Orient Express

Have I said that I like horror. And then there is a whole lot more. It’s a cooperative game. There is story and adventure to it, you need to deal with cultists and really a lot of the standard Lovecraftian things. But that doesn’t stop me from wanting to play it. I like the them, I like the setting. And if it can have story and depth to the game, not just a simple dice chucker, I am excited to see what it can offer.

2. Ticket to Ride: Legacy

A legacy game, I love legacy games. Ticket to Ride, my favorite gateway game. What do I think this is going to offer, I’m not even sure. And what can you demo on it, I’m definitely  not sure. But I love the idea of it and I like the idea of it for being that gateway plus game. Kind of like Pandemic Legacy let me play Pandemic again and feel like there was more without being too much. I hope that Ticket to Ride Legacy falls in line with those.

1. Star Wars: Unlimited

This one no shock that it’s on my list. It’s a competitive trading card game. But it’s Star Wars themed, I really like Star Wars. And there is a collectible aspect and deck construction. But I like how they are doing a few things. Firstly, “rare” cards are less rare than you’d think to keep the game accessible. But alt art cards, or foil, those are going to be the chase cards in the set. And I like the deck building because you are battling on different fronts. So you might build a deck that is very focused on attacking and defending on the ground in hopes to overwhelm your opponent. Of course, that means that you are weaker in space, so there is going to be a lot of interesting strategy and deck theory crafting that I hope to dive into.

What Is Your Must Demo Game?

Let me know what game or games that I might be missing on my list. There are so many games, even more than I put up on video, which you can find below. But which ones stand out to you as games that you’d like to get demoed when you go, or ones you think should be on my radar?

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