Taverns and competition have gone hand in gloved hand since the long-ago days when partiers quaffed flagons of mead and challenged one another to ye olde billiards or darts or dice.
But since the invention of electricity -- heck, since the invention of the candle -- pub-based contests have tended to happen after the sun goes down. Not always, of course, but bars are historically nighttime places.
What they aren't, most definitely, are breakfast spots, by and large. Meaning that a morning event, at a pub, that involves competition and breakfast chilaquiles, is most unusual. Making it all the more offbeat is the fact that the face-off does not involve darts nor foosball but Connect Four, Jenga, Battleship, and Chutes & Ladders.
It's the second annual Tony's Darts Away Breakfast of Champions board game tournament, a round-robin event where any board game might show up (including a few beyond those mentioned). The dates are Saturday, July 28 and Sunday, July 29, with the championships on Saturday, Aug. 3.
Excellent at board games? You and a 21+ pal can sign up.
And the big prize for the winning two-person team? Well, it's perfectly pub-appropriate: The opportunity to drink from Tony's 30-ounce Chairman of the Board cup (and the beer inside is of the team's choosing). It's a huge deal, 'round the Burbank-based bar, so we're sure the winners'll brag it up forever. Also? Two Golden Road Growlers are part of the prize.
And, yep, Tony's does open at 10 a.m. on weekend mornings, it is true. But seeing board games and breakfast in a bar, any bar, is not a common sight.
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Think you're really stupendous at Battleship and Jenga and you like a good, old-time tavern square-off? Best drop Alex a line at alex@tonys.la to sign up.
