stepping up our game nights with calliope games

Can I tell you how excited I am that it’s spring?  We spend so much time outside playing and feel like we’re finally done with our winter hibernation! But on those rainy spring days we love to fill our time inside and my kids are always asking for a game night!  We’ve had a few favorites over the years but it was time to try out a few new ones so we started with these two from Calliope Games.

Menu Masters.  Recommended for ages 8 and up, my kids (9 and 11) loved playing this game!   Menu Masters is totally different from any game we’ve played before. Each player (chef) needs to shop at different stores to be able to make their menu.  But with other chefs vying for popular ingredients and the option to open your own store to make some extra money, there is a lot of strategy involved!  It typically takes around 30-40 minutes for us to play this game, so it’s a great family activity when there’s not enough time for a movie night.  My kids were old enough to understand the strategy involved to win (enough so that they often beat Mom and Dad!)  Our 4-year-old loves to “be on a team” with someone else so he can still be a part of the action.  He can help collect coins, set up the board and gather recipe cards but he’s definitely not ready to play on his own.

Roll For It!  Like Menu Masters, Roll For It! is recommended for ages 8 and up but this one usually only takes about 20 minutes to play.  This is a dice game with the added twist of trying to match a card.  Up to 4 people can play at a time and it gets more challenging when there are more players involved!  Recommended by Mensa, this game is more strategy than luck.  The cards are worth varying points and your dice placement determines how many points you can earn but also how long it might take you to earn them!  With all players vying for the same cards, a simple dice game can get pretty intense!