As a self proclaimed«gamer gyrl,» I’m always on the lookout for a chill place to get my geek on. The Cloak & Blaster is it! With a Lord of the Rings-themed interior, this gaming pub is sure to make any hobbit hungry(or any Orlando bloom LOL!). This geeky goddess will definitely return for a heaping helping of Meeple munchies and a generous drizzle of awesome sauce!
Van D.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Orlando, FL
The barcade for the ages. Love going to this place. Servers are always attentive and really nice. They are informed quite well on what they serve and can usually recommend you something if you tell them what you like. Food has always been good. Poutine and the beef stew are my favorite. Beer selection is ridiculous. They have a large selection of craft beers and are usually getting in new shipments are what they think are the best. On top of that, they have a multitude of board games on the first floor, ranging from Cards Against Humanity, to Settlers of Catan. You’re more than welcomed to play the games as long as you order a drink every hour or so. They’re pretty cool with it and won’t dog you over a few drinks. Now for my favorite part, on the second floor they have Xbox Ones, Wii U’s, and PS4’s all around the room! Same rule applies up here too. Order a couple drinks and you’re in the clear. They almost always have the newest and best games on hand(had Smash Brothers when it came out) ready to be played by the challenging gamer. The only unfortunate thing I can say about this place is that they don’t serve liquor :(Luckily there’s a liquor store 3 stores down, so… yeah. This is truly a BarCade. Plenty of seating, medieval décor, and they always have events going on. Themed parties, trivia night, etc. Just check out their FaceBook to see what’s happening.
Emily L.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Orlando, FL
One of my & my husband’s favorite spots for date night. The service is always amazing & the management really goes out of their way to give patrons what they want– during my pregnancy I craved an item that was only on special every once in a while, but they made sure I was able to get my fix as needed– a kindness I will never forget! A great selection of drinks, games in a beautiful, nerdy atmosphere. Keep up the great work, guys!
Joe C.
Rating des Ortes: 3 Orlando, FL
Cloak & Blaster is a great concept with an acceptable implementation. While the bar definitely visually looks better than it did with any of its previous owners, it doesn’t really feel like«a gaming pub for geeks». Almost all of the decorations are Lord of the Rings or Game of Thrones. This includes banners from the houses of Game of Thrones, swords from Lord of the Rings, and a giant Lord of the Rings mural that looks like it belongs on the side of a van from the 70s. There’s also a single Deathly Hallows symbol on a window, and a Chewbacca cardboard standup stuck in a corner with a Tardis cardboard standup. The beer list is pretty nice, with a nice variety of bottles and draft beers on the menu — which was a sort of sore point for me on our visit. The menu’s draft list was full of beers that were still untapped. In fact, almost all of the draft beers were set to be tapped at a later date. We were there for an event, so they had a special selection of beers, meades, and mulled wines. Being a big fan of mulled wines, my wife chose to try both the red and white options, and was very unimpressed by either of them. Neither had been sweetened at all, and just had a bitter taste to them. They also offered a single red blend wine on their normal menu. While unremarkable, it wasn’t bad. The beers I did have were enjoyable, and priced nicely enough. We also chose to order the tater tots and the apple & cheese plate(which I believe was a special menu item for the evening). The apple & cheese plate was cheaper than most cheese plates you might find in restaurants, but only had some apple slices, a single sharp cheddar, and some bread which neither of us liked. My wife liked the cheese and apples well enough, but it was nothing to be excited about. The tater tots went over much better, though I found it odd that there were apparently two sizes available, but only one size or price mentioned on the menu. Additionally, you could get upgrades(beer cheese sauce, and bacon) for upcharges(the bacon wasn’t really worth the upcharge). Service was friendly enough, and generally fairly quick. Our servers were happy to answer any questions and get the information for any answers they didn’t already know. My biggest complaint was just how family friendly this place was. If I’m going to a business which bills itself as a pub, I don’t want to be seated next to a family with kids in elementary school. But even that, I’m willing to forgive so long as the place isn’t full of kids. No, what annoyed me to no end was the fact that they apparently had no problem with a couple coming in with a newborn infant. Their bassinet stroller was parked next to their table. Thankfully, the thing was asleep, or quiet while we were there, but what sort of pub allows infants, and what sort of parents bring their infant to a pub? If that’s the sort of crowd I can expect when visiting, I’m not sure I really want to go back.
Madeleine S.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Apopka, FL
This is a really cool place to have fun with friends. The theme is Lord of the Rings and the upstairs has video games. I had a lot of fun and got to meet the owners.
Lacey C.
Rating des Ortes: 3 Miami, FL
This might be one of my less objective reviews. I’ll be honest about that. It was my boo Mikey’s birthday last weekend and he’s been in a real funk lately. I live in Miami, and he lives all the way up near the Mouse in Orlando. But I have annual passes and hey, use ‘em if you got ‘em. I drove up on Friday in the traffic, rain, and a cold snap. I plotted with his roommate to make sure they went to Cloak and Blaster after they got out of a WWF event – the bar was relatively close to the stadium, and it would be late when they got out. The game was afoot. To make the whole thing more festive, I ordered cupcakes that morning and picked them up in Hunter’s Creek to take along with. When I pulled into the restaurant, the surprise had already been sprung, but hey, time for a drink and a cupcake AMIRITE? Our poncy waiter was like«Oh, do you have a receipt for those? Because otherwise you can’t eat them in here. It’s Florida state law.» He proceeded to say some other things, none of which I heard. Who HASN’T taken a special dessert to a NON-DESSERTY restaurant? I have never seen that law enforced in my life. It felt even vaguely personal. Moving on: the food was mediocre. It was all pretzel bun this, beer cheese dip that, and different variations on the same ingredients. Almost nothing for vegetarians aside from fries, onion rings, a single salad(I don’t even want to know) and a really sad hummus plate. That being said, I had a layered beer/cider that I enjoyed called ‘The Mulder’ on special to celebrate the new episodes of X-Files being released. To round out our evening, we had to eat our cupcakes in the shitty cold weather next to my car. Anyway. I wouldn’t come here again except for drinks and a decent table to play board games or a table top game. But I *would* do that and enjoy it. As long as that waiter didn’t talk to me.
Raphael C.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Orlando, FL
A lovely bar with a fantasy pub theme that offers a wide variety of beer and games. The downstairs area has a bar and tables to play games such as Cards Against Humanity or board games, while the upstairs has several different consoles. The beer selection is nice, but the food prices are on the expensive side. Overall a good time if you bring some friends along.
John F.
Rating des Ortes: 1 DeLand, FL
We went here tonight with a party of 12 with a ‘confirmed’ reservation for 7:30. After waiting over a hour and a half with the loss of 4 guests we moved on to get dinner elsewhere. I can’t review the food because my party was never served. I am a gaming geek and I liked the atmosphere and theme, but the poor execution will prevent me from making the hour drive here again.
Stephanie V.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Winter Park, FL
They have really expanded since the last time we were here, with many more games in their collection to check out. The food is still kind of similar to what they were offering, with burgers and pub food on the menu. The onion rings remain awesome. 11/10, would order again. The triforce appetizer sampler was good because you get dragon eggs(spicy chicken bites), onion rings, and pretzel slices with beer cheese. My burger(the highlander) was just okay, a little dry and not super flavorful. I usually get burgers medium rare and here you can’t go below medium. I think that makes them a little drier than I like. Lots of beers on offering but many are out even though they are listed on the menu. This is a fun place to go play because the servers are attentive enough but not going to drive you crazy while you’re trying to play. Check them out if you haven’t been here before and you like to play games. This is a great place to try out games you think you might like to add to your collection. We played Coup, which is an awesome game… if you have more than two people :(and apparently Cards Against Humanity doesn’t really work with just two either. So now we know, and knowing is half the battle!
Meghan A.
Rating des Ortes: 2 Orlando, FL
It’s been awhile since I have been there, and it’s taken me awhile to write this review, but I feel like I needed to contribute my voice. Let me start by saying, I REALLY wanted this place to work. I think the concept is brilliant, and fills a niche in the east Orlando area that hasn’t quite been filled. I really loved the concept and wanted so badly to love the bar. That being said, unfortunately I didn’t. I visited a total of three times, twice on a weeknight and once on a weekend. All three times it took over two hours from start to finish, the food was good, but came out staggered, so none of us ate at the same time. We were told that it was the«kitchen style,» but I have never experienced one person waiting an additional half hour as they watched their friend eat their own delivered food. Waiters were wholly inattentive, and visited the table maybe once every 20⁄30 minutes. On our last visit, I asked to speak with a manager, and apparently was able to speak with one of the owners. On this particular visit we had again waited nearly two hours, and had experienced all of our party receiving their food at different times, 20 – 30 minutes apart from one another. The owner told me that«it was to be expected,» that they«were more a bar than a restaurant,» and that«they had never received that kind of complaint before.» No apology or attempt at reparations were made. If anything the owner came off as short, and as if I was the one at fault. If you want good burgers and bar food at an affordable price, head to tap room down the road. If you want the nerd culture/gaming aspect, the BART in the mills district is excellent. Point is, there are places in the area that will provide you better service while actually valuing you as a customer. I wish this place had worked, but it just didn’t.
Christopher M.
Rating des Ortes: 2 Orlando, FL
It pains me to write this review, I really wanted to love this place. As it is right up my alley. My girlfriend and I are their target audience. It just wasn’t that good, we went on a night were there was a special Fallout menu, which to start out was very disappointed. We both got the hamburger(mine with cheese) with tater tots and both of the burgers were really dry. We both ended up putting a lot of ketchup on it. Which you shouldn’t have to do when you get a medium burger. Also we sat at the bar because the hostess can’t tell you how long the wait will be because they allow people to sit at tables and play game with no time limit. Its seems to us that they are a restaurant focused on gaming, instead of a gaming place focused on being a restaurant. Lastly, they played Mad Max on the TVs at the bar not the best movie to have on when you are trying to eat. Won’t be going back. So disappointed.
Mike P.
Rating des Ortes: 3 Orlando, FL
It has been a very long time since I have thought about Dungeons and Dragons but a trip to Cloak and Blaster brought back some memories. I tried dropping by here 2 times in the past when I was in the area BUT unfortunately they are not open at lunch time. That is a major bummer since they are so close to where I live. The first time I stopped by it said they opened at 4 pm and the last time I dropped by at 4ish only to see it was now open at 6 pm. If it were not for the amazing reviews I read about their food, I probably would have just written them off. After a leisurely drive back from New Smyrna, we felt like giving their food a try. We arrived just before 6 and they opened up right on the dot. We walked in and I was like a kid in a candy store. The place had a medieval feel to it but with a modern swagger. My wife found her way to the bar and I went exploring the place. The upstairs room is wickedly cool to a serious gamer. I finally found my way back to the bar to rejoin my wife. Craft Beer is the main staple here but they do offer a few choices for the non drinker. After looking over the menu, we decided to order the Bangers and Mash Effect, Shepherd’s Book Pie, Soylent Greens and The Smaug with fries. We were never given the option for how we wanted our food so it all came out at the same time. The Soylent Greens was a basic salad with tomato and carrots and we got the Balsamic Dressing and the Honey Mustard dressing on the side. The dressings were quite nice but the salad itself was very basic and nothing special. The Shepherd’s Book Pie had a good flavor but only a small portion of ground beef and gravy on the bottom was topped with about 2 inches of mashed potatoes and topped with chives. The meat lacked seasoning and they potatoes were not browned on the top. The Smaug was a burger topped with lettuce, tomato, onion, pepperjack cheese, siracha mayo and Jalapenos. The fries were fresh cut that came with the burger. The fries were limp and not crispy because they were obviously not being blanched or double fried so I would not expect crispy fries. The burger patty itself could have used some seasoning but the combination of flavors was actually not too bad. The Bangers an Mash consisted of two sausages and some of their mashed potatoes topped with some gravy. The sausage was nothing special and the mashed potatoes could have used some seasoning. The disappointment was the gravy because it tasted like a basic jarred gravy. Atmosphere — 5 Service — 3(Seemed impatient and never given option for food timing) Greens — 2(Just lettuce, tomato and carrot dropped in a bowl) Balsamic Dressing — 5 Honey Mustard Dressing — 3(a little too sweet) Shephers’d Pie — 2(lacked seasoning and too little meat/gravy) Smaug — 4(patty itself needed some seasoning) Fries — 3(great flavor but limp and soggy) Bangers and Mash — 3(mash lacked seasoning and the gravy tasted like jarred gravy) It is pretty clear that Cloak and Blaster is going after the gaming crowd. The atmosphere is great and the selection of games is fabulous. The food is however is not as fabulous as I expected it to be. For a college student that does not cook, this would probably be considered good pub grub but for someone with a more refined palate, the food itself was just OK. I plan to come back another time just to see if the kitchen was simply having a bad day or if this is the norm.
James M.
Rating des Ortes: 3 Orlando, FL
I mean I love this place but they’ve been slipping the last few times I’ve come here. Their food is really expensive. And not all of it is even that good or worth it(anything they’re making with potatoes). The last few times, for whatever cruelty of fate, my first drink order will be out of stock. And if you’re drinking with friends, they won’t serve you anymore until you buy their expensive food. Friday and Saturdays it’s just super crowded. If you call ahead, you’re still likely to wait around 20 minutes or more. Some of their drinks are really good though. And I still can’t forget how amazing their Lannister burger was. And you can’t get an atmosphere like this anywhere else.
Jenn G.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Glen Burnie, MD
Beer selection is vast. The menu is hilariously written. I’ve been told the food sucks here by my foodie friends, but I didn’t try any of it, as we’d just come for drinks. Places like this make me wish I lived nearby, because I would be a regular at this pub /arcade. Make sure to go upstairs and check out the video game set up. It’s deluxe. The server we had, I don’t remember his name, but he had purple and blue hair– was such a funny conversationalist! My group felt very welcomed at this place. I hope the Cloak & Blaster continues to be this awesome!
Ian P.
Rating des Ortes: 3 Orlando, FL
Cloak and Blaster is a fun place to hang out with a group of friends. It’s one of the more laid-back bars in Orlando because of the wonderful geekiness that exists once you enter the Lord of the Rings-themed front doors. The bar is decorated with Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, and Game of Thrones themed-items and the food menu has things named for them as well. There is a video game lounge upstairs, but I haven’t used it so can’t give you any recommendations. Downstairs there area large banquet tables where you can play games, eat, and enjoy the craft beer selection. it does get very busy and you may have to wait for a table but it usually doesn’t take long. Get there when they open if you don’t want to worry about that. Their beer selection is my favorite thing about the place. They always have a wide variety of beers and many times have specials from different breweries. Both draft and bottle lists are very extensive and some of the best on that side of town. The thing I haven’t liked so far is their food. Some of the choices have been bland(Sheppard’s Pie) and others didn’t come out well(cheese dip). They need to work on consistency in the kitchen to rate another star. Overall, we enjoy coming here for the laidback atmosphere, friendly people, and great beer. I’d recommend checking it out if you want a very non-pretentious place that you can sit back and enjoy some time with friends in a fantastically geeky environment.
William M.
Rating des Ortes: 3 Winter Park, FL
The Cloak and Blaster is an awesome place to hang out with friends and revel in geek culture. They have Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, and Game of Thrones themed menu items and cool decorations everywhere. The upstairs features a video gaming lounge packed with couches and consoles. The downstairs area has a dining area and a bar, and you can select from a huge library of board games like Cards Against Humanity or Settlers of Catan. Unfortunately, the food and service leave something to be desired. I really wanted to love this place, but the burgers were dry and the fries were soggy. They won’t cook the burger to anything less than medium, which was actually more like well done. The drinks were not bad, and the mixed drinks are worth checking out. They even have mead as an option. I took the server’s recommendation for the mead on draft, but didn’t like it personally. She seemed offended when I asked to exchange it for something else, and simply stated that«we don’t do that here.» Overall, I don’t think we’ll rush back anytime soon, but if we do come back it would only be for the bar and the games.
Daniela L.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Lutz, FL
So we visited with a few friends on a Saturday around 8PM which was perfect since it was busy but still plenty of tables. Definitely do recommend coming early and having at least 4 in your party already there if if have a semi big group-so you don’t lose the table. The atmosphere is great. Geek and nerd pop culture items spread all over, old wood tables with card and table top games covering every ink, and laughing smiling fellow geeks having a great time. As soon as we walked in, I whispered to my hubby, «Our people». You can bring your own games and risk them getting wet or a little greasy from food fingers. They have a huge selection, which is awesome. The most prevalent references come from the Lord of the Ring series, so LOTR fans should definitely be happy. The best part are the TV’s, not a sportsball game in sight! It’s all geeky movies, gameplay streaming from upstairs, or my favorite, Twitch(they were on a Hearthstone match when we were there). We didn’t get upstairs. After food, talking, and gameplay we were exhausted. I had the Garrus Grilled Cheese and the hubby the Lannister. He said his was a little light on the peanut butter as he only tasted it on the ends. Mine was fine. The bacon was a little tough but it was still yummy. The fresh cut fries were good too. We shared a Tri-Force Sampler. Tip: if you like sriracha, great. it’s ALLOVERTHE PLACE-like not splattered on the walls all over the place, but on a ton of dishes. I“m not a fan so I avoided the dragon eggs, but everything else in the sampler was mine. Definitely visiting again.
Christina M.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Tampa, FL
Best place hands-down to get some good food, good beer and play games. I came here for the first time last Sunday around 9 o’clock at night because I figured it wasn’t going to be too crowded and noisy. I’ve driven past this bar several times and have always wanted to stop by. When walking up to the double glass doors my heart literally stopped. The etching for the Doors of Durin(in the Mines of Moria) welcomed me.(You LOTR fans know what I’m talking about). I knew right then and there that this place was going to be the bees knees! So after saying the password«Mellon,»(which translates to «friend» in Sindarin)(sorry, inner nerd coming out) I swung open the door and was greeted by a multitude of my favorite sci-fi and fantasy worlds. Everything from LInk’s shield to Hogwart’s house flags to a Game of Thrones statue. This place is a haven for fandoms, nerds and geeks alike. One really must take the time to explore every nook and cranny of this place. You can appreciate the details the owners put into it and feel free to take pictures and share them with friends to make them jealous! Even the menu is fantasy themed with items such as «The Two Towers,» «Iron Throne,» «The One Ring,» etc. It’s really fun to read all the descriptions too. *For the full menu scroll to bottom Their beer selection is huge and it’s constantly changing to what’s in season which is really nice. I sat at the bar and ordered the«Tri-Force Sampler» which was excellent. A basket full of onion rings, soft pretzel bits, beer cheese and«dragon’s eggs»(chicken nuggets with siracha infused breading). I downed that with a Two Henrys Biltmore Blueberry Vanilla Wheat and B Nektar Tropical Kill All the Golfers. Both were on tap so I was able to try a sample before committing to buy a full glass which was cool. The service is friendly and the owners are really down-to-earth. They have bookcases filled with a plethora of board games that you can play and an upstairs gaming room with a full bar. Yes, a place like this truly exists for us adults who will always be nerds at heart. As I mentioned before, I ventured to this place on my lonesome but by the of the night, I met a group of five really cool people and we ended up playing some board games. It was a blast and I’m so glad I came here. I will be back for more! * Click link or copy and paste into your browser
Ryan S.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Winter Springs, Orlando, FL
This place combines two of my favorite things: games and beer. The owner’s of this place did a fantastic job making this place feel like a tavern in which you can sit down with your friends, play some games, and grab a pint. Pros: Great selection of games to choose from(including a video game lounge upstairs) Comic book selection to read from Good craft beers on tap and bottled Friendly atmosphere Cons: Despite enjoying the burger I ordered(The One Ring), I wish it taste a little better for the pricing. It’s not that the food was bad. In fact, it was far from it. It was just lacking the kind of flavor I was expecting. I can happily say I will be back and ready for another entertaining game of Munchkin!
Autumn S.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Seminole County, FL
This place is perfect for nerding out with your friends!!! The game selection is awesome and the theming is even better :) they really did a good job with this place. Wish the menu had some healthier options on it. I believe there was one salad? Kudos to the staff for keeping the place really clean and for making the atmosphere pleasant, I will be going back and bringing more friends :)