Great for golf simulator, board games, card games, and a bunch of other activities. Staff is nice and get to know you if you come as a regular. Great mix of people and attendance (though weekdays are pretty dead). I love the old hobby shop vibe in here.
Would love if they redid the bathrooms (clean and functioning but smelly due to old pipes) and replaced some old chairs and tables.
I really enjoyed playing some table top games I hadn’t seen in many years/seen online but not in real life. Staff was helpful. But place was so dirty and discomforting it was actually another level, and this guy Ian was a jerk to my kid. Totally hostile. writing this a while later because I’m still thinking about it.
Place is clean, nice play areas. Went to a tournament but there was no prize support (other than the tournament pack) for $15 entry would expect that to be public on the entry.
We had such a great experience here. Minh was extremely nice to us and helped us in the most caring way. I came with individuals on the autism spectrum, and she was incredibly patient, respectful, and understanding. It made all the difference. The space itself was fun and welcoming, but it was the kindness and support that really stood out. Thank you for making us feel so comfortable we’ll definitely be back!
Decent spot overall, highly recommend —just wish they’d focus more on cleanliness. The heavy fried oil smell and grimy play area are hard to ignore. That said, the PRICES are GREAT, so you really do get what you pay for. Plus, the range of activities is impressive: card games, arcade games, a bowling alley, golf simulator, and even a billiards court. Solid entertainment value
Golf simulators - they are okay, and at least priced fairly compared to alternatives with better setups. The simulator swing areas are too small and it’s not practical to hit driver if you’re tall or have a long or wide swing arc - unless you’re fine slamming an expensive driver head into plywood. The balls are very crappy. The simulator interface is annoying to use and wastes a lot of time (that you’re paying for) if you ever want to change settings. And they made a very poor cost-saving decision by putting thick mat plug sections in where the balls are hit, instead of replacing the entire mats - the ball is now a good half inch to inch above your feet, which they must’ve not realized causes significant impact on the swing, spin, direction, and defeats the purpose of practicing indoors on a simulator. Again, it’s really not ideal if you’re at all serious about golf, but at least is priced to reflect the poor/average quality of the space and technology.
We came to Play Hoboken excited to celebrate Father’s Day with a group of parents and kids — and while the rest of the staff were absolutely wonderful, Ian completely ruined the experience.
Yes, toddlers can be a handful — they're two years old. If you’re uncomfortable with how young kids behave, there are many ways to express that respectfully. But Ian? Chose to be rude, condescending, and totally unprofessional.
I’m absolutely fine if certain equipment isn’t meant for kids — just say it with basic courtesy. Instead, Ian made us feel unwelcome and went as far as saying we shouldn’t even bring our kids there. Excuse me?! At a family outing? On Father’s Day?
We heard your backstory about golf lessons and structure for kids — thanks, but that doesn’t excuse your tone or attitude. This was meant to be a joyful day and you single-handedly turned it sour.
Play Hoboken — your space is great, your staff is great — but Ian needs a serious lesson in people skills and professionalism.
We spent a rainy afternoon here while visiting our son in nyc. Had a great time with the golf, pool, darts and ping pong. Very helpful and pleasant staff. We will be back again.
Edit: Leaving original review from opening below. Place has absolutely fallen off.
Original Review:
A fantastic all around place that I feel more people should know about! A great selection of board games, as well as golf, table tennis, and pool! The place is BYO in a spacious (albeit hard to find) area. We were one of the few people in the place, and I do hope this business receives the attention it deserves, as I feel this place is great for the community.
I am very excited to bring my friends!
Wish I could like this place since it's the closest hobby shop to me but the management needs to really evaluate their relationship with their customers. They jack up prices on everything such as card sleeves ($17 instead of $13) and make you pay $15 just for the privilege of sitting down to play magic commander even if there aren't enough people to actually play. I overheard the manager yelling at an employee for not taking away someone's Gatorade they brought with them. Maybe if they stopped jacking up prices on the drinks they provide and start thinking about their core customer demographic and churn instead of looking at them as cash providing flesh sacks people would consider becoming return customers instead of choosing to play at a beer hall in NJ City. I suggest the managers learn how to cultivate a consumer base instead of complaining about them behind their backs when they don't think anyone is listening.
Love this place! Me and my gf come all the time to shoot pool or maybe play some pinball. Rates are fair and the facility is great, tons of options depending on what you're into. What really makes this place is the staff, always incredibly friendly and accommodating and make your time there really great. Wish I found out about Play! sooner!
Attended a Magic the Gathering event here. It was my first time at such an event but i had a great time. The staff are very friendly and accomodating. The customers/ Magic the Gathering community were also all very nice people. The store is such fun to be in as theres so much to do: arcades, golf,boardgame, billiards, ping pong, bowling. Its a massive space taking up the 3rd floor of a building which seemed like a repurposed warehouse. Lots of stairs! We ordered food off thier menu: chicken fingers, fries and mozzarella sticks, which were all tasty. Am planning to attend thier next event. Theres also limited parking 3-4 reserved store spaces in parking lot for $2/hr or metered street parking for non Hoboken residents.
This review is based on a number of factors that may or may not be controlled by the owner.
First of all, this business is a great concept, but in the wrong community. Hoboken is just not ideal for outside visitors as parking is absolutely impossible. They have a shared parking lot in the back of the property that is shared with multiple tenants and only 4 spots assigned to this business. Parking on the street is limited to residents with permits only, so driving here is a huge gamble.
The condition of the property, as mentioned in a previous review, is that of an old factory. I personally have not experienced any downside to that. The equipment is well maintained and the facilities are adequate to fit your needs.
The purpose of my visit was strictly for shooting pool and they definately have a huge room with plenty of well kept tables. A little expensive, but it is worth it given the amount of space and condition of the tables. I have been shooting pool for many years, and for those of us who shoot for hours, it is customary to take a little break every couple of hours. In this case, after 2 hours, I needed to go down and check on my car and take a smoke break. I went to the counter and asked that they pause my time for about 15 minutes so that I could take a break. I was told yes, however, that I should bring the balls and other items to the counter to clear the table while I was paused. I responded with "I only need 15 minutes and I do not want to bring the stuff up for this quick break" to which I was told that they couldn't pause the clock because they can't rent the table while my stuff is still there. To be clear, that response makes sense if the place is full, with customers waiting to play, but there was literally 1 other table in action in addition to mine. The place was completely empty of pool shooters with approximately 10 available tables. 15 minutes of play time amounts to $2.50, so it's not a huge amount of money. I ultimately opted to leave the clock running and simply took the necessary break and returned to play. My contention is simply that as a business owner myself, I would have accommodated the request. I don't believe it was unreasonable and as such, would have opted to keep a customer.
Run by thieves. As other reviews will indicate, the manager Max is a very difficult person. He charged us $75 instead of $8 for moving a time slot for a booking (despite the fact that we were a large group that had stayed two hours and ordered a lot of food and drinks). He has not read his own website booking conditions, and fought with us over how cancellation policies work. In the end, it was after midnight and we paid just to get out of there.
The food was burned and the waiter didn’t know the menu or drinks on offer.
This place has a great concept that unfortunately is completely ruined by Max, the Manager. We made a booking for 8:00P.M. yesterday but due to delays we couldnt make it and changed it to 10:00P.M. (More than 1h in advance) - we got to the place, played our games, ate our almost burnt fries and chicken and when we went to pay, he charged us for our slot but also for the slot we had cancelled (and the kicker - he didn't charge us cancellation fee - which they don't have anywhere) he charged us per person saying that we'd "prevented" other people from coming to play (again we csncelled over 1h in advance) and then rather than charge a cancellation policy he carhed for the whole session per person when we werent even there. This man was just rude and with no ligcañ sense of customer service and management. If you want to have a nice game of game with no surpirses, better to avoid this place.
This place is so much fun. There are hundreds of board games, simulation golf, pinball machines, and many other games to keep you entertained. They also sell little snacks and it's byob. The staff here is super sweet and accommodating. It is also very affordable at $5/hr. Went with two friends and played monopoly for three hours. It is so much fun here and would make for a great date spot as well.
I wasn’t sure what to expect when we found this place —but I was looking for pinball on my Pinball Map app, and I found it! So far as I can tell, they have the *largest* selection of pinball games in town, and that is something. Barb Wire, Avengers, Last Action Hero, Lost World (1978), Hurricane and Cue Ball Wizard all worked fine, and the whole place (I think?) is pay per hour. We also checked out their extensive board games selection. They have a good selection of non-alcoholic drinks such as Jarritos and red bull, and they had fountain drinks as well. I think I was expecting a straight-up arcade, which this place is not, but there seems to be a bit for everyone, golfers and board game fans, pool players and role playing game/card game players. It’s a nice spot to be inside on a hot day, very reasonably priced…I think more arcade games would have sweetened the deal for me personally.
great place to just relax, spend the day and play different kinds of games, like arcade and board games. the pool hall is pretty big and spacious. its essentially got the layout of a old factory so its all very open. however, the food they sell is very low quality and definitely doesn't match up the price. they dont sell beer but will sometimes keep it cold (the owner is a big factor in this) but if you decided to have them store it for you, just know you wont necessarily get your drink. theres a lack of management and upkeep in the business which im afraid will be the eventual death of this place specially when theres talk of possible bowling lanes and expansion but you get rained on while playing pool and the balls always get stuck on the tables. the juxebox is also busted. the songs play fine but when your paid song plays on speaker the volume will drop to barely audible. they charge a lot for such lack of maintenance meaning theyre solely interested in making money. it all really falls on the owner, who is notorious for replying to every bad review and just making it so much worse. when i first visited this place it was a 5/5 but the more i visit the more i see and the less i like.
Well this is certainly a first for me!…
I’ve been a regular here for about the past year. Recently, I had a few minor issues with PlayHoboken!, and instead of rationally discussing with managers Max and Ian, I chose to blow things up, by writing a rant here. Come first thing the next morning, I took it down, realizing how childish it was of me.
BOTTOM LINE: Every time I’ve had an issue (all minor) and brought it up to Management, I’ve ALWAYS been taken great care of, and accommodated fairly.
Coming here has been one of the things I’ve looked forward to every week. Ian and Max run a great operation, enjoyed by the many players who come here.
One of the great things about this place is not only the management, but the variety of different games, from board games to role playing games, to billiards, not to mention indoor golf. I highly recommend you try this place out.
P.S.- Did I mention free popcorn and water, as well as an assortment of food for purchase?
TL;DR owner called the cops on me and my kid for playing pool while we waited for a chess class.
Would give 0 stars if I could. Stay away from this place. The owner threatened to call the cops on me when me and my kid played on the kid-sized pool table (see picture) while waiting for a kids' chess lesson to begin. As you can see, the pool cues and balls were readily available to play, no signage anywhere that it was pay to play. He quite rudely told me that I was "damaging his pool table" and that I "wouldn't be able to afford to replace it if I damaged it." I've played pool plenty of times and I can tell you that I wasn't doing anything that would damage a table. When I asked him for clarification, he raised his voice at me. I told him that that was no way to speak to people and he told us to leave. When I asked if he was being for real, he repeated that he wanted us to leave and were not welcome to attend the chess class that we had paid for in advance. So rude and humiliating in front of my 9 year old who was so excited to play chess. When I asked for a refund, he refused to refund me in cash then and there. When I told him I wouldn't leave without a refund, he told me he would call the cops. I told him to go right ahead! My poor kid cried and said, "I guess I'll be playing chess by myself tonight." I didn't stay long enough to see if the cops were gonna come or not, was a total waste of my time. I left after he ensured that he had refunded me in full over paypal.
Don't operate a business for games and toys for kids if you can't handle normal kid stuff. Totally ridiculous and uncouth, and I wouldn't recommend anyone to go if they're looking for a family-friendly time. Not unless they wanna be profiled as a brown working class mom and harassed and kicked out for no sensible reason.
I went to play pinball. The staff claimed they had a mechanic on staff, but he must have been out sick for the past couple of years considering only 2 of their 10 pins even started a game. Hurricane was the only playable game. The other that started had inoperable flippers. Maybe I’m a little mad because I just traveled 30 minutes from Manhattan to play. I was there for 5 minutes and promptly left.
I just had a terrible experience at Play Hoboken. This is my third time there and my third encounter with their manager.
I must preface this note by stating that there is no sign placed up in the business that claims users of the virtual golf bays are responsible for any damages done to clubs. Nor did I have to sign a waiver prior to playing. Customer service is something every business should take seriously.
After playing a round of virtual golf, the manager accused me of denting the head of one of his drivers. When I had arrived, they were short staffed, and the manager was busy with interviewing a new hire candidate. There's no way that the Manager had checked the clubs prior to giving them to me.
We went back and forth for quite some time, very unprofessional. In the end, I had originally dropped my personal clubs off for a regripping service, but after how poorly done the new head on the driver was placed I doubt the quality of their gripping services. So, I asked for a refund on the gripping service, the manager refused to provide me with a refund for a service they did not provide.
I don't recommend this venue to anyone. at all.
Best,
JS
What a great place to spend some fun active time with my son playing ping pong or pool, also the staff is great and the customers are so nice and welcoming, you will feel welcomed the moment you walk in. Highly recommend this place.
I had a good time with some friends. I didn't use the golf simulator but played pool on both the small tables and large ones. It's byob, which is cool. I brought some beer and they put it in the fridge. The guys were friendly and gave good customer service.
HIDDEN GEM. Amazing Friday night with a group of about 8. We called ahead to reserve a few ping pong tables. We played for a couple hours before switching to pool and golf. The staff went above and beyond to accommodate us. Sophie was great helping set up the reservation and providing us with complimentary water whenever we needed it. Great space and great time will be back soon
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