The Big Idea

So, what is my idea, anyway, you might ask. Well, let me give you a guided tour of my own personal pie in the sky.

What I want to create doesn't really have a name yet. What I envision is a combination cafe, bar, internet/WiFi hotspot, PC and console gaming center, lounge, and college hang-out. Part bar, part coffee house, and part college dorm room. All this wrapped in a high-class, safe, comfortable, clean, friendly, and social environment.

I have a few problems with that description, and it no doubt gave you not quite the right impression. Cafe sounds too snooty, bar sounds too obnoxious, WiFi hotspot sounds too yuppie, gaming center sounds too malodorous geek, lounge sounds too risque, and college dorm-room sounds too grungy.

Bare with me.

What I envision is a nightlife venue which caters to those who don't like dealing with obnoxious barflies, and who are bored of movie theaters, mini-golf, and bowling. I want to cater to people, like myself, who like "going out" but who have little interest in the 3 or 4 options currently available.

I see my clientèle being between the ages of 16 and 30 and being the slightly more affluent geeks of our society. I want to create a place that provides the kind of entertainment these people like. They love gadgets, electronic toys, and games. They like deep conversation about life, the universe and everything. They like talking about Star Trek, computer programming, and Lord of the Rings. They like discovering that there are other people who like these things too.

These kinds of people, despite what the popular media would have you believe, are not the smelly, unshowered, socially retarded malcontents you might expect to see ogling cardboard cutouts of Lara Croft in the local comic shop.

These people are engineers and scientists, well educated, well read, with an unusual breadth of knowledge and an interest in a wide variety of subjects. They admire people like Galileo, Einstein, and Leonardo da Vinci, (not to mention Michelangelo, Raphael and Donatello). They read, they philosophize, they're successful and generally have money to spend.

I want to provide a high-class environment in which the affluent geeks can come and hang out doing things they like to do in an atmosphere designed just for them.

You approach the front door. There's a large glass front to the place, and you can see people sitting at cafe tables, enjoying a book, some good conversation and an excellent brew. The place looks clean, classy, and fun. You enter, and approach the counter. As you do, you notice the space opens up behind the cafe where rows of high-end gaming computers are laid out, complete with glass and steel desks, and high-backed leather chairs. The colors are soft and warm, and the subdued lighting creates the feeling you're entering your rich uncle's living room, rather than a commercial space.

Deeper into the establishment we go. There's a comfy-looking conversation pit, with a toasty fireplace. A couple sits in deep conversation. There are bookshelves filled with geeky classics like The Lord of the Rings, Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Starship Troopers, The Acts of Gord, and The Chronicles of Narnia.

There's a quiet-time room with a large oak library table for doing homework, working on that latest D&D module, or anything else that needs a secluded quiet corner. There are private theater rooms showing films like Blade Runner, Kindergarten Cop, The Fifth Element, and The Princess Bride. Groups of friends gathered around large-screen TVs playing DDR or Guitar Hero or even classics like Zelda or Metroid.

A private LAN party is raging in a sound-proofed booth. The occupants are clearly having a riotous frag-fest. A group of Heavy Gear fans are setting up a game on a table nearby. As you turn bak to the front counter, you notice professionally dressed staff serving refreshments to gamers and cafe-goers alike. You order an espresso, and sit at the internet bar at the front windows to surf for a few minutes before leaving this haven and returning to the world outside.

This is the experience I want to sell. This is the atmosphere I want to create. These are the people I want to serve.

If I build it, will they come?