Armadale publicans Jarrod Lahooti and Craig Hutchinson have a history as keen board gamers and have now decided to bring that passion into their business.
Since the middle of last year, their pub, Barrelhouse Armadale, has featured a stall dedicated to the sale of card and tabletop games, called Diablo’s Vault.
“I’ve been in the hospitality industry for 20 years and run multiple pubs and venues across Perth. I’ve owned Barrelhouse Armadale for six. My father was a publican since the early 80s and I grew up in pubs myself, and as soon as I turned 18, I sort of joined him and then, you know, 20 years has gone by,” owner of Barrelhouse Armadale and Diablo’s Vault, Mr Lahooti, said.
Barrelhouse Armadale is a popular venue based inside Armadale Central Shopping Centre.
A regular host of local events, the venue even featured Armadale Mayor Ruth Butterfield on Australia Day.
“I’ve been involved in some form of gaming my whole life, starting with collecting Pokemon cards in the 1990s. I’m big on the tabletop and video games as well, like my General Manager Craig. When we started our stall inside the pub selling gaming items, some people were a bit confused, but after strong positive community feedback, we decided to keep going with it,” Mr Lahooti said.
Some of the games and materials related to them that can be purchased at Diablo’s Vault include Warhammer, Magic: The Gathering, Pokemon and Riffbound.
The two describe the undertaking as having been very successful and having a major positive impact on the business as a whole.
Barrelhouse Armadale features several regular events related to gaming, including an upcoming one geared towards disadvantaged locals seeking to network.
However, most significantly, an event called ‘The Hills Have Dice’ was hosted as part of Armadale Arts Festival, attracting a huge crowd of avid gamers from the area and beyond.
“This was a gaming initiative brought to us. It was an idea that the Armadale Council had, and then they reached out to our friend Nick Petrou at Tabletop Freo. He actually suggested that they run it at Barrelhouse. So, in collaboration, with Tabletop Freo, we got the event going.
“On May 2, we had Dungeon and Dragons, Magic the Gathering, Warhammer Kill Team, Magic Draft and Flesh and Blood, all popular games at the moment. It ran from nine to five, and about 150 people came. It was packed throughout the day. Once people came, they pretty much didn’t leave until day’s end, when we gave out prizes.
“Tabletop Freo was extremely helpful as well, as they provided game judges and other staff to support the event. We’re also immensely grateful for community support,” said Mr Lahooti.
General Manager Craig Hutchinson, a fellow gaming enthusiast, also felt that the event was a great success.
“It was wonderful because it got our name out to the local community. We had a lot of individuals from gaming societies coming through in the past that didn’t realise what we’ve just started to do,” Mr Hutchinson said.
“They’ve since reached out and it’s helped them to find a place to host their events. ‘The Hills Have Dice’ was great for networking. Essentially, it was to get community gamers who wanted to find somewhere to play a game, but didn’t necessarily have one, to come in and have somewhere to play as well. We’re planning on doing the same event next year.”
Mr Lahooti and Mr Hutchinson are excited going into the future, hoping that their venue will become even better recognised as a spot for a good night out, be it for dinner, a drink, a game night or, of course, all three together.
