Black Forest Brooklyn (Smith Street) – Cobble Hill – Tuesdays @ 7:30 (NYC Trivia League)

The Trivia: This is an NYC Trivia League event, which means that it is the same trivia experience as almost every other bar that hosts trivia with NYC Trivia League. One person on your team scans a QR code to join digitally, and you answer all the questions on a website. There are five rounds of 8-10 questions, with occasional audio and picture rounds thrown in. There is a time limit for each question, so you have to come up with the answer quickly, which can sometimes be stressful.

Answering on an app is my least favorite way to do trivia. I have such fond memories of having long debates about single questions in a ten-question round, going back and forth about what to write down, second and third guessing your answers after you hand in your sheet, followed by the anticipation as the host reveals the answers one by one. The way NYC Trivia League runs their events lacks these moments. I understand logistically why they do it this way, as they run a season-long competition for regular teams, but the result is that much of the charm of a bar trivia night is missing. Answering questions on an app rather than paper brings back memories of virtual trivia nights during the pandemic, which is not really something I want to revisit. I can see how some might find this way of doing trivia appealing. For those that can’t wait to find out the answer or who are really excited about participating with a regular team in a season long trivia competition, NYC Trivia League events check both of those boxes, so if that’s you, find one of their many locations and get to it.

Now let’s talk about the questions: they’re average. A few good ones thrown in, but very few are sticking out in my mind as having inspired fun, thoughtful discussion. A good trivia question shouldn’t be answered quickly. It should be arrived at by using clues in the questions or the category to find pathways to the correct answer. The best questions are the ones that you’re never really sure are correct until the host reveals the answer. Those are few and far between here, and you can expect similar levels of quality at any NYC Trivia League event.

First place team gets a $50 gift card e-mailed to them. Second place gets $25. Third place gets a round of drink/shots.

The Venue: Black Forest is a German restaurant, so you’ve got plenty of pretzels, schnitzel, spatzel (all the ‘zels’), all the wursts, and plenty of German braus on tap. A respectable selection of seasonal cocktails rounds out the menu. The food is quite tasty and really ups the experience. There is a big outdoor section, but I don’t think you can play trivia out there, which means all the teams are sort of scrunched into the center room, meaning you will likely be sharing a communal table with one or two other teams also playing trivia, so get your whispering voices ready. Get there early to grab a good spot.