⇄⇄ Direction card · how it works

A mid-week night actually worth waiting for.

After the big parties we wanted something small. One table, 25 people, a different theme every time, in the same Hod Hasharon garden. Fewer speakers, more talking.

1Wednesday, every few weeksDoors 7:30pm, ends 10:30pm. You go to sleep on time and show up to work with a story.

2A different game every timeThis time it's Taki. Next up: poker, a deck we write together, and whatever you vote for.

3You vote what's nextThe morning after each night, a poll goes up in the WhatsApp group. The community picks the next theme.

And why isn't it awkward? Because there's no moment where you stand around holding a glass scanning for someone to talk to. The draw seats you, the cards give you something to yell about, and we walk around with the bottle making sure nobody's missing anything. The game does the heavy lifting.

1
🃏1
🃏 Up next · Wed, Aug 5

A Taki championship. Yes, seriously. No, not seriously.

Never played Taki? It's Israel's national card game: think UNO, but with more shouting. We draw tables of 4, play short rounds, winners climb the bracket. Between rounds we spin the house-rules wheel and everything you just learned flips. The final: a crown, the Garden Champion sash, and eternal glory in the WhatsApp group.

7:30pm Doors open. First glass of wine poured (soft drinks too), snacks on the table, meet whoever's next to you.
8:00pm Opening whistle. Table draw, cards in the air.
between The house-rules wheel spins. Don't call us, the rules are the rules.
9:45pm The final, on the center table, everyone around it.
10:15pm Coronation, victory photos, and home at a reasonable hour.

You don't need to be good at Taki. You need to show up. The rules take 3 minutes to learn, and nobody sees the wheel coming anyway. Losing loudly at Taki is, honestly, the fastest Israeli integration program in the country.

🍷 free-flowing wine all night 👑 crown + Garden Champion sash 🏆 a ridiculous trophy, passed on 🥨 giant Bamba + pity prizes

Want a taste? Spin the wheel:

✔✔ Our insurance card

Didn't love it? Your money comes back.

Seriously, these are all the terms: come, play, drink wine. If by the end of the night it wasn't worth your money, tell Shay one sentence on the way out and get the full price back. No questions, no forms, no faces.

And it's not because we're heroes. It's just that at our parties here, nobody has ever asked. If someone does, we'll pay with a smile. A slightly sad smile, but a smile.

And separately: cancel up to 24 hours before = automatic full refund.

+2+2 The +2 card · bringing friends?

The +2 card works on us too.

Coming solo? Great, that's how most of the table arrives, and the draw mixes everyone anyway. Got a friend who needs this exactly as much as you? Just write how many you are in the form and we'll keep your seats together, for the first round only. After that, sorry, the bracket separates you.

★★ Super Taki · what's coming

This is just the first card in the deck.

After every night, a poll in the group. Already on the table:

soonPoker NightLearn from zero, with nobody mansplaining the rules. Chips, not money.

votingCards Against the GardenHalf the night writing the deck, half the night playing it. The cards stay forever.

votingSwap NightEveryone's closet, a styling corner, and a polaroid for every haul.

♥♥ Whose garden is this

Real hosts, not strangers from the internet.

Same garden and same hosts as The Garden Social parties, which already brought together dozens of people who came alone and left with a WhatsApp group that won't shut up. These are our faces, and you can google us before you come.

ShayThe host. Runs the night, makes sure nobody's left out of round one, and pours wine better than he plays Taki.

AvigailThe host. The first familiar face for everyone who arrives solo, and the supreme court for house-rules-wheel appeals.

✋✋

STOP

House rules. No wheel for these.

Coming alone is the default here, not the exception. Nobody gets stuck on the side.
The wine is free, the responsibility is yours: free soft drinks too, Wednesday pace, and drivers tell us at the door.
Phones down during games. Victory photos only.
The exact address is sent on WhatsApp after you sign up. It's a real home, not a venue.
18+ only.
Cancel up to 24 hours before: full refund, no questions, no faces.

?? Questions people ask before taking a card

Wait, I have questions.

I'm coming alone. Is that weird?

The opposite, that's the whole idea. Most of the table arrives solo, and the draw does the introductions for you. By round two you'll have a sworn rival and at least one partner in crime. Come alone, trust us.

I've never even played Taki.

Perfect. Taki is Israel's national card game, basically UNO with shouting, and every Israeli learned it at age six. Learning it now, at a garden table, is the single fastest way to feel local. The rules take 3 minutes, the accent takes longer.

My Hebrew is... basic.

You're covered. The hosts speak English, the table will have a mix of internationals and friendly locals, and honestly the game itself needs about four Hebrew words, three of which are "STOP". Shouting is universal.

What if it's awkward?

That's exactly why there's a game in your hands: nobody has to "open a conversation" when there are cards on the table and a wheel forcing everyone to sing. And if you still didn't love it, the money comes back on your way out. The only awkward thing left is explaining why you didn't come.

Competitive vibes aren't my thing.

Not ours either, honestly. The prizes are a giant Bamba and a plastic crown, and the unofficial rule of the night: whoever laughs hardest wins, trophy or not. There's always one person who takes it seriously, and the wheel was invented precisely for them.

40₪ for a card game night?

40₪ for a night that includes free-flowing wine, snacks, a tournament with prizes, and 24 new people. One bottle of wine at a bar costs more than the whole ticket. And that's still the pre-bird price: from July 31 it's 50₪. If it wasn't worth it, money back. Hard to lose here.

Who even are you? A stranger's house sounds sketchy.

Totally fair, we wouldn't buy a ticket to some random's house either. So: we're Shay and Avigail, the hosts of The Garden Social, with parties of dozens of people behind us in this exact garden. Photos above, we're googleable, and you can just WhatsApp us before deciding. A human answers, not a bot.

Who comes to these?

Mostly ages 24-33 from the Sharon area, women and men, locals and internationals, 25 seats total. Basically: nice people who are tired of Wednesdays having no plans.

When does it end? I have work tomorrow.

Doors 7:30pm, coronation 10:15pm, garden lights off at 10:30pm. By 11 you're in bed, and we promise not to tempt you to stay. That's the whole point of Wednesday: a full night out that doesn't bill you tomorrow morning.

I don't drink.

Great, more wine for the rest. Seriously though: soft drinks are just as free-flowing, nobody counts glasses and nobody asks why. The game is the center, not the bar. Your seat is worth exactly the same.

Where is it exactly? Is there parking?

A private garden in Hod Hasharon, 5 minutes off Road 4, quiet street, easy free parking. The exact address comes on WhatsApp after you sign up, because it's Shay's actual home, not an events hall.

And if I need to cancel?

Up to 24 hours before: full refund, no questions. Less than that, we'll pass your ticket to the next night if we can fill the seat. And separately, if you came and didn't love it, the money comes back at the exit. The risk is ours, the fun is yours.

None of my friends come to things like this.

We know, that's why most of the table arrives without their friends. This is exactly where you find the friends who do come to things like this. Most of the good people we know got here the same way: they showed up once, alone. And if you do have that one friend, the +2 card is above.

TAKI
CHAMPIONSHIP