The Final Day in Tallinn: Burgers, ‘bit’ of Sunshine, and a Free Ride to Malta
We kept it a scret all along! A final tournament that is called NLH Sunday Brunch, a tournament that we haven't included in the menu before in the history of The Festival. Where people were expecting to have cards in the air at 13:00 local time, they got a surprise served!
At 12:45 PM, the tournament floor was half-empty. No one was rushing to their seats. Instead, a crowd of players were gathered outside around a food truck, burgers in hand, squinting up at a sky that actually decided to show up for once. This wasn't your usual "sit down and shove" opener. This was the NLH Sunday Brunch, and the name wasn't just for show.
The twist: tournament clock said 13:00 start, but cards didn't hit the felt until 14:00. That first hour wasn't for early-level aggression, it was for eating. The Festival team rolled in a proper burger wagon with juicy patties, fresh buns, and cold drinks, for everyone who'd registered from the start.
I went myself as well to try out this nice brunch. When walking outside, quite the players were enjoying a nice burger, either pork or vegan. Nevertheless, they look a bit surprised when it all happened. Because where do you find this elsewhere? Usually it's just sitting down at the table when you enter, doesn't matter if you have eaten before or not, and it all goes by itself. Now people actually enjoyed first, talked with each other, and this also immediately shows the atmosphere at the tables when the tournament really actually started.
Now, the tournament itself is a solid €200 NLH, standard blinds, standard structure. But someone at The Festival sprinkled extra glitter on top: they added a €1,600 package to the prize pool for the next stop in Malta (September 14–20). Not a satellite. Not a discount. A full-on, all-included deal, buy-in, accommodation, hospitality package, just gifted into the pool. One young Estonian player triple-checked his phone, then looked at me wide open eyes: "Wait, if I final-table this, I could be in Malta in two months if I manage to win it? For free?"
Look, I've written about a lot of tournaments. Some are clinical, some are sweaty, some are just math problems with chips. But this Sunday Brunch had soul. It reminded me why I fell in love with this game in the first place. Not for solvers or ICM charts, but for the moments between the hands. The random conversations. It's what makes the poker world a very nice place to be part of.
As I write this, the tournament is already in the middle stages of the late reg. The food truck is gone, the plates are cleared, and soft drink cups are now card protectors. Win or lose, everyone who showed up today got a story, a free meal, and a genuine reason to look forward to September in Malta.
So if you're reading this from your couch.. yeah, you missed a good one. But The Festival moves on. And if this is the new standard – brunch, burgers, and bonus packages – I can't wait for the next brunch!
