Trial by Fire

Trial by Fire is a fast-paced party card game in which players become chefs vying to impress a rotating restaurant critic. Each round the critic sets a culinary brief by selecting a thematic Restaurant Critic card. Chefs simultaneously refine their hands of Ingredient cards—discarding and redrawing in search of the perfect flavour combination—before calling “Service!” to present a dish. Judgement hinges on three criteria: creativity, effective use of ingredients, and overall execution. The critic awards their card to the chef whose dish best meets the brief; roles then rotate and a new round begins. Play continues until one chef has amassed the agreed number of critic cards, thereby earning victory. Optional variants (Speed Round, Restaurant Wars, Secret Ingredient, and Mystery Box) add timed play, team menus, compulsory ingredients, or surprise components, keeping the game fresh across sessions. —description from the designer