Barcade is a chain of arcade bars with locations in the northeastern United States, Los Angeles, and Detroit. First opened in Brooklyn on October 1, 2004, the venues feature a mix of classic video games and pinball and serve American craft beers.
The first Barcade opened in 2004[1] in a former metal shop at 388 Union Avenue in the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn, and features a combination of vintage arcade games and American craft beers.[2] The company is owned and operated by four long-time friends: brothers Kevin Beard and Scott Beard, Pete Langway and Paul Kermizian (director of American Beer).[3]
The combination of classic video games and craft beer proved successful, and the brand expanded into Jersey City, New Jersey,[4] and the Fishtown neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.[5] Barcade later opened two locations in Manhattan, including a location in St. Mark's Place.[6] Over the next two years, locations opened in New Haven, Connecticut[7] and Newark, New Jersey.[8] In the summer of 2017 plans were announced for two new locations that would expand the company to Detroit, Michigan[9] and Los Angeles, California.[10] The Los Angeles location opened in May 2019.[11] After a long delay due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Detroit location opened in August 2021.[12] The location in Newark, New Jersey became the first in the company's history to close, when it shuttered in September, 2022.[13] The company opened a second Philadelphia location in Center City, Philadelphia in December 2023 in the ground floor of the ornate, Gothic-style Hale Building, designed by Willis G. Hale in 1887.[14] The Jersey City, New Jersey location closed in the spring of 2025 when the lease ended and the building was set for redevelopment.[15]Later that year, the company opened a third location in Manhattan on Cortlandt Street (Manhattan)[16]in part of the former Century 21 (department store) flagship location.[17]
In the summer of 2024, Barcade partnered with Rockefeller Center and ran a family friendly pop-up arcade in the ice rink's skate hut. The pop-up ran from June until the end of September.[18]
Barcade registered its name as a federal trademark in 2007, and has successfully defended it in court,[19][20] while also becoming well known for aggressively pursuing any infringements on the mark.[21]
A number of world record holders for classic games frequent the Brooklyn Barcade location, including Hank Chien, who set the world record in Donkey Kong with a score of 1,061,700 in March 2010.[22] George Leutz set the world record on Q*bert in February 2013 with a score of 37,163,080 after spending years practicing on the machine in Brooklyn's Barcade.[23] Joshua Lombay set the world record for the 1984 Midway game Timber in June 2013 with a score of 9,767,550 after having discovered the game and playing for the first time at Barcade in Brooklyn.[24]
In June 2021, the Barcade location on St. Mark's Place in Manhattan was the site of a rare public date between Rihanna and ASAP Rocky.[25] The bar received some unwanted attention for checking the couple's IDs before eventually allowing them entry.[26]
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