It’s game on at a new bar on 14th Street offering arcade panels from the eighties and takeout Shake Shack.
Player’s Club, a new bar and arcade located in the basement of 1400 14th St. NW, opened its doors Monday. The bar offers a low-key, retro atmosphere and features pinball machines and old-school arcade video games like Gauntlet and Ms. Pac-Man.
Entrance to the bar resembles a renovated basement with posters of old bands plastered on the entrance downstairs and a sledgehammered brick arch. Eighties tunes, like Paula Abdul and Talking Heads, ring through the space on a jukebox situated next to a booth for a DJ.
The energy and crowd was quite lively for a Monday night, and it may have been the friendly competition on the games that boosted their energy.
Tetris, Galaga and Ms. Pac-Man are some of the many retro game offerings. The walls hold a trove of decor from a suburb of the seventies. Old movie posters, geometric wallpaper and joysticks are strewn about shelves throughout the space.
Player’s Club blends its seventies aesthetic with more recognizable millennial games. These include cult-favorites like the X-Men sidescroller and Gauntlet. Many of these games have four button sets or wheels to cooperatively play with friends.
You can also throw down solo at franchise-specific pinball booths, or take down friends at a game of classic Mortal Kombat. Make sure to bring coins at the door, or pick them up from the change machine that accepts up to $20 bills. Most games are about $1 to play.
Two sets of high stools are located along the walls facing the pool tables, with another set facing an array of game machines. An entire section of the space is devoted to more table settings, with sofas and dining chairs to lounge in. Card decks and board games are also available for those who want to skip the electronics.
If you’re nostalgic about boardwalk and carnival games after years in the District, then more active booths like basketball stalls, foosball, pool and skee ball await you.
The three-sided bar serves drinks until 2 a.m. every night except Friday, when it closes at 3 a.m. Order from an assortment of $12 to $13 cocktails, try draft or canned beers for $4 to $10 or buy wine from the glass for $7 to $8.
Patrons can also order burgers and dogs inside the bar from the Shake Shack next door until 10:30 p.m.
Attendees may have to call in advance to play on one of the three pool tables, but everything else was relatively open. How this will fair on the weekend is unknown, as Player’s Club may become a new staple in the D.C. bar scene when your crew needs to duke it out over a game or two.
Millennials may have special memories of trips to arcades, but now you can get your booze on while reliving the good old days.
