There are those of us that believe Valentine’s Day is a tradition that most associate with flowers, chocolate, teddy bears, and lots of pink and red hearts. Then there are those of us who believe any holiday is a great time to try a new craft beer joint. This year I traded in overpriced fine dining and flowers for fantastic bar food and tokens.
Twincade is an arcade, restaurant, and bar. I list all three entities separate because I don’t believe it is simply “an arcade bar,” because they represent each entity incredibly well. The game selection has all of the greats: PacMan, Mario Kart, Mortal Kombat, The House of the Dead, and plenty of pinball machines. The food menu has every type of bar food a Region Rat could dream of. Finally, the bar has a great mix of quality drafts, home-infused spirits, and specialty cocktails. This play-space is located in downtown Griffith, Indiana off of Broad Street and is an ever-growing staple to the downtown community. Interestingly it is a family friendly joint every day until 9PM, but remains open for the adult crowd until 2AM.
Through social media I discovered that this gem was running a Valentine’s Day special. The package included 2 beer flights, an appetizer, a heart-shaped pizza, tokens, and dessert for ONLY $35 per couple. This is a true steal considering that a quality bouquet of roses (which die in days anyway) would cost more.
After trying some of their incredible specialty cocktails and playing several rounds of Frogger, we sat down for to enjoy our V-day feast. I was not expecting the special to come with about 40 tokens, which at this arcade is a ton of gaming since most machines require 1 token. On top of that I also had a Tasting Society offer that got us another 4, plus if you check-in on Facebook that gives you another 4. We played several rounds of games and STILL had tokens to bring back for the next time we go.
There were plenty of other couples partaking in the special as well, which led to a shortage of beer paddles for flights. This worked in our favor since the staff profusely apologized and let us substitute whatever we wanted for our beverages. Instead of a flight I was able to get a full pint of Windmill’s Yes Dear, a raspberry wheat ale that was light, crisp, and perfect for this holiday. BAE got a Christmas Mule (Tito’s vodka, mint, ginger beer, and lime) in place of a beer. Another great perk of this dinner was that there were no restrictions on what type of appetizer or pizza to get. The loaded tater tots and BLT pizza left us pleasantly plump and each with full to-go boxes for lunch the next day. The brownie sundae topped with pink and red sprinkles was exactly the right amount of chocolates and hearts to complete the holiday.
Valentine’s Day at Twincade had all the right things: quality entertainment, fantastic drinks, and delicious food. It was a no-brainer decision to trade in candy hearts for a heart-shaped pizza. Aside from special holiday events, Twincade offers tap takeovers, gaming tournaments, and weekend brunch. Be sure to check out their Facebook and event calendar located on their website at www.Twincade.com.
