The owner of a Scott’s Addition bar-arcade has brought another entertainment venue to the neighborhood.
Slingshot Social Game Club, a restaurant/bar/gaming venue, opens today at 1304 MacTavish Ave.
It’s owned by Robert Lupica, a former Sweet Frog franchisee who also owns The Circuit Arcade Bar a few blocks over at 3121 W. Leigh St. Circuit will continue business as usual.
Whereas Circuit focuses on old-school video games and pinball machines, Slingshot features three main games: skeeball, bocce and duckpin bowling, each with a twist.
Spokesman Tion Edwards said Slingshot’s “Superskee” features bigger lanes and balls than traditional skeeball, and is scored similar to bowling.
“It’s a play on classic arcade skeeball,” Edwards said. “We had to build the lanes ourselves. It’s unique to Slingshot.”
While Slingshot beefed up traditional skeeball, it shrunk down bowling for duckpin. It uses shorter lanes, smaller pins and smaller balls for a faster type of bowling.
“It’s like bowling but with faster lanes and set-up, and people don’t need to rent (bowling) shoes,” Edwards said.
Last, Edwards said their take on bocce includes a sensor and video system that automatically scores and measures each ball thrown.
“With the original bocce, the crucial part is measuring just how close your ball is (compared to) your competitor’s,” Edwards said. “With ours we’ve made it all automatic scoring. We have a system that tells you by itself so there’s no reason to break out the tape measure.”
Costs per person are $3 per skeeball game, $3 per 30 minutes of bocce and $5 for 10 frames of duckpin. Edwards said they’re planning to set up leagues for each game by year-end.
Large beer selection
One thing Slingshot does have in common with The Circuit is its self-serve beer wall outfitted with 42 taps, most of which will be from local breweries, Edwards said.
Slingshot also has a full bar and a full food menu featuring wings, flatbreads, burgers and appetizers.
At 10,000 square feet, Slingshot is larger than The Circuit (6,300 square feet) and has capacity for about 350 to 400 people, Edwards said.
Lynx Ventures’ Rick Gregory owns the 116,000-square-foot building Slingshot shares with Riverside P.A.C.E.
Slingshot is closed Mondays and open until 11 p.m. Tuesdays through Thursdays, 1 a.m. Fridays and Saturdays, and 10 p.m. Sundays. It becomes 21-and-up after 7 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, and 9 p.m. the rest of the week.
Scott’s Addition has become a hot spot for entertainment/bar crossovers in recent years.
The Circuit, which opened in 2017, was followed shortly by bowling alley and music venue River City Roll at 939 Myers St., shuffleboard bar Tang & Biscuit at 3406 W. Moore St. and arcade-brewery-restaurant combo Bingo Beer Co. at 2900 W. Broad St.
Also, a group of former Circuit managers recently opened retro video games store DawnStar Games at 1507 Altamont Ave. in the neighborhood.
The owner of a Scott’s Addition bar-arcade has brought another entertainment venue to the neighborhood.
Slingshot Social Game Club, a restaurant/bar/gaming venue, opens today at 1304 MacTavish Ave.
It’s owned by Robert Lupica, a former Sweet Frog franchisee who also owns The Circuit Arcade Bar a few blocks over at 3121 W. Leigh St. Circuit will continue business as usual.
Whereas Circuit focuses on old-school video games and pinball machines, Slingshot features three main games: skeeball, bocce and duckpin bowling, each with a twist.
Spokesman Tion Edwards said Slingshot’s “Superskee” features bigger lanes and balls than traditional skeeball, and is scored similar to bowling.
“It’s a play on classic arcade skeeball,” Edwards said. “We had to build the lanes ourselves. It’s unique to Slingshot.”
While Slingshot beefed up traditional skeeball, it shrunk down bowling for duckpin. It uses shorter lanes, smaller pins and smaller balls for a faster type of bowling.
“It’s like bowling but with faster lanes and set-up, and people don’t need to rent (bowling) shoes,” Edwards said.
Last, Edwards said their take on bocce includes a sensor and video system that automatically scores and measures each ball thrown.
“With the original bocce, the crucial part is measuring just how close your ball is (compared to) your competitor’s,” Edwards said. “With ours we’ve made it all automatic scoring. We have a system that tells you by itself so there’s no reason to break out the tape measure.”
Costs per person are $3 per skeeball game, $3 per 30 minutes of bocce and $5 for 10 frames of duckpin. Edwards said they’re planning to set up leagues for each game by year-end.
Large beer selection
One thing Slingshot does have in common with The Circuit is its self-serve beer wall outfitted with 42 taps, most of which will be from local breweries, Edwards said.
Slingshot also has a full bar and a full food menu featuring wings, flatbreads, burgers and appetizers.
At 10,000 square feet, Slingshot is larger than The Circuit (6,300 square feet) and has capacity for about 350 to 400 people, Edwards said.
Lynx Ventures’ Rick Gregory owns the 116,000-square-foot building Slingshot shares with Riverside P.A.C.E.
Slingshot is closed Mondays and open until 11 p.m. Tuesdays through Thursdays, 1 a.m. Fridays and Saturdays, and 10 p.m. Sundays. It becomes 21-and-up after 7 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, and 9 p.m. the rest of the week.
Scott’s Addition has become a hot spot for entertainment/bar crossovers in recent years.
The Circuit, which opened in 2017, was followed shortly by bowling alley and music venue River City Roll at 939 Myers St., shuffleboard bar Tang & Biscuit at 3406 W. Moore St. and arcade-brewery-restaurant combo Bingo Beer Co. at 2900 W. Broad St.
Also, a group of former Circuit managers recently opened retro video games store DawnStar Games at 1507 Altamont Ave. in the neighborhood.
As someone who loves Boules (Bocce with smaller metal balls instead of wooden ones) I doubt I will ever entirely trust the auto measuring system. Honestly measuring is part of the fun but in a setting like this I understand the value of moving things along. Cool concept and space, looking forward to checking it out.