EAST VILLAGE — AtBarcade’s new St. Mark’s location, the ’90s are back — at least when it comes to the video games.
About 30 games from the decade — including classics like “Rampage: World Tour” and “Street Fighter II” — will be available to play when the combination bar and arcade opens its second Manhattan location next week at St. Mark’s Place near Third Avenue.
“What’ll be very different about this location is that we’ll have mostly ’90s games, where usually, the ’80s is more of our focus,” said co-owner Paul Kermizian.
Other gaming highlights include two Neo Geo machines, which allow players to choose from multiple games within each arcade cabinet, and “Moonwalker,” a game that features pop legend Michael Jackson dressed in a suit and fedora.
“You play Michael Jackson and you’re saving children. And you do dance moves as your special power,” Kermizian said. Barcade will announce the rest of the game lineup on Friday via its iPhone app, he said.
Barcade — which has locations in Chelsea, Williamsburg, Jersey City and Philadelphia — will also have 24 American craft beers on tap and serve three to five different wines.
Its owners agreed not to serve hard liquor after neighbors voiced their concerns about rowdy late-drinkers during a community board meeting in June.
The 2,200-square-foot space will seat about 50 people, Kermizian said, and offer a menu that’s similar to its Chelsea location, which features pub grub like burgers and sandwiches.
The menu will also have food offerings specific to the East Village location, like a roasted chicken banh mi sandwich and a New Jersey-style “fat sandwich” called the “Fat St. Mark’s.” The substantial sub is stuffed with fried chicken breast, pulled pork, French fries, cheese sauce, lettuce, tomato and fried egg, Kermizian said.
He said he was excited to open on St. Mark’s Place, in the same building that once housed a Kim’s Video, which he visited often when he first moved to the city in 1998.
‘Moonwalker’ Arcade Gameplay
“It’s just cool to be in the same space and to try [to] be here for a while, hopefully catering to the same nerdy, geeky crowd they did, just gamers instead of movie nerds,” Kermizian said.
Barcade, located at 6 St. Mark’s Place, will be open from noon to 2 a.m. daily, starting Oct. 8.
SOURCE: DNA
