This place is awesome, and a lot of fun.
I really enjoyed playing the older arcade games. The prices (25-50 cents for many of the games) were nice, you don't feel robbed. The staff was pleasant. It was extremely loud in there, but I'm not sure what they can do about that.
I had low expectations for the food, but the pizza was fantastic. I had the PacMan Pepperoni and it was quite cute, and very delicious. I loved all the details, paper plates, plastic pitchers of soda, and in general the eye candy of the older, well-loved but well-maintained games and just the nostalgia overall.
I knocked off a point because the eating areas could have been cleaner, the tables were gross and dirty with dishes/pizza toppings and grease/used napkins on them, whoever sat there previously didn't bus it themselves and were supposed to, or the staff wasn't paying attention. If they want people to bus their own tables they should clearly indicate that, otherwise be more vigilant.
Overall, though, really enjoyed coming here and will definitely return!
Ugh why even call this place a bar? it is more of an arcade that happens to serve beer...total disappointment...I felt like I was at a "tilt" arcade in a mall or something...nothing about this place says "hey lets get a buzz and have fun"...an utter disappointment...I was expecting more bar less arcade...what I got was more arcade MUCH LESS bar...do yourself a favor and stick to Dave and Busters if you really feel the need to drink and play games simultaneously.
Review Source:Dorky's is such a hoot. Â The games are quite varied & they change them out frequently. I can always count on them to be in good working order too. Â The games are my main reason for coming, but the food is also good. Â We have gotten their veggie sandwich & portobello sandwich, both of which were excellent. Â They have a large beer selection, in bottles. It's tons of fun, and it will be even better when the Pacific Avenue construction is done.
Review Source:Holy crap guys. Louder does not always equal better.
I love the extensive and well maintained collection of games. The selection of brews is fantastic. I'd have stayed til closing! Except...
You need a competent sound person. Like, before you started booking DJs. It was physically painful to be in some corners of the place, even with earplugs in. Eardrum shredding highs paired with too little bass equals me leaving a couple hours earlier than I might have otherwise, and never coming back unless I hear you've fixed that garbage.
I'm glad we have this place. I miss the old arcades. Trivia nights are a lot of fun if you go with a few friends. The game selection leaves a little to be desired for me. They have mostly old school stuff which is cool but I like newer games too. More racing games please. The pinball games are kind of clunky and seem to eat quarters really fast. The temperature is usually too hot, but a cold one helps with that. There isn't much seating and the overall place feels cramped, but for an arcade you can't really beat it.
Review Source:I had a ton of fun here on a Tuesday night. Really enjoyed the chicken soft tacos and the malt liquor margarita drink I got since I'm not a big beer drinker and they are pretty much strictly beers. They had games I hadn't seen since I was a kid so it was awesome pretty much. Only reason they lost a star is because my favorite games were right by their kitchen so it was burning up. Not a huge issue, just uncomfortable.
Review Source:My hopes were higher than my experience. Â I actually went after viewing this youtube video of the place:
<a href="/redir?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DWu9o_rU0fM8&s=c24d3e27f57bae12092f181b9a29bdeb2b07232519b1c596e377cafc8687b7e7" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://www.youtube.com/w…</a>
The food and bar place was tucked in the corner, and it just didn't seem to inviting, but I was there for the games anyway. Â
Lots of games which is great right? Â However, in my opinion, there was just so much sound etc. going on that you really couldn't enjoy the game you were playing. Â In fact I didn't enjoy a pinball game I played at Dorky's, which I enjoyed years ago. Â I played it again at a place after my Dorky's experience where there were less games/noise and enjoyed it again. Â
A few of the games I wanted to play were out of service or twitchy, but that's to be expected. Â
Some of the staff were know-it-alls. Â Not exactly rude, but just a bit condescending.
In closing I'd definitely recommend anyone check it out, just for the sake of seeing all the pinball games etc., but they could improve on the layout and their friendliness.
Some of my favorite pinball games (they have tons) they have are:
Star Wars (Data East)
Indiana Jones
Twilight Zone
My family and I went here in hopes of getting a bite to eat before the Weird Al concert and were VERY impressed by the amount of video games, but couldn't for the life of us figure out how to place an order for food! Â Once we DID find the tiny counter for supposedly interacting with the bartender, we were pushed out of the way by a drunken customer who wanted to "talk" and we figured it would be easier/happier to walk up the street to Subway *shudder*. Â Not really as kid-friendly or family-friendly as some comments lead me to believe, I think they would do MUCH better to just focus on the BAR angle and steer away from getting listed under "Family Friendly" or "Restaurant" status. Â If I had been going here having had a BAR recommended to me, I would have given it a 5... but as a Family Friendly Restaurant? Â Lucky to get a 2 :(
Review Source:Dorky's is a great arcade for you spend some time wasting away quarters and drinking some beer.
I went for a second time this past weekend with a friend and we had a blast. They have an excellent selection of pinball games (Dr Who, Indian Jones, South Park etc) for 50 cents each and classic video games (Tron, Zookeeper, DigDug etc) for about 25 cents each. They do have some more recent games but you will not find those stupid ticket games here. This arcade is an arcade for gamers.
They have a good selection of beers and they also have food for purchase (I only got a bag of chips but I did see many people eating pizza).
The best part is that at 9 pm it becomes 21 only so the arcade gets a lot quieter. Then you can settle in to play some serious games and get that high score. I really enjoy Dorky's and cant wait to go back!
Okay, who doesn't love hunching over an arcade cabinet stuffing quarters into its gaping maw frantically so you don't lose your continue countdown while your friend battles the boss? Â Because I don't like you. Â No, seriously. Â Stop reading my review, we are not friends. Â For everyone else, Dorky's is completely awesome. Â The only thing that would make it even more awesome is if everything was only .25cents per game... what? Â It is? Â Well then I think that makes it pretty official: Dorky's is amazing. Â They have a really impressive selection of games, including:
Dance Dance (not sure which one because they're all the same to me)
House of the Dead
Street Fighter(s)
Guitar Hero Arcade
Simpsons
PacMan (4-player)
X-Men (6 players!)
Fruit Ninja
Mario Brothers (yes... a Mario Brothers arcade... I honestly didn't even know such a thing existed)
Q*Bert
Tons of pinball machines
and more!
It seems like they rotate things in and out, because some of the things above (X-Men) were not there last time I visited.
Two things I definitely appreciate: these games all seem to be set on easy/normal, or at least not insanely hard so you aren't dying every other hit, and  these older machines will sometimes gobble quarters and refuse to register it - this has happened to us both times we've been here and both times, we've just been told to go to the bar and ask for a refund.  It's that simple.  They're really great about not making you feel like you're trying to get a free game (but I mean, they're a quarter... come on...)
They also have a bar area where you can order drinks or food (having never tried either I can't comment). Â I've seen people with candy, chips and pizzas. Â But hopefully you didn't come here for food, because that would be silly. :D
Dorky's is the ultimate gaming destination. Â 1980s video games are still a quarter after all of these years and pinball games are a mere 50 cents. Â There are literally over a 100 vintage games here to explore. Â Dorky's is half a destination and half a museum. Enjoy!
There is no second in all of Puget Sound. Â With 100 beers and good and cheap pizza, what is not to love? Â
10 times cheaper and 20 times more fun than Chuckie Cheese!
I until recently would have had loads of positive things about this place... However Tonight I took my wife and 2 kids here for a great night of cheap pizza and vintage video games.. After ordering our food and a couple of beers we turned the kids loose with 30.00 in quarters and when our pizza showed up we made the kids eat a couple of pieces and then they headed off my wife and I got up to go get two more beers from the bar and covered our pizza with the plates as to protect it from the dirty arcade environment. When we returned THE OWNER of this place who I had met and had discussions of business ideas with had thrown our pizza away... Which I do understand.. I could even see how he might have thought it was garbage... However... When questioned he was indifferent to our complaint was rude to my wife and did not even offer up a half hearted apology... For a small business in Tacoma customer service should be paramount... However this gent has no interest in that.. So if your looking for games... have at it.. but do not expect any form of quality in food drink or customer service.
Review Source:Awesome retro pinball bar that you can bring your kids to as well. More pinball machines of higher quality and worthiness than the average "pinball museum."
Great bar food and a selection of beers equal only to the selection of pinball machines.
I tripped over this place on my way to Expand Yoga, now Yoga followed by a few hours at Dorky's is part of my spiritual routine whenever I am in Tacoma.
The true indicator of how amazing this place is can be seen by the lengthy and obsessional negative reviews seen below. Clearly the writers know they are not worthy of this fine establishment and are lashing out in shame at their own lack of pinball appreciation (and abilities no doubt). Practice, practice, practice.
However, I do find it a bit mysterio that when I offered to show the owner a few of the finer points of pinball play, even challenged her to a friendly competitive game or two, she suddenly had a convention to attend. Hmmmmm. Â Perhaps next time I will offer a game of "flips", perhaps not as threatening to the inner child this place so otherwise nurtures.
As a child of the 80's, this is where I go to re-live my youth. Great selection of games and the sandwich I had there was really tasty! I was so impressed with the place, that I approached the owner about a party I would be throwing for my husband (6 months out). I fully intended to rent out the entire place, but I'm not sure if at the time they normally had such a request because as I was was sharing the details (how many people, the date, etc.) she and her business partner were contradicting each other on the price. I just gave her my information and asked if she would send me a quote. Unfortunately, I never heard from either of them and we moved the party to another venue here in Tacoma. Not sure where the disconnect happened, but I was given the impression of disorganization, or maybe there were just having an off-day?
All that aside, this is a fun place where me & my sister spend hours in front of R-Type. The only suggestion I have is to have a money changer to walk around as we had to leave our battle station and someone else swooped in when we were getting more quarters. This really would be a great feature to those "in the zone"
Been almost 2 years since my last review and this place just gets better. A small business isn't some faceless corporation that will smile while you crap on it. It's full of people that have risked their entire future just to bring you some fun and food. When you insult it you insult someone's life and dream. So yes if they are more paranoid about your child being unsupervised, I say it's completely warranted.
Note: I'm not an owner, just a good customer that has seen the blood, sweat and tears the owners have put into this place. And yes some of the negative comments here have in fact made the staff cry. So while you hide behind a key board insulting people in the safety of your home, some of us get to see the pain it has caused. Sure criticism has it's place. Something is broken, tastes bad, not to your taste, an employee swears at you for no reason, or stuff is just too expensive is all constructive. But don't assume your stuff don't stink because you spend a few dollars somewhere.
I've only been here once before, prior to taking my son.
After many circular discussions about whether he would enjoy this place or not, I finally decided to just TAKE him here. His argument?
Son: "Mom, Dorky's is for dorks."
Me: "No it's not honey. That's just the name."
Son: "And why do you think they named it that, mom? Duh."
Me: "Baby, it's super fun. Trust me."
Son: "I'll bet they have stupid games. If anyone sees me in there, I'll get laughed at."
Me: "That's ridiculous! I went, and *I* didn't get laughed at."
Son: "Yeah, but you're a girl. No one would laugh at you."
Me: "I'm telling you, you'll have fun. I went and I had fun."
Son: "Yeah but you're old. You were born back before computers and all the cool games, so you wouldn't know the difference."
Oh kids...
Upon arriving, I hear the big dramatic sigh of a put-off child as we enter the building. I look over my shoulder to see him rolling his eyes with embarrassment. We get quarters, which are located right inside by the door. We find a seat and order pizza. While munching on said pizza, he looks around and notes, "I guess this isn't so bad... at least their pizza is good." Well, it's a start, you know?
Upon finishing a few slices, he asks if he can scope the place out. He comments about the touch screen "Fruit Ninja" game. He notes "Guitar Hero". He flips over "Mario Bro's" (I tell him that's been around since I was a kid). We play a few multi-player games.
Oh my goodness, what's this: Big brace-faced smiles?? It must be a front. He can't possibly be enjoying himself!
I go to refill our drinks, and the next thing I know he's made not one, but three friends. They are happily running around, giggling, challenging each other to various games. The old lady left in the dust!
But the topper of the whole night was when we were getting ready to leave. He actually BEGGED me if we could stay. W_o_w. And here I thought all this time Dorky's Barcade was just for dorks...
Maybe mom knows something after all, huh? Needless to say, we'll happily be coming back.
Love that I can take my kids here for a fun time, and then take my husband here for a date, during kid free hours.
What a blast from the past, these video games are old school, but SO MUCH FUN!!!!
I felt that the cost of the pizza was a little spendy, but it was so good, and the fact that we had hours of fun, and we hardly spent $15 for 3 people to play games. so I didn't mind spending a little more for the food. Â
Very laid back, and fun.
I'm always looking for places to take my exchange students to, and this is going to have to be a place to take them to, they'll love it!
I think that they can be a little uptight with kids, but I think that they need to be that way to ensure that everyone can all have an enjoyable time.
I'm updating my review with the owner's response. Caroline B. responded;
I am sorry that you don't like our rules, but they are there for safety, not just for the games but for the kids. I always find these complaints from parents weird. We have so many families that come here on a bi-weekly or more basis. They never have issues. The handful of annoyed parents have always tried to bend the rules to their liking. The kids that were 7 years old & younger were to be within arms reach of an adult.... not kept an eye on from across the room. The fingerprint thing- If I see anyone, adult or child is seen putting their hands all over the glass, they are asked to stop. Checking for coins & shaking the coin doors is not allowed. I wasn't yelling, it's just not allowed. Stealing, is stealing, is stealing- if you want your kids to grow up to think it's ok to take something that is not theirs, than that is your choice.
If telling people that we hate kids makes you feel better, but we have enough great, respectable families that come here- more everyday- & I'm sure any of them would disagree with you. We never get bad reviews from honest, good parents- just from self-righteous parents that think they can treat people & their respected businesses any old way they want.
We don't tolerate people who think they make the rules in our business.
Finally- I didn't add new rules- I reiterated some of the more important rules that covered children's safety. If you own a children's center than you should know that there is nothing more serious than the safety of little ones.
I did say hello, welcome to dorky's- but when I go over the rules I try to be serious, it helps the kids understand that it is about their safety.
In the end, I am glad you have decided to not grace our doorway- I do not have time to keep an eye on children of parents that don't really care. I will spend my time worrying about the fun time of all the awesome families that come here- that have NEVER given me any problems.
The customer is always right, except when they are wrong!
MY RESPONSE;
Thank you, Caroline. PARENTS AND CHILDCARE PROVIDERS ... as you can see from the owner's response, she's not child friendly. Again, I urge you to not bring your children here. They are very rude concerning them. Children are not thieves for looking for abandoned quarters... they are opportunists and most parents are aware of this . She states "she always finds the complaints from the parents weird." So, obviously other parents have complained. I urge you to NOT bring your children here, the workers and owner are very rude to you and them.
They prefer adults and that is fine but instead of taking the responsibility of becoming an adult only establishment, they'd rather spend their time lecturing and educating each parents, child and childcare provider who walks in on "how to behave" in their establishment". Ridiculous!! and arrogant!! Could you imagine Applebee's or BJ's Brewery House greeting all parents with a lecture and a set of rules of how their children ought to behave? hahahahaha...
This review IS NOT for the owner ( although she arrogantly assumes this was meant for her) This review is for parents and childcare providers. Be warned and take care. As a childcare provider ( My children are grown as I stated), I urge you to take your kids somewhere else. If you want a night on the town with adults only, maybe.... although, her lack of temperance in this matter may be an indication on her customer service) but please don't bring your babies to be educated by this overbearing owner who is not child friendly. Â
and for the "short sighted and socially unaware" who think that "Bar" in the name should mean "no Kids"... just because something says "Bar" in the name does not mean "no kids", Applebee's bar and grill welcomes kids and they have "bar" in their name. Winger's grill & bar have "bar" in the name and they welcome children and neither one greet their guests with a list of rules and 10 minute lecture for each parent or childcare provider who walks into their establishment.
So, if you're single or your family does not include children, this review is NOT for you. For families with kids who are not robots, heed my warning, love your babies... but take them somewhere that kids are valued as customers :o)
An additional response by me;
oh, and if you think because this establishment has 80's video games, then kids should be treated so rudely, this has been done before with a better atmosphere by Nickel, Nickel in California. Oddly though, they never felt the need to post crazy signs and greet guests with a lecture and a set of rules to protect their arcade games... in fact, there were tons of kids running around, having fun with 80's arcade games... with NO workers following them,complaining about fingerprints and checking for abandoned coins. <a href="/redir?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nickelnickelwhittier.com&s=ce714dce7f16eb5368f6d208a351b13e9145897d65e0bb14a752a62703c957bc" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://www.nickelnickelw…</a> .The original review is below
Pacman Versus. 'Nuff said. No? Okay, here's more.
Barcades are becoming more and more prevalent and I'm a happy kid. I can drag my friends some place where they can drink and I can be a nerd. It's a win-win.
Dorky's is MUCH larger than it appears and is the biggest barcade I've been to in Western Washington. There are tons of games to be played. Classic arcade games and pinball as well as newer offerings. They even have neon air hockey! The games are all in working order and are laid out in a pretty easy to navigate fashion. I can kill $10 in quarters here relatively easily.
When you walk in you're greeted with the restrooms almost directly in front of you... they are dirty and scary. The walls themselves may molest you with their germy little ghost-wall fingers if you're not careful. If you turn right you go into the darker, more game filled side of Dorky's. Over here is where you'll spend most of your time and where they'll have live bands or DJs set up on the weekends. I've heard some metal/punk bands rippin' it up and I've heard DJs spinning house and dubstep... you never really know what you're going to get. Raaaawwr wubwub raaaawr wubwubwub!
If you turn to the left you find the bar, the candy and a better lit section of the joint with a mellower offering of games. If you want to escape the hustle and bustle of the wild side of Dorky's and actually want to converse with your friends without causing your throat to bleed from screaming then this may be the side for you.
I've never ordered or paid for a beverage here so I have no input for you there but I have bought candy and a few other odd assortments of items. Yay toys!
One thing I do really appreciate is they have an ATM across from their coin machine and their coin machine accepts some pretty dastardly and "well loved" dolla dolla bills. I like to bring the $1 bills I get from stripping here since the machine will take them... not many places will.
I've made the drive from my place in Seattle to Tacoma just to hang out at Dorky's and I don't feel bad about that fact at all. In fact I feel another trip coming on as I type!
I'm a huge fan!
[[UPDATED]]One of the staff opted to reply, and in a couple cases I had clearly misinterpreted events, so I'm adjusting my review and score accordingly.]]]
We recently visited Dorky's, which came highly recommended from several people. The trick, we've realized, is never visit on a weekday; I have to assume the generally high marks given here were given by weekend patrons.
Our overall experience was negative, which is a shame, because Dorky's conceivably has a lot going for it. (On the other hand, it was a nice reminder that Ground Kontrol in Portland is awesome.)
On a positive note (and, sadly, the only positive note I can drum up from an otherwise dismal experience), the selection of retro games is pretty good, and the games themselves are clean and reasonably well maintained (at least cosmetically; several of the games I played had very unresponsive controls--a facet, no doubt, of the games being as old as I am, and something I just expect in an arcade).
So it hits the bare minimum of expectations in that regard. It has beer. It has videogames. Check.
On the negative side, the staff and owner are almost indescribably rude--hostile, in fact.
A sign greeted us as we entered mentioning $3 microbrews. When my wife attempted to order one, the staff -- seated at the bar and using her laptop-- vaguely waved at a wall of beers, (and it is a huge (120+) beer selection), and then began to roll her eyes, exasperated that we were not already well-versed in their offerings (because we had committed the cardinal sin, it seems, of never having set foot in there before), and didn't know which ones were actually the $3 beers.
[[[The server in question has replied that she felt we were, in fact, rude, and I'm willing to chalk this up to one or more of us having a bad day. That said, her contention -- that doing video production work on her computer was more important than assisting a customer with cash in hand is certainly telling. I'm also willing to stand by my years of experience as a journalist, writer and general observer of human behavior to say with confidence that, yes, she rolled her eyes and behaved as if we were a huge annoyance; her mileage clearly varied, but there you go. That's about as much "he said, she said" as I'm willing to devote time to.]]]
Later, Â my wife had an issue with the pinball machine she was playing -- ball stuck in play, which also happened to me, on the first ball I launched; it got stuck before the ball ever made its way into play, just sitting there. So she went to report the malfunction, and again, the server was confrontational, telling my wife that she "better not try this" when the owner was around; apparently, expecting to play a pinball game in an arcade after having put in one's quarters is a terrible affront. Finally, after being scolded by the staffer for several minutes and being blocked from actually playing the game, my wife asked "Is it really worth arguing over 50 cents? I just want to play the game. I don't care about the quarters."
[[[The server in question indicated that we should've waited until the machine kicked the ball, which is certainly valid. I did so with the Indiana Jones pinball game right next to the one my wife was using. The ball got stuck as soon as I began play. For all I know, it's still stuck. But again, I'm happy to consider her comments in reevaluating my review. She's also cited abusive behavior by my wife, which is, frankly nonsense, but in the interests of fairness, she may well have perceived hostility, as it seemed we triggered her dislike upon entering the business. ]]]
As my wife and left the establishment, Â she said, "It's a cool place. Too bad that lady is so rude." Another passerby -- who must've been a regular customer or an employee -- shot us a dirty look, bolted inside, and by the time we had gotten into our car and started to pull out of our parking space, the owner raced out to confront us, holding his keys like a stabbing weapon and yelling "ARE YOU THE PEOPLE BEING RUDE TO MY STAFF?!!!"
[[[I am now informed by the staffer in question that the owner is also her boyfriend, and the contention is that we somehow were yelling out how awful our experience was and name-calling, etc. Apparently, we managed this in the 10 second walk to our car, which I was already driving by the time the owner/boyfriend made his dramatic entrance.]]]
When you read the other reviews here about how the owner and staff are rude, in my experience they're selling them short. I genuinely thought the owner was going to assault us, over a 50-cent credit on a pinball game. [[[As for the attitude and behavior of the staff, her own comments remain below, so you can be the judge. And this specific staffer is cited in many of the -- and please note, otherwise positive -- reviews here as being unpleasant and rude, so the attempt to somehow scold or shame me into perceiving her behavior as somehow justified should be obvious for what it is.]]]
Holy crap, this review is SO overdue for an update!!
My only real gripe about Dorky's when I originally wrote a review nearly two years ago was that they had been unable to secure a liquor license and therefore had NO BEER. Â This lamentable situation has since been remedied, and now they not only have beer but an impressive selection of everything from cheap-ass tallboys to limited edition microbrews in 22oz 'bombers', and happy hour specials too! Â No drafts or hard liquor though; bottles & cans only.
There have been a number of other changes in the interim as well; chiefly a MAJOR expansion that more than doubled the size of the place. Â A live music stage came and went; apparently the people that the bands brought in were more trouble than they were worth so now the thumpin' sound system is utilized by DJs on the evenings and weekends instead. Â Although I hate losing any live music venue in T-Town, this arrangement seems more fitting for an arcade.
The hours have fluctuated, the menu has gone through several alterations, new games arrive while others disappear, and events such as 'trivia night' pop up on the calendar periodically. Â Check out their facebook page to stay apprised of the happenings in Dorkyland, or better yet just stop in and drop some quarters with a beer in hand!
Dorky's Barcade! (at least that's what we call it) brings me back to my childhood days spent in arcades very similar to this one. Except this isn't the arcade of your childhood, at least not mine. This one blows them all out of the water. Why? Because they also have pizza, grilled cheese, dessert pizzas, candy, sodas, happy hour all day Sunday and adult beverages of the canned or bottled kind. Â
This is truly a playground for both children and grown adult children alike. Dorky's mostly has the older arcade games and pinball machines, sprinkled with some newer ones here and there. But no matter what generation you hail from, these timeless games will have you grinning from ear to ear.
During the day, the arcade is open to all ages. And with that comes great responsibility. I had the pleasure of meeting and hanging out with one of the owners during my most recent trip and witnessed first hand how proactive they are in keeping people's language in check. They also do frequent sweeps of the arcade to make sure all kids are accompanied by an adult and also reinforce to adults with beverages that if they are left unattended, they will be dumped out.
The bathrooms were clean, and required a key from the front desk for added security. The fountain drinks come with free refills. They make their own pizzas made to order on site, and carry a very wide variety of adult beverages. They do have an on-site change maker, but don't have an ATM on-site. While there are numerous ATMs in downtown Tacoma, Dorkys will allow you to add cash back on card purchases for a small convenience fee.
They also do birthday parties! What more could you ask for?
Pinball machines, old school arcade games, pizza, and beer!! Â Not to shabby of a combination for a good time! Â I am not a gamer, but I love swinging by Dorky's when the night is young and goofing around for a bit. Â Kids are welcomed early in the evening and during the day, but are not allowed at night. Â The only downfall of this place is the smell. Â Think of your grandma's basement and a boys' locker room...but hey it adds the the ambiance...lol.
Review Source:I found my childhood again at Dorky's Bar Arcade! I have driven up and down Pacific Ave several times but never noticed or even heard about this place. I found it haphazardly perusing through the yelp! app and found reviews of this highly rated place. After having dinner at Matador's just diagnolly across, we walked on down...it's EXACLY like heading into Tron's Flint's Arcade. PLUS there is a small little bar that sells beer and at night, they kick all the minors out and it becomes an awesome playground for the grown up nerds as they dim the lights and amp up the music.
All my favorites were here....Pinball (From Indian Jones to the Simpsons to World Cup '94), the classic Nintendo games (Super Mario Bros. which is harder with a joystick rather than the control, Donkey Kong, etc), air hockey (which I remember playing at a Chuck E. Cheese when I was 8!), the arm wrestling game, and contemporary stuff like Dance Revolution and Guitar Hero!
It was awesome having a pocketful of quarters and with all the games being either 25 cents to 50 cents, I was definitely entertained for hours and probably spent 10 bucks max on change.
I am sure this place will definitely have a personal attachment to those who were born in the 80s-90s...definitely a treasured place to have in Tacoma and a must do for all.
I heard you can have a birthday party here...I may just take them up on that offer for a thirty something bash! lol
Dorky's rocks, period....
This harkens back to the 80's golden era of arcades and pinballs. Instantly nostalgic and takes me back to an age where the possibilities seemed endless.
I've been going here for nearly a year now... They are constantly adding new games and variety keeping the arcades fresh and new for even semi-regulars like myself.
As well as arcades and pinballs (almost all still just .25 cents, NO TOKENS EITHER!) they also have beer, food, and snacks. The food is very tasty and nicely priced.
The ambiance is very cool and the staff are as well.
The machines are obviously old, and therefore expensive and sometimes fragile - don't abuse the machines, set your drinks on them and be respectful. There have been issues of parents not monitoring their children and treating the place like Chuck E Cheese and letting them run around like hellions. Because of this, kids under 8 are not allowed in. Of course, it doesn't matter how old you are, if you act like a heathen, you too will get booted out.
This is a great place to have a great time! I love Dorky's!!!
I've been coming to Dorkys since it first opened, although I've only ever gone on the week days besides once. Usually when I go in its not busy so you either get to play your game right away or find another to play for a min or two. I can spend quite a few dozen quaters but you get your moneys worth - games are priced at .25 with the exception of DDR which is .50. Pinballs are .50 but I usually stay away since I suck at them. Ha!
Food is very good and filling although I find it pretty spendy slightly being almost $10 for a sub - boyfriend got a pizza and it was $7.99 so average for a 12".
As far as staff I've never had problems with them although I did feel like it was more friendlier then before they started hiring more people but I cannot slight them for that - it just seems like the cashier at the bar is always grumpy whenever I go up there making me want to send someone else up there to get whatever I need.
I did happen to go today when they had one of their shows which was meh - it wasn't my taste but then again I lost interest in 16-bit bands when I was in 9th grade but if that is your thing then you totally have fun! I loved the DJs though - their mix was pretty awesome.
Will always and forever return with their awesome magnets which I always buy when I go there.
I like Dorky's and intend to return.
Loads of video games - and they all work and didn't find many that were sticky!!!
Affordable fun for all. Â Great assortment of titles including pinball. Â
Great eats within walking distance too if you don't want what they serve up there.
Don't think of this as "Chuck E. Cheese" for adults. Â This is way cooler.
I spend more time here than my check-ins would imply. Â Is this an admission a la AA or a prideful boast? Â You be the judge!
What is Dorky's? Â The arcade of your idealized youth, nothing less. Â Most every old game you can think of and a plethora of pinball machines await. Â They keep true to the nostalgia by keeping the prices original, so pop a quarter in that Dig Dug and let's hit it!
Things that make me sooo happy:
Tempest
Qix
Galaga
Battle Zone
Burger Time (although I curse it at the same time)
pinball machines (esp Elvira, Adam's Family and Evil Kenevil)
They have all this and about 10x more at Dorky's. Â Really!
The food is good (grilled cheese is cheap and yum. Â Happy hour includes a basket of 3 grilled cheese sammys for like, $6), they have root beer on tap. Â Beer too. Â They've struck a happy medium by allowing kids before 9pm. Â They keep the bathrooms tidy.
Kids love it here. Â Dorky's is not only a pretty good place for a kid's birthday party...it's also an excellent tool for bribery.
The owners are wonderful people who are following their passion. Â Really - check it out. Â I spend a couple hours there with $5. Â How often can you say that anymore?
I surprisingly had a lot of fun at this place! me and my friend played DDR most of the time while the boys did their boy stuff. Â
The bar only has bottled and canned beer or cider. Â They had raspberry cider that was delish!
You can bring underage friends up until a certain point, which was pretty cool, but I wish they allowed underage people to stay a little longer.
The place is in need of a major scrub down/ make over , but it was pretty okay!
want to play more DDR !
Old school video games, a nice selection of beer, live music? Loving it!
Have been here a couple of times and think its a great place to stop on a night out. Being a former hard-core Nintendo player as a kid, this place really brings me back.
Pros
-games are a quarter
-surprisingly wide selection of beer
-staff is nice
Cons
-kids allowed until a certain time (maybe 9PM?) wish they weren't allowed at all
-need some small tables to put your drink while you play, you'll aren't allowed to set them on the game (for obvious reasons) so the only other place is the floor, yuck
oh LORD do I love this place! Nostalgia is an understatement. Since I was last here, they now have their liquor license (Beer only) but this is great. And old school arcade games galore! Basically every game is only .25 with the exception of the pinball machines being mostly .50 a play. Great friendly staff as well. And thankfully after I believe 9pm, it's 21+ only, so no kids running around ruining your fun!
Also, I have heard that this place surprisingly has really good sandwiches and the pizza SMELLED really good, but I have yet to try any food here. Maybe next time. But being there are a good 4-5 bars within a block or two of dorkys, you could always just walk 30 seconds to grab a bite to eat and then get back to gaming if you are worried about ordering dinner from a barcade. But I think I will try out some food here next time and do an update.
Fun place! We ended up going to Dorky's twice when visiting my family. It was the perfect place for people of all ages (10-60 years old) and the games are all between 25-50 cents so it's inexpensive.
Mario Brothers, Bubble Bobble, Donkey Kongs, Air Hockey, Pinball, NBA Jam and much, much more. Those are just my favorites -- obviously a child of the late 80s/early 90s.
I didn't try any food as the place smells like a disgusting basement. If they cleaned up the facility it could be really great. Good addition to Tacoma.
This is one of my favorite places on Planet Earth. You step inside, WHOOSH, you're transported back to a happier time in your life.
I've been going to arcades for more than forty years. I can't rave enough about Dorky's! The spirit of the old arcades lives on here!
Not to mention a Wall Of Beer that will have at least one of your favorites (and they're up on all the new brews too!). And it's one of the best sandwich joints in Tacoma (the pulled pork is especially noteworthy!). And they'll have live music or DJs workin' it during the evenings, something none of the old arcades I'd been to ever had.
And where are you ever going to find pinball you can play for a quarter? Nowhere but Dorky's! Even the newest machines are only 50 cents to play!
So what the hell are you waiting for? Grab those quarters on your dresser and get down there already!
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